Chris Paul is without a team in the final run of his career after being waived by the Clippers, but should OKC consider picking him up?

It’s rare for a retiring player who has played a huge chunk of games for the same team to get waived in a snap. Paul couldn't believe it, and neither could other players, critics and even coaches. But business is business, and we all know that players should take it lightly in that regard.

Now that Paul is without a team for the rest of the season – even though we’re barely into the half of the campaign – it seems that there are only a few teams who are keen to take him in. The Los Angeles Lakers, for instance, don’t have enough good rotational pieces to let go of to bring in Paul.

The Oklahoma City Thunder, on the other hand, do have some pieces who can be valuable trade pieces or even good for waiving. Considering that Paul is good to take on a veteran minimum, and is only playing for one final season, you won’t find a better-written story than Paul finally retiring with the first team he originally played for.

Why should OKC even consider bringing in Paul? Well, there are a lot of talks as to how he actually proved to be a pivotal piece in shaping both the past and the future of the team. The fact that he is a homegrown talent in Oklahoma is a good start. If you’re not impressed, there’s even a valid argument for Paul having his jersey retired at Paycom Center.

Paul is The Cornerstone of Oklahoma City Basketball

There are a lot of talents from Oklahoma. Blake Griffin is a native of the state, and even Lindy Waters III got the chance to play for the team based on where he lived. However, no other player would make the biggest impact in innovating basketball in Oklahoma than Paul himself.

Sure, Paul was drafted by the New Orleans Hornets back then, but he played his first games in OKC. In fact, he spent two seasons there due to the effects of Hurricane Katrina ravaging through New Orleans, which forced the team to relocate to Oklahoma temporarily. During that time, the NBA would eventually find the state capable of having its own NBA team.

In fact, Oklahoma City would soon have passionate fans for basketball, even seeing competitive seasons from Paul and the Hornets, as well. Paul was so good that he brought life to basketball in OKC, invigorating the fans about having a major league team, as they didn’t have any from the MLB, NFL or NHL.

In his rookie season with the Hornets – which he played in OKC – Paul averaged 16.1 points, 5.1 rebounds, 7.8 assists and 2.2 steals per game. He went on to earn the Rookie of the Year Award, which makes him the first to earn the award in Oklahoma City long before there was even a Thunder team.

So, when the Seattle Supersonics couldn't afford to stay in the NBA, it opened up the chance for OKC to earn its own NBA team. Eventually, the Thunder was born. While Paul went his separate way with different teams, Oklahoma City would become a team that was very competitive in the Western Conference for years to come.

Chris Paul and the Thunder Rebuild

Paul and the Thunder would eventually cross paths again in the 2019-20 season. It was the fresh start for OKC, as they let go of Paul George for a hefty amount of first-rounders, Danilo Gallinari and future face of the franchise Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Paul came in when the team decided to trade away franchise player Russell Westbrook to the Houston Rockets.

At the time, Paul’s run with the Los Angeles Clippers failed to bear fruit, and so was his short-lived contention with Houston. On the other hand, Westbrook’s era was coming to an end in OKC, so it made sense to move on from him.

Initially, the Thunder were seen as a rebuilding team from that point. They were expected to finish at the bottom of the league and come up short of the playoffs. If you don’t remember, they were given a 0.2% chance to make it to the postseason. So, the fact there wasn’t really a competitive squad on paper in OKC at that time made this run more surprising.

As fate decided, Paul would go on to lead this band of misfits, including a young SGA and Lu Dort, who were beginning to learn the ropes as the future leaders of this Thunder team. Eventually, OKC finished as the fifth seed in the West, shocking a lot of critics in the process and proving their worth on the big stage.

While the Thunder would go on to lose in seven games in the 1st Round, it was Paul’s leadership that paid off in OKC. He would mentor SGA to become the elite player and MVP candidate that he is right now, which says a lot about the way Paul has impacted the team’s growth and trajectory in the years to come.

Should OKC Bring In Chris Paul?

The best pick for a retiring player who has yet to win the Finals is to sign up with a team that has a strong chance of doing so. We all know the Los Angeles Clippers initially looked good on paper, but then it turned out for the worse.

James Harden is the saving grace for this team. Kawhi Leonard’s in-and-out performances are disappointing, and Bradley Beal being out for the season definitely was a slap in their faces. Waiving Paul didn’t do anything good except earn them the ire of many fans.

In the case of the Thunder, they do have a bunch of players to move on from, such as Ousmane Dieng. This just means that they can add Paul to bring in a slice of leadership, and perhaps gift a championship to the man who ignited basketball in Oklahoma City.