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The Whiteboard: Who will be the Oklahoma City Thunder’s fifth man?

By Ti Windisch

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - APRIL 25: Billy Donovan coach of the Oklahoma City Thunder looks on during game 5 of the Western Conference playoffs at the Chesapeake Energy Arena on April 25, 2018 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by J Pat Carter/Getty Images)
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - APRIL 25: Billy Donovan coach of the Oklahoma City Thunder looks on during game 5 of the Western Conference playoffs at the Chesapeake Energy Arena on April 25, 2018 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by J Pat Carter/Getty Images) /
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The Oklahoma City Thunder need one more impact player to fill out a killer late-game lineup.

For all of the drama and angry tweets surrounding his Oklahoma City Thunder tenure, Carmelo Anthony was part of the Thunder’s best lineups last season. The best OKC five-man group to play at least 100 minutes included ol’ Melo.

Russell Westbrook, Andre Roberson, Paul George, and Steven Adams round out that five, which was 14.1 points per 100 possessions better than the opposition in 2017-18. Until Roberson’s season-ending patellar injury, that was clearly the go-to group for OKC head coach Billy Donovan.

Roberson could be back and ready to go to start the 2018-19 season, but Melo is very much gone. The Thunder got Dennis Schroder in return for Melo in a trade with the Atlanta Hawks, but that doesn’t necessarily mean Schroder will be that fifth piece to fit with Westbrook, Roberson, George, and Adams.

As I’ve detailed on The Whiteboard before, Schroder’s fit next to Russ is problematic at best. Maybe Donovan can make Westbrook/Schroder lineups work, but it seems unlikely that those two would start or end games next to each other. For all of Melo’s fault, he at least made 35.7 percent of his threes last year. Schroder only managed to make 29.0 percent of his.

So let’s say it isn’t Schroder. Nerlens Noel is another big addition to the Thunder, but again, Noel is not exactly a sharpshooter. His minutes will likely come in relief of Adams, not alongside him.

That leaves four good options: two guards and two forwards. On the guard side there’s Alex Abrines and Terrance Ferguson, and Jerami Grant and Patrick Patterson are the forwards involved.

Patterson was just plain bad last year, and Donovan and company obviously hope he’s got a comeback in him for the coming season. Still, while Pat-Pat trended down Grant took a leap as a player. Grant was more efficient than he’d ever been before, and found ways to make plays on both ends.

That’s something that neither Abrines nor Ferguson could do last season. Ferguson was a rookie at least. Abrines was in his second season, and his scoring numbers actually fell. He struggles to make a real impact in games.

Grant was far and away the best player of the four last season, and he’s started to develop a 3-point shot as well. He seems like the odds-on favorite to be that fifth key player, but a leap from Abrines or Ferguson could change things, especially if they can become reliable 3-point threats.

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