Over the years, the Oklahoma City Thunder have built a reputation of being one of the most player-friendly franchises in the league.
Considering they’re a small-market team, OKC must do this to build advantages when it comes to attracting free agents. While he wasn’t technically a free agent, Carmelo Anthony had to waive his no-trade clause to join the Thunder in 2018.
Anthony capped a wild offseason for the Thunder, who also traded for Paul George to provide help for reigning MVP Russell Westbrook. While the 2017-18 squad struggled — they went 48-34 and lost in the first round — that didn’t affect Anthony’s viewpoint on the organization.
In an appearance on “7PM in Brooklyn,” Anthony discussed his time with the Thunder and why their treatment of players is so special.
“It’s the best-ran organization when it comes to understanding the needs of players and understanding how to communicate with players and hold players accountable,” Anthony said. “… (Sam Presti) worked with us, but he gave us our marks. If we didn’t hit those marks, we knew we wasn’t doing our best. If we didn’t hit the marks, Billy Donovan wasn’t coming in there talking to us, it was Sam Presti. … He has no ill intentions in any of this. He wants what’s best for the player and he really cares about what goes on.”
Nobody is doing it like Sam Presti and the OKC Thunder pic.twitter.com/Jrm5NMlYov
— 7PM in Brooklyn (@7PMinBrooklyn) February 13, 2024
This is a pretty strong endorsement from one of the most recognized players in recent league history. The multitime All-Star’s encouraging words are just the latest example of how clean OKC’s reputation is with players.
Anthony spent one season with the Thunder. He averaged 16.2 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.3 assists in his lone year in OKC before being shipped off to the Atlanta Hawks and subsequently bought out.
