Future outlook: How OKC Thunder build from here
By Aidan E
What has OKC accumulated over the past week?
In terms of where the roster and draft assets currently stand, OKC is armed with an absolute treasure chest of draft picks. As the result of these three trades, the Thunder have turned Paul George, Russell Westbrook, and Jerami Grant into:
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
- Danilo Gallinari
- Chris Paul
- 2020 Denver 1st (11-30)
- 2021 Miami 1st, or swap with Houston (5-30)
- 2022 Clippers 1st
- 2023 Miami 1st (15-30)
- 2023 Clippers 1st swap rights
- 2024 Clippers 1st
- 2024 Houston 1st (5-30)
- 2025 Houston/Clippers swap rights
- 2026 Clippers 1st
- 2026 Houston 1st (5-30)
That is an insane amount of draft picks over the next eight seasons. That list is also not counting OKC’s own first-round picks, which after adding those, accumulates to 15 total first-round picks until 2026. These picks give OKC the best flexibility in the league, as there are multiple potential lottery picks that have been acquired that they could either use themselves or send out for a disgruntled star of their own in a few years.
With these assets in mind, where does Oklahoma City go from here? There are still players on the roster that could seemingly become available for the right price, including Chris Paul, Andre Roberson, Danilo Gallinari, and Dennis Schroder.
If I were the GM for the Thunder, here’s what I would do with the roster and how I would prepare for the future.