Sit down with OKC GM Steve Jobs:
Jul 30, 2018 18:18:45 GMT -5
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Post by Adrian Wojnarowski on Jul 30, 2018 18:18:45 GMT -5
It's been a long summer so far, and despite a ton of intriguing story lines, one of the strangest moments of the D720 offseason came when the Thunder engaged in a three team trade with Minnesota and the LA Clippers to acquire Mike Conley and the 7th pick in the draft.
Taken by many to be a bad move for the Clippers, no one really knew what to expect from the Thunder, who simultaneously acquired an aging star and a young top draft pick, painting a murky picture of their future.
To clarify the team's direction, I sat down with OKC GM Steve Jobs to discuss the deal, the Thunder's future, and what Steve hopes to see from his team going forward.
You're on record saying that you're extremely happy with the draft day trade you made, but tell me more about the thought process behind the deal? (AW)
"Absolutely, I think there aren't many moves we've made in the history of this OKC organization that I was as certain about when it happened, but of course there were plenty of risks involved. With such a young core, taking on big time money with Mike Conley's contract while also losing a good portion of the young prospects we've held as staples for a while in the deal, we really doubled down on finding a 5th running mate for the young core while also knowing that, for the time being, we may not have the cap flexibility or the trade assets to change much about our team. That said, I spoke with Mike right after the trade to clarify that our direction is solely aimed towards contending as long as he was on board with our vision for the future, and that we believe in him to return from injury as good as ever and help lead us towards the promised land. I think he didn't feel comfortable because we've been very upfront about believing in Dejounte, Jaylen, Ben, and Myles as the core components of our team's future, and more importantly, having added Michael Porter Jr. to the mix made it obvious we like our youth and aim to really contend when they all come along and develop, so we told him we'd do everything in our power to pursue trades with other contenders so he could have a role that didn't need to be in question. Ultimately, we didn't find a market that suited his needs and came back to discussions with him to let him know we did what we could to give him what he wanted but that for as long as he was physically capable of outperforming Dejounte, he'd have a starting job with our team.
"As for Michael Porter, that was purely an upside play - knowing where he's come from, how good he projected to be before the back injuries, and just how dedicated he is to pursuing a successful NBA career, we wanted a chance to pair his scoring and versatility with the length and defense that the rest of our roster has proven capable of achieving." (SJ)
Do you think that your veteran players - Mike Conley, Al Horford and George Hill - appreciate your pursuing deals for them to get them on contenders as an act of good faith when you're so committed to your youth movement? Are they excited about the coming season?
"You know, I hope they do because we want only the best for all of them, especially Al, literally the last remnant of the roster he signed on to compete with. Our team has been in a long state of upheaval trying to find a foundational core that was truly competitive in the playoffs, and we've always been up front and honest with our veterans about the directions we take and trying to make sure they find homes they're comfortable with if our team ends up changing a bit. At the end of the day, it's about getting the best team on the court, and we think that with Conley, Horford, George Hill, and Ed Davis helping lead and elevate this young roster, the young guns will get a chance to learn what it takes to win while getting significant minutes for development.
"Ultimately, the most important part of this all for us was versatility, we know between DJ, Jaylen, MPJ, Ben, and Myles, we've got a great young core that plays extremely well with our veteran talent, and we want to build a culture that isn't based around taking other people's jobs, but rather working together as a cohesive unit to have the best chance at winning night in and night out. If DJ's shot isn't falling and Mike or George is hot, they may get the nod against an opponent that is susceptible to 3 point shooting. If we want to go size and/or ball movement, Ben and Al at the forward spots will go a long way for us. The theory is that having 6-9 guys that might be worthy of a start on any given night against any given opponent, and all of those potential starters know their roles, know they'll get minutes, and work together to achieve the best possible results for our squad, we believe in our ability to get over the hump in the playoffs and really go at the best team's in the league. You know, we took the Conference Champion Suns to 7 games, and that was without Mike. We're excited about the upcoming year, and we're unequivocally locked in with this roster and looking forward to see what it's capable of. Even if MPJ has to sit the year, we're confident in his rehab and he'll have a well defined role on the team for years to come."
What's the big take away from the Knicks and Suns playing for the title?
We think elite perimeter defense mixed with a solid offensive system and players to mix and match in that system played into the success of both Finals contenders this year, and it's a model we've been looking to emulate with DJ/Jaylen/Ben/Myles as they get older and develop into the players they'll be in their prime. Mike and Al fit that mold incredibly well too, and we think we finally have the depth and roster construction to utilize that game plan effectively. That's nothing against the Suns and the Knicks - JT and Allan are excellent GMs and they've both come such a long way from where their teams started to now. Congrats to both of them, and all the playoff teams, on a successful year.
One last nugget of wisdom Steve imparted on me and his people shuffled me out the door with a brand new iPhone in hand was this phrase, "They think it don't be like it is, but it do." No idea what he meant, but I like it.
Looking forward to the upcoming season!
