There was a time when the OKC Thunder had a roster composed of Kevin Durant, James Harden, Russell Westbrook, and Serge Ibaka. Now they have none of them, and the world won’t let them forget it.
They made a pretty brutal mistake in 2012, electing to trade James Harden to ease their wallets. He became an NBA MVP in 2018 and has become one of the league’s best players in his eight seasons with the Rockets.
But what would have happened had he stayed in Houston?
According to Harden himself, he’d have some hardware already.
(via GQ Magazine)
https://twitter.com/Ballislife/status/1229778300505030656
It’s fair to say that the Thunder didn’t know who they had in James Harden. With a bigger role, he would have thrived alongside his co-stars.
The team made the NBA Finals in the months before Harden’s trade but were squashed by Miami in the series 4-1. Harden would go on to average 25 points per game the very next season. That kind of production on a team with Russ and KD likely would have been enough to seriously challenge Miami or another top team at the time.
We will never know how the team would have fared if they stayed together, but it’s not a stretch to assume they would right there at the top of the NBA.
This season, Harden and Russ have a chance to make up for lost time. As teammates again in Houston, they will be vying to raise that Larry O’Brien trophy this June.
