Thunder at Jazz
The Oklahoma City Thunder are in transition mode after the offseason trades of Russell Westbrook and Paul George. The Thunder begin the task of moving on without the two stars when they visit the Utah Jazz on Wednesday night.
George requested a trade to the Los Angeles Clippers and it was granted, which soon led to the deal that sent Westbrook to Houston for a package that included point guard Chris Paul, who isn't subscribing to the theory that Oklahoma City won't be a good team this season. "I tell you, I am who I am. I'm excited about our team," Paul told reporters. "We're going to go out to win every single night. I'm excited about what we got." The Jazz averaged 49.7 wins over the past three seasons but a first-round playoff exit last spring led to a roster shakeup, which included the addition of longtime stellar point guard Mike Conley from the Memphis Grizzlies. "You try not to get too far ahead of yourself because we're just a team taking it day by day and trying to get better game by game," Conley told reporters. "Right now we're focused on each day and we'll see where we're at the end of the year. But we know we have a team that's capable of doing a lot of great things."
TV: 9 p.m. ET, FS Oklahoma, AT&T SportsNet Rocky Mountain (Utah)
ABOUT THE THUNDER (2018-19: 49-33): Paul, a 14-year veteran, began his NBA career with two seasons in Oklahoma City when the New Orleans franchise temporarily relocated after Hurricane Katrina and coach Billy Donovan is glad to see the nine-time All-Star on the roster. "Russell was an unbelievable competitor," Donovan told reporters. "I think Chris is an incredible competitor, too. That's important to him. He loves the game. ... Chris Paul's 34 years old, and he still loves to play and loves to compete." Forward Danilo Gallinari and promising young guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander were acquired in the deal for George while rugged center Steven Adams is still around to mix it up inside.
ABOUT THE JAZZ (2018-19: 50-32): Star shooting guard Donovan Mitchell will team with Conley to form one of the NBA's top backcourts and center Rudy Gobert patrols the middle and has been named Defensive Player of the Year in back-to-back seasons. Other offseason additions include forwards Bojan Bogdanovic, Jeff Green and Ed Davis as well as backup point guard Emmanuel Mudiay, and Utah coach Quin Snyder told reporters it will take time for everybody to get on the same page. "Offensively, we've been a team that's been unselfish," Snyder told reporters. "The meshing part hasn't happened yet, but from an identity standpoint we like who we are."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Thunder went 4-0 against the Jazz last season.
2. Utah SF Joe Ingles agreed to a one-year, $14 million extension through the 2021-22 campaign.
3. Oklahoma City G/F Andre Roberson (knee) is questionable for the opener as he recovers from January's knee injury.