2) Who broke through with Chicago Bulls HC Billy Donovan
Maybe the best example of a player who thoroughly benefited from getting coached up by Donovan from start to finish during his run with the Thunder was the 6-foot-8 and 210 pound small forward/power forward Jerami Grant. Donovan took full advantage of the two-way forward potential and underrated way that the Philadelphia 76ers used Grant when the Thunder landed him during the 2016-17 season.
And Grant played under Donovan’s direction with the Thunder for most of the 2016-17 season, all the way to the end of the 2018-19 season. Last season, Grant had his first season away from Donovan and the Thunder since 2016, in his inaugural campaign with head coach Mike Malone and the Denver Nuggets. There is also a Karnisovas connection here with Grant from last season in the Mile High City.
However, where Grant really broke through with the Thunder was during the 2017-18 season with the Thunder, his first full campaign in OKC. During the 2017-18 regular season, Grant played in 80 games with the Thunder (all but three of which he started in). And he averaged 8.4 points per game, 3.9 rebounds, 0.7 assists, 0.4 steals, and 1.0 blocks. Grant shot an impressive 53.5 percent from the field, 29.1 percent from beyond the arc, and 67.5 percent from the free-throw line.
But the last two seasons were the first where Grant really became a bona fide three-and-D threat playing at the three or the four. He averaged at least 12.0 points per game in each of the last two regular seasons, while shooting roughly 39.0 percent from beyond the arc. The first of those two seasons came under Donovan’s wing in OKC.