The year ahead (part 1)

Here are some things to think about for the OKC Thunder as we look at the season ahead...

Here are my thoughts so far...

• KD's health and impending free agency circus
• Thunder's team performance under new head coach Billy Donovan
• Is it really championship or bust?
• If KD does leave (even though he won't) - what happens next?
• Does OKC have enough talent and stuff to actually win it all?

*KD's health and free agency status - So never have two more important topics been so intertwined with one person as they are with KD this year.  First, his overall foot health...this is the biggest issue and pretty much every individual and team goal for this year flows from it.  If the bone graft surgery worked and he's good to go, then it opens up a whole host of possibilities for not only him but the team.  If its not...well, then really none of the rest of this stuff matters.  Because KD is the key to the teams success in the short term and the long term.

Speaking of the long term...yeah, this whole free agency thing is gonna be a drag.  Every single event will be seen as having some kind of influence on the potential outcome.  Thunder lose to the Wizards?  KD is going home.  OKC goes on a 3 game losing streak to good teams?  KD wants out of Oklahoma City.  Billy Donovan gives him a DNP-Rest against Philly at home?  KD 2 DC confirmed.  When I said free agency circus, it feels like its going to be just that.  And the only way to silence the noise is to win.  Easy to say...not easy to do.

*Thunder's team performance under Billy D - Winning is the head coach's job.  There's no bones about it.  And as successful as Billy Donovan has been at the collegiate level (and 2 national titles and 4 Final Four trips is nothing to sneeze at) he still will have to prove himself to be a winner at the pro level.  And while he is a first time NBA head coach, he's actually got a few things going for him that most other first timers don't.  One, he's got a good team in place around him, with dudes like Monty Williams and Mo Cheeks who do have NBA head coaching stops on their resume.  Two, this team isn't going to suck.  Most 1st time head coaches get thrown to the wolves because the team is rebuilding and they need a cheap option that sounds good to fans and players alike, until they can find someone better.  It sometimes works but more often recently than not, it hasn't.  But that's not what Billy is going to have to face.  He's got 2 top 10 players in the league and a 3rd top 25 player.  This team could probably have me as a head coach and still win about 45 games.  So its going to be whether he can make the little adjustments that can take this from being a really, really good team to a great team, because great teams win championships.

*Is it really championship or bust? - This is always the question right?  So much has been (and will continue) to be made about the James Harden trade breaking up a potential dynasty.  Let's be real; the Thunder ain't done none too bad without the Beard in town.  Would they be better with him?  Who can say...its all speculation at best and dumb guesses at worse.  But its done, and so they need to move to the next level.  Its a good thing on the one hand that folks assume that you've got a chance at a 'chip and so anything less than that for your collection of talent is seen as a failure.  Hey, ask Philly fans if they would rather have the Thunder team or their own, and you'll see how far away some teams are from winning a title.  So just to be considered in the conversation of the teams that have a legit chance of winning it all is a good thing.

But when you come so close so many times and can't break through, well, thats when you start doing things like trading for Enes Kanter and Dion Waiters and make a head coaching change.  And so...now we wait and see.  I mean...does this tie into the KD free agency and the Russ free agency the next year (and Serge as well the same year as Russ)?  Possibly...but I hear all this noise about KD is considering DC and the Lakers and the Knicks...but does anyone, including KD himself, think he's got a better shot in those towns than in OKC?  Because when you've had as much of the taste of winning as OKC has had, I find it hard to believe that you'd walk away cold from that.  But the ultimate goal is to win a world championship, and if you can't do that where you are...then make the head coach isn't the only one who needs a change.

That's it for part 1....part 2 soon to come!  As always, #ThunderNationRISE