There Is A Universe Where Cooper Flagg Ultimately Ends Up On The Thunder And They Dominate The NBA For Years To Come

Once Shams hit send on his Shamb bomb announcing that Kawhi Leonard was going to be shut down for an "indefinite amount of time"

it immediately changed the landscape of the Western Conference. Things were already going to be a challenge for the Clippers in an ultra-competitive West, so losing your best player and not having any real idea when he'll be ready to go is certainly pretty significant. Maybe James Harden is able to turn back the clock and become the Harden we saw as a Rocket, but that might be a little too much to ask from a guy who is now 35 years old.

As painful as that news might have been for Clippers fans, the reality is there is a possibility for even more pain. If you are someone who thinks the Kawhi-less Clippers may struggle to stay in the Play In range, well then it's important to remember what that would mean. Remember the Paul George trade? You know, the former Clipper? The guy who LAC traded for with this package?

You see that last line? 

"LAC 2025 1st round pick (right to swap)"

That pick swap is unprotected. Meaning no matter where it lands, as long as it's higher than OKC (which, duh), then the Thunder can pull the trigger on the swap and add another Lottery talent to their already legit as fuck young core. Why is that significant? Well, let's just say that LAC pick ends up being #1 or #2. You know what that means right? This guy becomes a member of the Thunder

We see crazy shit happen in the Lottery all the time, and I know for certain that if David Stern were still alive he'd be pulling out every trick in the book to rig that shit and create another potential dynasty. Just think for a second what a team of SGA/Dort/JWill/Chet/Flagg looks like moving forward. If you were to suggest it could rival the Harden/Westbrook/KD Trio Era I certainly wouldn't call you crazy. That's a high bar but again, that collection of talent is legitimately insane and the fact it's even remotely possible is going to be fascinating to watch. I'm not sure there will be a fanbase praying more for the Clippers downfall than the Thunder, and for a good reason.

As someone who has experienced the life of another team being shitty and ending up in the high lottery only for them to hand over that top pick, I know what that can eventually turn into

I can't lie, letting other teams be shitty and then your favorite team reaping all the rewards from that futility rocks. The Thunder can continue to focus on their growth and contending for an NBA title as is, all while knowing they have this ace up their sleeve that if things break their way, it could boost their odds of dominating the rest of the league for the foreseeable future. 

We talk all the time about how teams and players need to hurry up and win their titles/awards because eventually Wemby is coming, well, OKC is positioned to be a MUCH bigger problem on a must faster timeline. While progress in the NBA isn't always linear, there's no reason to think OKC isn't just getting started and now that there are real expectations for them to contend, it's going to be fascinating to see how they do. You get one "surprise" season which to me was their 2023-24. Now they're many people's favorites to come out of the West and potentially win the whole thing, and that's even before adding a potential franchise player next summer.

Even if they somehow miss out on Flagg, the consolation prize doesn't look to be too shabby either

All I know is the spirit of David Stern is probably so pissed he can't come down to Earth and pull another frozen envelope situation. He would have thrived in this spot and then acted as surprised as anyone with the result. I'm not sure Adam Silver has that in him, but we'll certainly find out in May.