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After trading away the last of their big three in Russell Westbrook, the Oklahoma City Thunder have been in a sort of downward spiral. Westbrook’s last season with the Thunder was the 2018-19 season, since then, Oklahoma City has had just one winning season and haven’t been to the playoffs since the 2019-20 season. This season has been looking up for the Thunder, though, as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is having the best season of his career yet and is playing at an MVP level. Josh Giddey has slowed down, but still is producing and being a huge key to the little success that the Thunder have seen this year.
The Thunder are in a good spot to rebuild though with a league high of 15 first round picks over the next seven upcoming drafts. Looking more in-depth at their picks, they have three picks within the first and second round of the 2023 NBA Draft, four first rounders and one second rounder in the 2024 NBA Draft, three first and three second round picks in the 2025 NBA Draft, and many more in future drafts. The Thunder are currently sitting at the sixth spot in this upcoming draft and looking at taking Ausar Thompson from Overtime Elite. The 6-foot-7 small forward could be a huge help next to Gilgeous-Alexander and Giddey. These draft picks coming up will be huge if the Thunder can find a way to pair their draft picks alongside their young stars.
Before we get to the draft, we have to focus on the trade deadline needs for the Thunder. Adding more draft picks will never hurt, if the Thunder can find ways to turn the players who don’t fit their scheme into even more draft picks, the draft would just be the Oklahoma City Thunder draft at that point. But the Thunder don’t have many players that they really would like to give away. The team is young and producing well enough with the talent that it’s better to build around them rather than be sellers and draft new players. Some teams like to go for the older veteran player that you know will produce, like how the Los Angeles Lakers got LeBron James a couple of offseasons ago, but that is not the best idea for the Thunder.
Going after young talent is what will produce the most success for Oklahoma City. Someone who is possibly on the trading block that would fit the Thunder well is Detroit Pistons’ Saddiq Bey. Bey is averaging 14.6 points per game and 4.5 rebounds per game. Pairing him next to Gilgeous-Alexander and Giddy could possibly create one of the best, young trios in the league. There are many other players the Thunder could go after, or they could just take this year as it comes and plan to use their draft picks to build around their young stars.
Thunder fans have definitely been through it the past couple seasons, but after watching your big three get traded away and succeed in their own places and in their own ways, that’s going to be tough. But worry no more Thunder fans, I am here to tell you that there are brighter days to come, there is a light at the end of the tunnel, and the bad days are almost gone.
