OKC Thunder pick up trio of options to help shape future

The OKC Thunder have picked up the options of Aleksej Pokusevski, Ty Jerome, and Darius Bazley. This locks them in under contract for the 2022-23 NBA season. Darius Bazley has played in 119 games for the organization, while Ty Jerome has seen time in 65 games split between the Suns and Thunder. Aleksej Pokusevski has played in 48 games, starting half of them all with the Oklahoma City Thunder.

OKC Thunder pick up options shape next season’s roster

The 2022-23 season is still a year ago, but this upcoming offseason will be an interesting one. Once again, the Oklahoma City Thunder will own three first-round picks, needing to make room for their influx of young talent yet again.

Picking up the options of Aleksej Pokusevski, Darius Bazley, and Ty Jerome locks them under contract for the 2022-23 campaign. However, it does not necessarily lock them into the Oklahoma City Thunder roster next season. Sam Presti could still elect to trade any of the three players, though it is unlikely the General Manager will part with his prized project in Aleksej Pokusevski.

Darius Bazley and Ty Jerome have the next 77-games to solidify their future with the organization. If I had to bet, Bazley has already bought himself another year in Bricktown with this contract option being exercised. Ty Jerome on the other hand could be a roster casualty from the impact of the number of draft picks flooding this roster this offseason.

Jerome has an NBA future ahead of him, he is a premium skill, but it is not guaranteed to be in Oklahoma City. While I would keep him around, even this contract option being picked up does not guarantee that.

The Oklahoma City Thunder will have an interesting 12 plus months as they continue to try to shape their roster back into one that can compete for a championship.