A review of some of the more noteworthy Oklahoma City Thunder contract situations:
* Kevin Durant: During his third NBA season, Durant drove the 2009-10 Thunder to 50 wins while leading the league in scoring. In July 2010 – 15 years ago this week – he signed a five-year, $89 million extension. His annual salary would be $17.8 million. When this contract expired in 2016, Durant joined the Golden State roster.
* Russell Westbrook: After Durant departed, Westbrook’s popularity doubled when he stayed in OKC and signed a three-year contract worth a fully guaranteed amount of $85.6 million. At the end of the 2016-17 season (the first season on that contract), Westbrook was the NBA’s Most Valuable Player.
OKC THUNDER
Russell Westbrook (pictured) became an Oklahoma hero in 2016, when he signed a contract to stay with the Thunder after Kevin Durant departed for Golden State. Tulsa World Archive photo
* James Harden: Having been the 2011-12 NBA Sixth Man of the Year and a key member of a young Thunder team that surged to the Finals, Harden was offered a four-year, $55.5 million deal to stay in Oklahoma City. Instead, he chose to sign with the Houston Rockets (where he would be voted the 2017-18 league MVP).
People are also reading…
* Paul George: After one season on the OKC roster, George stunned the basketball world by signing a four-year, $136.9 million contract to stay with the Thunder. After one more season in Oklahoma, both he and Westbrook were traded. George went to the LA Clippers and Westbrook to Houston.
* Lu Dort: In July 2022 (and before the Thunder started to win again at a high level), general manager Sam Presti recognized Dort’s value. Undrafted in 2019, Dort in 2022 was given a five-year, $82.5 million situation (with $64.8 million of it guaranteed). Dort now is an elite, difference-making defensive player.
OKC THUNDER
During the summer of 2018, Paul George signed a contract to stay in OKC. A year later, he requested a trade to the Los Angeles Clippers. Tulsa World archive
* Alex Caruso: Acquired from Chicago in last year’s Josh Giddey trade, Caruso signed a four-year, $81.1 million contract with the Thunder. When general manager Sam Presti executed this deal in December, Caruso had played in only 20 games with OKC. Caruso was an important piece in the Thunder’s run to the NBA title.
* Shai Gilgeous-Alexander: Acquired from the Clippers as part of the Paul George trade in 2019, SGA has evolved from a nice role player to a three-time All-Star and the NBA’s 2024-25 Most Valuable Player. Having hit the markers required to score a supermax deal, Gilgeous-Alexander was rewarded on Tuesday with a four-year, $285.4 million contract that takes effect at the start of the 2027-28 season. At an annual salary of slightly more than $71 million, he becomes the highest-paid athlete in North American team sports.
bill.haisten@tulsaworld.com
0 Comments
Get in the game with our Prep Sports Newsletter
Sent weekly directly to your inbox!