With the Oklahoma City Thunder eliminated from the NBA Playoffs, let’s take a look at their five offseason needs to improve their team.
A year ago, the Thunder were rolling in the playoffs, up 3-1 over the Warriors, and looking to head back to the NBA Finals for a date with the Cavaliers. A Klay Thompson 3-point barrage in Game 6 and three bad losses later, the Thunder were eliminated.
Oklahoma City eventually saw Kevin Durant choose the Warriors, then Russell Westbrook sign a long-term deal to stay with them. They picked up Victor Oladipo and other pieces for a new era of Thunder basketball that didn’t feature Durant.
The fans in Oklahoma City should be proud of what they saw this season. A superstar — probably, the MVP too — lead their team, while averaging a triple-double, back to the playoffs. Russell Westbrook and the Thunder were disposed in five games by the Houston Rockets, but each game was fought hard till the end.
The Thunder head into an important offseason, where they have the ability to reload this team and construct the roster around their leader. Westbrook probably looks at the team they lost to and hopes for a similar roster next year — a squad that featured a ball-dominant Harden, spaced by long-range snipers and athletic big men to clean up the boards.
As the Thunder start their offseason sooner than they had hoped to, here are five offseason needs that they need to address to make improvements.
5. Hire a shooting coach for Andre Roberson
You know it’s bad when the opposing team can be successful by hacking your shooting guard intentionally. Unfortunately, that’s the dilemma that faces Andre Roberson, who’s a historically bad 3-point and free throw shooter. But his incredible defensive skills have kept him on the court.
Roberson’s basically the modern-day Tony Allen, who found a successful niche with the Memphis Grizzlies. Can Roberson at least develop a shot that defenders will respect? My guess is that he’ll have to if he wants to stay in Oklahoma City.
Roberson is set to be a restricted free-agent this offseason, but his qualifying offer for this summer is $4.6 million. In order for a long-term deal to be worked out between the two sides, the Thunder’ shooting guard will have to prove that he can be trusted on offense.
This past season, Roberson averaged 6.6 points and 5.1 rebounds, while shooting 46 percent from the field and 24 percent from 3-point range. Factor in that he had a career-worst 42 percent free throw percentage, and his offensive production becomes a liability. On defense, it’s completely a different story, where he’s one of the best in the league.
So what’s the best solution for OKC? Hire a shooting coach for Roberson that stays with him 24/7 and he can improve his outside game. Westbrook needs all the snipers he can get, and Roberson has to improve his shooting to be worthy of a long-term deal.