One week from tonight the 2021 NBA Draft will occur with the OKC Thunder holding six of the 60 picks. That’s a ton of draft capital for Sam Presti to have at his disposal.
The good news is this draft class is chock full of talent with several prospects earmarked as generational franchise-changing talents. That elite group is comprised of youngsters Cade Cunningham, Jalen Green, Evan Mobley, and Jalen Suggs.
Since the OKC Thunder don’t make their first selection until sixth they would need to trade up in order to land one of that quartet. They certainly have the best draft package on the board with the 6th, 16th and 18th picks in round one as well as the 34th, 36th and 55th picks in round two.
Finding a way to move up to select one of the top four prospects is no doubt on the mind of the Thunder magician Presti. There is plenty of speculation and rumors regarding the Pistons, Rockets, Cavaliers, and Raptors being open to making a deal if the price is right.
The question is — what is that price? To give up a franchise-changer it will cost and not necessarily draft pick swaps. In 2018, the Mavericks and Hawks swapped picks exchanging Trae Young for Luka Doncic and in 2017 the Celtics and 76ers exchanged picks for Jayson Tatum and Markelle Fultz.
This season the teams seem more invested in adding proven assets. That’s not an ideal scenario for Presti unless one of those teams is high on Kemba Walker. Outside of the veteran point guard, the Thunder might be willing to part ways with Darius Bazley but it’s unlikely any of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Luguentz Dort, or Aleksej Pokusevski are on the table.
The one exception might be for Cunningham and even then the Thunder should prefer to keep that trio and jettison picks and other assets on their roster. Suffice to say moving up isn’t a straightforward proposition.
OKC Thunder should swap 2 picks to Kings to nab Alperen Sengun
That said, it’s our belief the Thunder prefers to make only two first-round picks and as such be open to packaging their 16th and 18th picks.
A player who Intentions is uber-high on is Alperen Sengun. The 18-year old big man who played in the Turkish League is a sleeper in this class who could ascend to stardom. Chad Ford called Sengun “an Oklahoma City player all the way” meaning he’s a perfect fit for the franchise and what the team is constructing.
Sengun is projected to be drafted as high as ninth and as low as 36th but is one of the prospects gaining traction entering the draft. He’s not a player OKC would select with the sixth pick and my guess is he won’t be on the board when they make the 16th pick.
Enter the Sacramento Kings who do have the ninth pick next Thursday and are said to be open to trading that pick. Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer confirmed this situation in his updated mock draft.
"League sources say the Kings have shopped this pick for players who can help them win now. If they keep it,"
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Notably, in the same updated mock draft, O’Connor has the Thunder selecting Sengun. But, he’s suggesting OKC would select him with their 18th pick. Just a week ago, O’Connor had the Turkish star going ninth so that’s a significant drop down the board.
It could be a bit of cat and mouse going on with agents and information being leaked to O’Connor because even if teams let Sengun slide I can’t imagine it’s outside the lottery round.
There is uncertainty whether his game is mired in more of the old-school frontcourt style, however, there is an equal number of analysts that project him to have the potential to blossom into another front-court master of the Nikola Jokic ilk.
What isn’t debatably is he offers immediate skills and fundamental abilities. This isn’t the same type of high-risk, high-reward swing Presti made with POKU. Even at 18, Sengun has immediately transferable skills.
In our annual OKC Thunder, NBA Draft prospect profile series I suggested Presti isn’t averse to shocking his peers and noted even taking Sengun at sixth isn’t completely out of the question. If the franchise deems he’s likely to go in the top 10 then packaging the 16th and 18th pick to Sacramento to get him is worth it.