Thunderous Intentions
Fansided

Hit or miss, OKC Thunder GM Sam Presti has lost his NBA draft selection prowess

By Alex Mcewen

NEW YORK, NY - JUNE 25: Cameron Payne meets with Commissioner Adam Silver after being selected 14th overall by the Oklahoma City Thunder in the First Round of the 2015 NBA Draft at the Barclays Center on June 25, 2015 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - JUNE 25: Cameron Payne meets with Commissioner Adam Silver after being selected 14th overall by the Oklahoma City Thunder in the First Round of the 2015 NBA Draft at the Barclays Center on June 25, 2015 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
3 of 5
Next
NEW YORK, NY – JUNE 25: Cameron Payne meets with Commissioner Adam Silver after being selected 14th overall by the Oklahoma City Thunder in the First Round of the 2015 NBA Draft at the Barclays Center on June 25, 2015 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY – JUNE 25: Cameron Payne meets with Commissioner Adam Silver after being selected 14th overall by the Oklahoma City Thunder in the First Round of the 2015 NBA Draft at the Barclays Center on June 25, 2015 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /

2015 NBA Draft

Karl-Anthony Towns aka KAT was the number one overall pick and he has lived up to that title. The Thunder’s picks, on the other hand, did not hit the jackpot the same way Minnesota did with KAT.

OKC Thunder selections

The 2015 draft was not nearly as detrimental as the 2014 draft. However, 2015 will not go down as a gold star for Oklahoma City’s draft record.

Notable picks selected after OKC

Among the players, the Thunder passed on Rozier definitely stings the most. Rozier led the Boston Celtics to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals in the absence of all-star guard Kyrie Irving. Raymond Felton was a tremendous back-up to Westbrook this past season, though it’s hard not to ponder what could have been with a backcourt of Westbrook and Rozier.

Grant may be the most telling of the group due to the fact he was playing ahead of Payne this past season on the tanking Bulls. This occurred thanks in part to Payne’s repeated foot injuries. Yet, the two Bulls guards stat lines mirrored one another when they were on the court.

Moreover, Montrezl Harrell without a doubt could have helped OKC. Harrell has played for the Clippers and Rockets productively in his time with both franchises.

The 2015 draft will not be remembered as a crowning achievement for the OKC Thunder, and as demonstrated in 2014 things can always be worse.

Home/Thunder Draft