Mussatto: Why Paul George trade to Clippers is gift that keeps on giving to OKC Thunder
![Portrait of Joe Mussatto](https://cdn.statically.io/img/www.oklahoman.com/gcdn/presto/2021/02/01/PARN/b78fa1f3-54f7-4d6c-bebd-558aea48f3ad-mussatto-mug.jpg?crop=149,149,x0,y13&width=48&height=48&format=pjpg&auto=webp)
When did the Thunder win the Paul George trade? Like really win it?
As soon as the ink was dry, you could argue. Five first-round picks, two pick swaps, a veteran sharpshooter in Danilo Gallinari and a promising young guard in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander? Even then we knew it was a bounty.
If OKC wasn’t the clear winner from the jump, then at what juncture? The night SGA, in his first season with the Thunder, had a 20-20 game at Minnesota? When the Clippers embarrassingly blew a 3-1 lead against the Nuggets in the bubble? When SGA became an All-Star? A top-five MVP finisher? When the Thunder drafted Jalen Williams using a Clippers pick?
Or was the Thunder not officially the winner until Monday, when George, this summer’s marquee free agent, opted to sign with the Philadelphia 76ers rather than staying home in Southern California to re-sign with the Los Angeles Clippers?
When in doubt, go with “all of the above.”
More:How Isaiah Hartenstein fits for OKC Thunder as franchise's biggest free agent addition
Five years removed from a trade that would come to shape both franchises, it’s clear the Thunder was the winner then, the winner now and the winner to come.
For the Thunder, it’s the gift that keeps on giving.
For the Clippers, they’re staring at a bill that still hasn’t been paid in full.
That’s right, L.A. still owes the Thunder an unprotected first-round pick in 2026 and OKC has the rights to swap picks with the Clippers in a stacked 2025 draft.
Poke fun at the Clippers all you want, but it’s a price they had to pay. It not only secured them George, but also Kawhi Leonard — two of the best two-way players of their generation. While a disaster in hindsight, the trade led the Clippers to their first ever conference finals, which Leonard missed due to a torn ACL.
Injuries on top of injuries doomed the Clippers.
Now the 34-year-old George, fresh off a ninth All-Star appearance and the best shooting season of his career, is Philly bound, leaving Leonard and James Harden lost in the Los Angeles smog. Leonard, *when healthy*, is still one of the 10 best players in the game. Harden, while still good, is long past his prime.
Mussatto:Once a Thunder nutmeg victim, Isaiah Hartenstein is perfect fit for OKC
That unprotected Clippers pick in 2026 is looking juicier than ever for the Thunder. Same goes for OKC’s swap rights in this upcoming draft.
Sam Presti has built a stacked squad — one that might be favored to win the West — and he’s still collecting more chips. The asset-rich Thunder added elite role players this offseason in Alex Caruso and Isaiah Hartenstein without sacrificing a single pick.
Speaking of rich, Clippers owner Steve Ballmer has more money than his old Microsoft boss, Bill Gates, but the NBA’s new salary cap structure was designed to curtail the biggest spending teams by putting roster-building restrictions in place.
It’s hard to see the Clippers combusting, though. They’re finally about to move into their own arena, and they’re still in Los Angeles after all. They have a good owner in Steve Ballmer, a terrific coach in Tyronn Lue and a smart front office led by Lawrence Frank.
Yet they’re still recovering from the Paul George trade, which should probably be renamed the Shai Gilgeous-Alexander trade — a trade in which the Thunder isn’t done winning.
Joe Mussatto is a sports columnist for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Joe? Email him at jmussatto@oklahoman.com. Support Joe's work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.
More:OKC Thunder tracker in NBA free agency 2024: Latest news and updates
Thunder since SGA/Paul George trade
- 2019-20: 44-28, first-round loss to Rockets
- 2020-21: 22-50, missed playoffs
- 2021-22: 24-58, missed playoffs
- 2022-23: 40-42, made play-in, missed playoffs
- 2023-24: 57-25, top seed in West, lost in second round
Clippers since SGA/Paul George trade
- 2019-20: 49-23, second-round loss to Nuggets
- 2020-21: 47-25, Western Conference Finals loss to Suns
- 2021-22: 42-40, made play-in, missed playoffs
- 2022-23: 44-38, first-round loss to Suns
- 2023-24: 51-31, fourth in West, lost in first round