Houston Rockets coach Mike D'Antoni joins The Woj Pod to discuss the Chris Paul/Russell Westbrook trade, tensions within the Rockets locker room, why James Harden's voice is so important in personnel decisions, coaching the season without an extension, how he's had to compromise his offensive system to fit Harden's talents, working for a new, hands-on owner and a lingering regret of how he coached the Suns/Spurs battles a decade ago.
Longtime Thunder guard Russell Westbrook, now bound for Houston, took to Instagram on Friday to thank the Oklahoma City community, saying he was "eternally grateful" for the 11 years he spent with the organization.
Can these two MVPs play together again? It's up to them to make it work.
What's next for the Thunder and Rockets? Our experts answer the big questions.
With Russell Westbrook and Paul George gone, the next era of OKC basketball sends the franchise somewhere it has never been.
So much for the idea of the Rockets standing firm and running things back for the 2019-20 season. Houston, after initially being described in...
Brian Windhorst, Royce Young and Tim MacMahon hop on an emergency podcast to discuss the dramatic trade that sent Russell Westbrook to Houston for Chris Paul.
How will Russell Westbrook and James Harden fit? Kevin Pelton grades the deal.
Houston hoped to find third-team destination preferable to Chris Paul, but ultimately leaves it OKC to execute next step once Presti confers w/ CP3 agent Leon Rose. Miami remains possibility for Paul (3 years, $124M) -- and OKC obviously has picks to incentivize deal, if needed
Yet another stunning NBA trade left players shaking their heads while also predicting that the upcoming season could be the best ever.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have agreed to trade Russell Westbrook to the Houston Rockets for Chris Paul, first-round picks in 2024 and 2026 and pick swaps in 2021 and 2025, league sources told ESPN.
Sam Presti in a statement announcing the Paul George trade: “Resiliency has been a staple of our city and our franchise, and this challenge provided us with another opportunity to demonstrate that. Our goal with this transaction was to create value both in the short and long term and help reposition and replenish the organization's future platform ... We are proud that Paul is a part of our history as an organization and that some of the best basketball of his career was in Oklahoma City. He should be remembered fondly; we wish him and his family the best.”
| TEAM | W | L | PCT | GB | STRK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Denver | 54 | 28 | .659 | - | W1 |
| Portland | 53 | 29 | .646 | 1 | W3 |
| Utah | 50 | 32 | .610 | 4 | L1 |
| Oklahoma City | 49 | 33 | .598 | 5 | W5 |
| Minnesota | 36 | 46 | .439 | 18 | L3 |
| RD(PK) | PLAYER | POS | SCHOOL |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1(23) | Darius Bazley | SF |
| YEAR | W | L | PCT |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-19 | 49 | 33 | .598 |
| 2017-18 | 48 | 34 | .585 |
| 2016-17 | 47 | 35 | .573 |
| 2015-16 | 55 | 27 | .671 |
| 2014-15 | 45 | 37 | .549 |
