Andre Roberson breaks down what went wrong with the 2017 Thunder

There was the old big three before the Oklahoma City Thunder's current big three. In 2017, team architect Sam Presti plunged into two blockbuster trades, returning the team to a pair of star forwards.

Paul George arrived from Indiana to be Russell Westbrook's No. 1 sidekick. At the same time, Carmelo Anthony was seen as completing the puzzle, giving birth to the league's newest trio of stars.

The three future Hall of Famers made the Thunder one of the heavy hitters in a Golden State Warriors-dominated Western Conference. But after a brief stint that blew up in smoke, this iteration of OKC is often remembered more for its memorable moments than being championship-caliber.

Former Thunder guard on watching the big three gel

Andre Roberson and Steven Adams were racing out the Thunder's starting five in the 2017 season. These defensive-minded players were seen as the perfect auxiliary pieces next to the three stars, with Roberson's lockdown defense and Adams' fierce rim protection.

In a recent podcast appearance, Andre reflected on that season and what it was like watching the "OK3" trying to find its rhythm. With so many moving parts on the team, the Thunder's former defensive ace can picture in hindsight where things began to go south.

"[Car]melo wanted to be in his spots, post-up. But we have to try to incorporate P [George]. P was a little bit passive to a degree. He said, 'No, we need more out of you.' [Westbrook], we were also trying to demand more from him. It was funny just trying to mesh everybody together," Roberson said on "Above The Rim with DH 12."

It was expected that the Thunder would have to start the year experimenting. Many envisioned the Thunder would suffer losses as they tried to figure out how to make things work. OKC saw highs like a six-game win streak in December and an eight-game win streak in January. But the team was also muddled by some ugly moments, like a double-digit loss to the lowly Orlando Magic in November, bringing the record to just 4-9 over the last 13 games.

The roller coaster ride precisely reflected the team's inability to capitalize after gathering momentum and falling hard on its face after being met with low points in the season.

"Melo wanted the ball on his spots; P wanted to come off pin downs; [also] trying to incorporate big Steve[n Adams] on the block. But it's like, dang, we only got one ball. So it's like, how we put it all together," Roberson added.

OKC finished with 48 wins, considerably below its preseason over/under of 53.5 wins. The major takeaway from the season was Anthony's ill-fitting role. Despite vital stretches throughout the season, like his 29-point outburst in a 24-point win against LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in January, there was overwhelming evidence that the Thunder were more potent with Westbrook and George going at it alone.

The 2017-18 Thunder is still seen as one of the biggest disappointments of the last decade. But after getting a peek inside what plagued the team, it became clear that attaining success would be difficult in the first place.

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