Rewinding to 2014 reveals how a pair of missed first-rounders left Kevin Durant’s championship-hungry squad vulnerable while stars like Nikola Jokic and Joe Harris slipped away.
If you gave Sam Presti a chance to go back and redo one NBA Draft, would he actually take it?
Knowing Presti, probably not.
He’s never been one to dwell on decisions that didn’t work out. Every draft pick, trade and free agent signing becomes another lesson, and over nearly two decades in Oklahoma City, that approach has turned the Thunder into one of the NBA’s model organizations.
Still, it’s a fun exercise.
If there were one draft Presti could revisit, would it come from this current championship era, or would he rewind to the Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook years, when Oklahoma City was trying to find just enough help to finally get over the hump?
The answer feels pretty clear.
It would be one from the Durant-Westbrook era.
Today’s Thunder are in a much different position. They just won an NBA championship, have one of the youngest cores in basketball and still own a mountain of future draft picks. If one prospect doesn’t pan out, there are plenty of opportunities to recover.
Back then, every draft pick carried a little more weight.
The stars were already in place. Durant was one of the best players in the world. Westbrook was becoming a superstar. Serge Ibaka had developed into one of the league’s premier defenders. Oklahoma City wasn’t searching for another franchise player. They just needed dependable role players who could help take some of the pressure off its stars.
That’s why the 2014 NBA Draft stands out.
The Thunder walked into that draft with two first round picks and selected Mitch McGary at No. 21 and Josh Huestis at No. 29.
Neither worked out.
That’s not to say either player had to become an All-Star. Picks in the 20s rarely do. But championship teams are often built on players taken in that range becoming reliable contributors.
The Thunder never got that.
McGary battled injuries and off-the-court issues before his career really had a chance to take off. Huestis spent years as a developmental project but never became the steady rotation player Oklahoma City hoped he would.
For a team with championship aspirations, getting almost nothing from two first round picks was a missed opportunity.
What’s even tougher to look back on is who was still available.
Joe Harris became one of the NBA’s most dangerous three point shooters. Clint Capela turned into an elite rebounder and rim protector. Kyle Anderson built a long career by doing all the little things that help teams win. Spencer Dinwiddie became a starting caliber guard. Jordan Clarkson developed into one of the league’s best scoring reserves, while Jerami Grant eventually became one of the NBA’s most versatile forwards after later arriving in Oklahoma City.
And then there’s the one name that always makes this conversation interesting.
Nikola Jokic.
Selected 41st overall, Jokic has become one of the greatest draft steals in NBA history. It’s impossible to know whether he becomes the same player anywhere other than Denver, but it’s hard not to imagine what his career could have looked like playing alongside Durant, Westbrook and Ibaka.
The reality is the Thunder didn’t need to find another superstar in 2014. They simply needed one or two reliable pieces who could play meaningful playoff minutes.
If they had, maybe those Durant and Westbrook teams finally get over the hump.
For all of Presti’s draft successes, 2014 remains the one draft that leaves you wondering, “What if?” More than any other, it’s the one do-over that could have changed the course of Thunder history.
