Man oh man, are the Oklahoma City Thunder fun. They might not win a lot of games but they play hard and have some very very talented young players, and do not get me started on all of the draft picks. Let’s start with the superstar and the building block, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. They have a quality collection of young players too, Hamidou Diallo, Darius Bazley, Aleksej Pokuševski, and (one of my favorite players in the league) Lu Dort, along with others. There is a lot to get excited about in OKC, so let’s look at some of those reasons.
Let’s start with the picks. After acquiring 5 picks (4 unprotected) along with 2 swaps and SGA for Paul George last July, the Thunder entered a rebuild then traded Russell Westbrook to Houston for 2 picks, 2 swaps and point guard Chris Paul (whom they flipped to Phoenix for another pick). They got a heavily protected pick for Kelly Oubre. They got a pick for guard Dennis Schroder, they got a pick for Danny Green, who they got for Schroder. Basically General Manager Sam Presti has stockpiled more picks than he may know what to do with. He has so many options with these picks. They can trade for a star, Bradley Beal being one example. He can Trade up in drafts to get the exact player he wants. For example, if they love Cade Cunningham, OKC has the resources to move up and draft him. Finally, they can use every pick, this is very unlikely as they may have too many picks and talented young players. The Thunder have a lot of picks and young talent but before we dive into that young talent let’s look at the vets on the roster.
I’ll take you through three vets on the roster, Trevor Ariza, George Hill, and Al Horford. Let us start with Ariza. Trevor Ariza is a journeyman who played in games with 10 different teams, having 2 stints with the Houston Rockets and Washing Wizards. Ariza spent time with 2 teams last season, the Sacramento Kings and Portland Trail Blazers. After opting out of the NBA’s Orlando Bubble, Ariza was traded three times this offseason and has not played for Oklahoma City yet this season. The most likely ending for Ariza is he is waived by the Thunder and signs with a contender. He may also be traded but he would likely not be able to net the Thunder any draft picks so it would likely be a player for player swap. Any team could use Ariza’s ability to defend and hit 3 pointers on the wing. George Hill is also a journeyman. The guard has played for 7 teams, including the Thunder. He averaged 11.8 points and 3.1 assists before getting injured earlier in February, starting in all 14 games he has played in. He is a really good 3 point shooter who can defend and handle the ball, and can help a lot of teams. Some examples are the Orlando Magic, Houston Rockets, and Los Angeles Clippers. He makes about $9 million so salary should not be too hard to match and would likely only cost a couple of second round picks. Al Horford is not so simple to deal. First, he is the best option OKC has at center and taking him away could hurt SGA’s and other young guards' development. Secondly he makes $27 million so that is not an easy contract to match salaries with. A player like Mike Muscala, who makes the minimum is much more likely to be traded than Horford. Horford had a brutal year with the Philadelphia 76ers last season as he and Joel Embiid could not mesh in Philly’s front court. However, Al had a very productive career with both the Boston Celtics and the Atlanta Hawks. He is having a somewhat bounce back season, averaging 14.4 points and 7.1 rebounds and if he keeps it up maybe Oklahoma City can get a team to bite and trade for him in the offseason.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is a star. Not a star in the making, no he is a star right now. After being traded on draft night to the Clippers, SGA came over to the Thunder as a part of the blo He is averaging 22.6 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 6.5 assists on 50% shooting and 38% from beyond the arc. The way he is able to finish around the rim is special. He takes contact and is still able to finish consistently. He is a 6 foot 5 point guard who can pass, dribble, and shoot offensively and can defend 3 to 4 positions defensively. He is really good at using pick and rolls, which is why Horford is key, because he can shoot, drive, or pass, and especially with a big like Al Horford who can hit perimeter shots, that can be very hard for a team to defend. Luguentz Dort (or simply Lu Dort) is another player Oklahoma City should be very excited about. An undrafted free agent in 2019, Dort was inserted into the starting lineup about halfway through his rookie year, Dort broke out in the bubble, especially in the playoffs. Dort scored 30 points in a game 7 loss to the Rockets. He is more of a 3 and D wing but those are so important in this league. Other youngsters Darius Bazley and Hamidou Diallo have really good athleticism and are developing the rest of their games. And Aleksej Pokuševski is a really talented raw rookie who is playing in the g-league bubble currently. The Thunder are deep with young talent but none of which are as important as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have a good collection of young players and draft picks with veterans they can trade to create more assets. They have a star in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, talented young players like Lu Dort and Darius Bazley, and veterans like George Hill and Al Horford created a good core for new head coach Mark Daigneault. Oklahoma City needs to develop these players and nail these draft picks to create something successful. With all those draft picks and swaps general manager Sam Presti has created a bright future in Oklahoma City.
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