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What did those great drafts get the Thunder?

You can make a reasonable case that no team in the NBA lottery era has drafted better in consecutive years than Seattle/Oklahoma City in 2007, 2008 and 2009. Without the No. 1 pick in any of those drafts, the Sonics/Thunder got Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden.

Durant was pretty much a no-brainer at No. 2 in 2007, but Westbrook (No. 4 in 2008) and Harden (No. 3 in 2009) were not anywhere near consensus picks in those spots. All credit to general manager Sam Presti for seeing what others could not. It was a talent evaluator's trifecta that will stand the test of time.

And it will also stand as a cautionary tale. Even drafting brilliantly is no guarantee of anything. The Thunder have reached one NBA Finals and won zero championships since Durant arrived after one season at Texas.

After reaching that finals and getting blitzed by LeBron and the Heat, Presti was faced with a dilemma. It was going to be just about impossible to pay all three of his stars maximum money, so Harden was traded to Houston, where he has emerged as a scoring savant.

The Thunder remained very competitive in the West, but never were quite as good as the Spurs and then the Warriors. Even this season when they had Golden State down by 3-1 in the West finals, they could not get that fourth win.

The Thunder really could not play any better than they did in winning Games 3 and 4, but with a finals berth right there in Game 6 at home, they reverted to hero ball and the Warriors flashed past them on their way back to the Finals.

My guess is that was the moment when Durant realized he was never going to win a championship in OKC. Westbrook, as singular a talent as he is, also has a fatal flaw. In the biggest moments, he believes so much in himself that he sees only the rim and not the game. Every defense knows that and loads up on him, daring him to pass.

So, KD announced Monday as the wildest free-agent frenzy in history neared its end -- with, what, $2 billion in guaranteed contracts negotiated in three days? -- that he is going to sign with the Warriors.

Presti had just made some nice moves to get Durant more help and drafted well again. Still, it was not enough to keep one of the best players in the world on his side.

LeBron James left a decent team in Cleveland. Shaq left a very good team in Orlando. They went in search of championships with better teams and got them.

Cleveland was awful until LeBron returned. Orlando was bad for a time, really good for a time, and then really bad again. The Thunder will be competitive, but nowhere near elite for a long time, if ever.

The Warriors won 73 games with Harrison Barnes occupying the spot Durant will now play. In case you missed it, there was essentially a three-team trade here. Barnes goes to Dallas. Durant goes to Golden State. Nobody goes to Oklahoma City.