Thunder Stands Pat At Deadline, Visits Lakers Tonight

<p>The NBA’s trade deadline has come and gone anticlimactically, without a Thunder trade.</p>

Thursday, February 8th 2018, 3:41 pm

By: News 9

Thunder Stands Pat At Deadline, Visits Lakers Tonight

The NBA’s trade deadline has come and gone, anticlimactically for Thunder fans. Oklahoma City takes on the Lakers tonight in L.A. at 9:30 p.m. CT.

Luke Walton and Los Angeles won’t have Jordan Clarkson and Larry Nance Jr. tonight; they dealt the pair to Cleveland in exchange for Isaiah Thomas and the Cavs’ first round pick. Clarkson had 18 points in last week’s Lakers win over OKC.

Russell Westbrook and Carmelo Anthony remain questionable after getting banged up in Tuesday’s 125-105 drubbing of Golden State. That win snapped a four-game skid for the Thunder (31-24), which sits in fifth-place in the West and is now two games behind Minnesota for fourth and 1.5 ahead of sixth-place Denver.

PG’s approach to the game if Melo & Russ are unavailable tonight - “I know to be more aggressive, I know I have to be more efficient, the leader going forward if they don’t play tonight.” #News9Thunder
— Steve McGehee (@SteveMcGehee) February 8, 2018

Rumored to be after the likes of Avery Bradley, Marcus Smart, Rodney Hood or Jonathon Simmons, Thunder GM Sam Presti was unable to trade for a wing replacement for injured Andre Roberson. That doesn’t mean the Thunder is done, however.

Look for Presti to explore the buyout market this spring. Many players – Joe Johnson, Tony Allen and Derrick Rose to name three – will be bought out by teams looking to dump salary off their books.

Adding another wing player, especially a defensive-minded one, for the playoffs will still be a priority. How much an old Tony Allen or a washed-up Joe Johnson can help – that’s up for debate.

I am a little upset we didn’t get to see some of that Presti magic today. But sometimes doing nothing is the right move. #Thunder
— Sam Mayes (@AllmericanMayes) February 8, 2018

Adding another wing player, especially a defensive-minded one, for the playoffs will still be a priority. How much an old Tony Allen or a washed-up Joe Johnson can help – that’s up for debate.

I am a little upset we didn’t get to see some of that Presti magic today. But sometimes doing nothing is the right move. #Thunder
— Sam Mayes (@AllmericanMayes) February 8, 2018

","published":"2018-02-08T21:41:01.000Z","updated":"2018-02-08T21:53:46.000Z","summary":"

The NBA’s trade deadline has come and gone anticlimactically, without a Thunder trade.

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