Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant (Photo : Sam Greenwood | Getty Images Sport)
It's a possibility that Oklahoma City has to face. Their most famous athlete for the past decade, Kevin Durant of the Thunder, may leave the team, and the city.
The last time an MVP left his team, it was truly a disaster. LeBron James left Cleveland in 2010 and returned after 4 years with the Cavaliers not making the playoffs despite having two 1st overall picks and 2 4th overall picks in that period.
The Oklahoma City Thunder front office are aware of this, and if the rumors that Durant wants to reach the NBA Finals or bust hold true, GM Sam Presti could be in real hot water.
The Thunder almost lost to their West rivals the LA Clippers, who missed the services of five key players- Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, DeAndre Jordan, JJ Redick and Paul Pierce. There are also two dominating teams atop the Thunder.
Still, there is a fair chance for them to win it all, but it is worth speculating on what would happen if Durant decides to bolt.
This was a thread on NBA Reddit and the biggest problem for OKC is that Westbrook will also be a free agent at the end of next season. There are some arguments that he would leave since Durant is not with him anymore, but there is also the possibility that he would relish the challenge to carry his own team.
Lately, Westbrook has been on a tear tying Michael Jordan's record for most triple doubles in a month and on the verge of tying Magic Johnson's feat of 17 triple doubles in a season. He does not hesitate to take the final shot even if Durant is there.
If Durant leaves, OKC must move on and try to keep Westbrook, and they need to build a competitive team around him. Redditor 'rsxbwa' suggested trading Serge Ibaka for Kevin Love to reunite the UCLA duo. Then they would go hard at Nicolas Batum of the Charlotte Hornets.
Other targets for free agency could be Al Horford and Joakim Noah, both wards of Coach Billy Donovan in Florida.
The big problem for OKC is that Westbrook will become the main free agent target in 2017. One of their main rivals would be the team that actually signed Durant. The Thunder can avoid lightning striking twice (pun intended) by trading Westbrook for young assets. Like this scenario in Lakers Nation where the Lakers could trade their young core (Jordan Clarkson, D'Angelo Russell, Julius Randle) for veterans. Presti will probably take that instead of risking both franchise players in consecutive offseasons.
The OKC Thunder has not been a free agent destination. They built their team from three consecutive lottery appearances (2007-2009) where they have taken arguably the best players of their class. They may have to return to that formula a decade after.
