I don't think Maokai's sapling really clashes with his kit that much. He works well on poke comps not only because he has good poke himself, but also because poke champs tend to not do as great when the enemy team is all up in your face, and he has 3 abilities that help protect pokers and people with range. Maokai allows teams to fight on their own terms, and the sapling sort of helps with that.
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~Peaf~
"Later that day, I f***ed a panda." - PSO