- Woj
Have a story to tell? Log into Woj's account (username: wojnarowski; password: wojnarowski) and tell it. (Be warned, if you don't play nice or try to change the password, I'll take the account back and keep it locked to go through me).
Taken by many to be a bad move for the Clippers, no one really knew what to expect from the Thunder, who simultaneously acquired an aging star and a young top draft pick, painting a murky picture of their future.
To clarify the team's direction, I sat down with OKC GM Steve Jobs to discuss the deal, the Thunder's future, and what Steve hopes to see from his team going forward.
You're on record saying that you're extremely happy with the draft day trade you made, but tell me more about the thought process behind the deal? (AW)
"Absolutely, I think there aren't many moves we've made in the history of this OKC organization that I was as certain about when it happened, but of course there were plenty of risks involved. With such a young core, taking on big time money with Mike Conley's contract while also losing a good portion of the young prospects we've held as staples for a while in the deal, we really doubled down on finding a 5th running mate for the young core while also knowing that, for the time being, we may not have the cap flexibility or the trade assets to change much about our team. That said, I spoke with Mike right after the trade to clarify that our direction is solely aimed towards contending as long as he was on board with our vision for the future, and that we believe in him to return from injury as good as ever and help lead us towards the promised land. I think he didn't feel comfortable because we've been very upfront about believing in Dejounte, Jaylen, Ben, and Myles as the core components of our team's future, and more importantly, having added Michael Porter Jr. to the mix made it obvious we like our youth and aim to really contend when they all come along and develop, so we told him we'd do everything in our power to pursue trades with other contenders so he could have a role that didn't need to be in question. Ultimately, we didn't find a market that suited his needs and came back to discussions with him to let him know we did what we could to give him what he wanted but that for as long as he was physically capable of outperforming Dejounte, he'd have a starting job with our team.
"As for Michael Porter, that was purely an upside play - knowing where he's come from, how good he projected to be before the back injuries, and just how dedicated he is to pursuing a successful NBA career, we wanted a chance to pair his scoring and versatility with the length and defense that the rest of our roster has proven capable of achieving." (SJ)
Do you think that your veteran players - Mike Conley, Al Horford and George Hill - appreciate your pursuing deals for them to get them on contenders as an act of good faith when you're so committed to your youth movement? Are they excited about the coming season?
"You know, I hope they do because we want only the best for all of them, especially Al, literally the last remnant of the roster he signed on to compete with. Our team has been in a long state of upheaval trying to find a foundational core that was truly competitive in the playoffs, and we've always been up front and honest with our veterans about the directions we take and trying to make sure they find homes they're comfortable with if our team ends up changing a bit. At the end of the day, it's about getting the best team on the court, and we think that with Conley, Horford, George Hill, and Ed Davis helping lead and elevate this young roster, the young guns will get a chance to learn what it takes to win while getting significant minutes for development.
"Ultimately, the most important part of this all for us was versatility, we know between DJ, Jaylen, MPJ, Ben, and Myles, we've got a great young core that plays extremely well with our veteran talent, and we want to build a culture that isn't based around taking other people's jobs, but rather working together as a cohesive unit to have the best chance at winning night in and night out. If DJ's shot isn't falling and Mike or George is hot, they may get the nod against an opponent that is susceptible to 3 point shooting. If we want to go size and/or ball movement, Ben and Al at the forward spots will go a long way for us. The theory is that having 6-9 guys that might be worthy of a start on any given night against any given opponent, and all of those potential starters know their roles, know they'll get minutes, and work together to achieve the best possible results for our squad, we believe in our ability to get over the hump in the playoffs and really go at the best team's in the league. You know, we took the Conference Champion Suns to 7 games, and that was without Mike. We're excited about the upcoming year, and we're unequivocally locked in with this roster and looking forward to see what it's capable of. Even if MPJ has to sit the year, we're confident in his rehab and he'll have a well defined role on the team for years to come."
What's the big take away from the Knicks and Suns playing for the title?
We think elite perimeter defense mixed with a solid offensive system and players to mix and match in that system played into the success of both Finals contenders this year, and it's a model we've been looking to emulate with DJ/Jaylen/Ben/Myles as they get older and develop into the players they'll be in their prime. Mike and Al fit that mold incredibly well too, and we think we finally have the depth and roster construction to utilize that game plan effectively. That's nothing against the Suns and the Knicks - JT and Allan are excellent GMs and they've both come such a long way from where their teams started to now. Congrats to both of them, and all the playoff teams, on a successful year.
One last nugget of wisdom Steve imparted on me and his people shuffled me out the door with a brand new iPhone in hand was this phrase, "They think it don't be like it is, but it do." No idea what he meant, but I like it.
Looking forward to the upcoming season!
- Woj
Have a story to tell? Log into Woj's account (username: wojnarowski; password: wojnarowski) and tell it. (Be warned, if you don't play nice or try to change the password, I'll take the account back and keep it locked to go through me).