Joel Embiid suggests OKC Thunder should ‘build around’ Tony Bradley

As expected, the OKC Thunder were quite busy during this year’s trade season. Kicked off by the deal that sent Hamidou Diallo to the Detroit Pistons just under two weeks ago, Sam Presti and co. managed to make two more moves from then on out.

One of said deals, in specific, was made at the March 25th deadline, where they sent veteran point guard George Hill to the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for two future second-round picks and 23-year-old center Tony Bradley.

While a majority of the focus from fans and media alike is on the draft capital acquired, Sixers’ superstar Joel Embiid believes that Oklahoma City landed themselves a special player in Bradley, and has gone as far as to say the third-year big is a player that a franchise should consider building around.

Joel Embiid believes OKC Thunder could ‘build around’ Tony Bradley

Selected 28th overall in the 2017 NBA Draft, Tony Bradley has found himself traded thrice in the span of four years — first from the Los Angeles Lakers to the Utah Jazz on draft night, then from the Jazz to the 76ers this past offseason.

Logging minutes in and out of the G-League throughout his professional tenure, the UNC product finds himself posting career per-game averages of 4.7 points, 4.4 rebounds, and half a block per game on 65 percent shooting from the field.

With more playing time found in the G-League, his stats (all games played with Salt Lake City Stars) are far more impressive, averaging 14.5 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks on 58 percent shooting from the floor.

With a height of 6-10 and a wingspan of 7-5, Tony Bradley boasts impressive size, while his youth fits right into this Oklahoma City youth movement.

Though perhaps not yet a guy that can be viewed as a building block for most, in the eyes of Embiid, the youngster has some high-upside.