OKC Success, Good Sign For Sixers

As a huge basketball fan I have been trying my best to keep up with the action of the NBA playoffs. The big three, Derrick Rose and Dirk Nowitzki are plenty to keep any basketball fan entertained. But the team that has captivated my attention is the Oklahoma City Thunder.

A young and explosive team led by Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, the Thunder have caught my interest primarily because they remind me so much of the Sixers. Both teams are young and athletic with very bright futures and they both use their speed and athleticism to score in transition. While the Sixers don’t have a superstar like Kevin Durant they do have a great young point guard in Jrue Holiday who is comparable to Russell Westbrook.

In this year’s playoffs the Thunder beat the Denver Nuggets in 5 games and then edged out a 7 game series against the Memphis Grizzlies. Now the Thunder are currently facing off against the Dallas Mavericks in the Western Conference finals and their success could be a good sign for the Sixers.

While I’m not saying that the Sixers are currently on the same level as OKC, the Sixers should look to follow in their footsteps in the upcoming years. When the Sixers lost to the Thunder in overtime back on March 10th, coach Doug Collins discussed using the Thunder as a model to follow as they build their team for the future.

"That's a damn good team," Collins said. "I want to use that as a blueprint for us. I want us to build like Oklahoma City has built. They built through the draft. Their younger players have gotten better. That's what I want us to continue to do. We think we have some good, young pieces. The difference they have right now is they have that shot-blocking in the lane.”

The Oklahoma City Thunder have drafted well and have groomed their young guys into solid NBA players. The Thunder have laid out a recipe for success that the Sixers need to follow next year and in the future.