16 trade options to push the OKC Thunder into title contention

Wayne Ellington

The man with the golden arm will be one of the hottest commodities come trade deadline. His lack of game time coupled with rumblings of a trade request suggests Wayne Ellington will be donning new colors very soon. The 31-year-old wing has emerged as one of the NBA’s best volume 3-point shooters over the last three seasons, converting at a 37.8 percent rate on 6.7 attempts.

The trade below features OKC, Miami, and Charlotte.

Charlotte gets its rim protection

After clamoring for rim protection, the Charlotte Hornets receive an elite rebounder (11.4 per game) and rim protector (2.5 blocks) in Hassan Whiteside to pair with Kemba Walker. The Hornets rank 20th in the league defending the paint (49.4) and adding the big man will solidify its defenses in the paint. Alex Abrines is thrown in the deal as a salary filler to make the deal work.

Miami breathe a sigh of relief

The Heat finally moves on from Whiteside’s horrendous deal by receiving Bismack Biyombo and Jeremy Lamb. While Biyombo has roughly two years, $25-million remaining on his deal, his contract saves Miami a year salary and allows Bam Adebayo to move into the starting line-up. Lamb is on an expiring deal and is likely to move on after seasons end.

Elite marksman comes West

Wayne Ellington solves OKC’s shooting woes without question. Since the departure of Anthony Morrow, the Thunder have never had a 40 percent marksman on its roster and the man with the golden arm would legitimize Oklahoma City as a true contender.