Paul Pierce believes that the timing is right for the Oklahoma City Thunder to trade Chet Holmgren and get Kevin Durant, so that both the franchise and the 4-time Olympic gold medalist increase their championship chances.
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The Oklahoma City Thunder lead the Western Conference with an astounding 36-8 record, the best in the league tied with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, currently the main candidate for the MVP, they seem unstoppable.
At the same time, Chet Holmgren has been forced to watch his team take oponents by storm, as he injured his hip against the Golden State Warriors on November 10.
More than two months later, the return of the talented former Gonzaga power forward is getting closer. Holmgren, 22, is expected to return after the All-Star break in February.
Hosted on the ‘Ticket & The Truth’ podcast with Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce dropped a trade he’d like to see but that, given Oklahoma’s dynamics and future plan, might not make much sense. The Celtics legend proposed trading Holmgren in order for Kevin Durant to get closer to the championship ring.
“KD (Durant) could use some fresh air from Phoenix,” Pierce said.
“Do you know where you can get it? Find a package where you can pack Chet (and) bring him back to OKC,” Pierce said.
Holmgren averaged 16.4 points, 8.7 rebounds and 2.6 blocks per game in the 10 games played before getting injured.
“Listen, they’re playing without Chet, so now you should trade him for KD,” Pierce, 47 continued.
“Man, KD has shown me that he can play with anybody; he can fit on any team. Like, he’s not LeBron, where you have to change all your s*** to get LeBron for him,” Pierce argued.
“KD still got a lot left in the tank. He can help that young team for the next five years.”