The OKC Thunder have waived Gabriel Deck ahead of the NBA Trade Deadline, in a move that was anticipated by everyone. The Oklahoma City Thunder make their first in-season trade ahead of next month’s NBA Trade Deadline and it resulted in the team finally waiving Deck, a signing that did not make sense from the start.
Earlier this week the Oklahoma City Thunder elected to trade for Miye Oni and a 2028 second-round pick from the Utah Jazz, allowing Utah to free up a roster spot while also saving a ton of money. With that open roster spot, the Jazz has taken a chance on Danuel House to a ten-day pact.
OKC Thunder waive Gabriel Deck, kick-off trade season
This is the second time the OKC Thunder have helped the Utah Jazz out by being a salary dumping ground. The first example is this offseason when the Jazz shipped off Derrick Favors to the Thunder following the NBA Draft.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have since waived Miye Oni and Gabriel Deck and will now operate with an open roster spot ahead of the upcoming NBA trade deadline as well as being 23 million dollars under the salary cap floor.
This transaction allows Sam Presti to explore two players for one caliber of deals, taking on a bad salary in exchange for better draft assets. It also opens up the possibility of the team signing two-way wing standout Aaron Wiggins. Though, sources have informed me that you should not expect a contract conversion for the Maryland product before the league’s trading deadline.
Gabriel Deck’s NBA career, at least with the Thunder, ends with 17 games played, 268 minutes logged, 1012-points scored, shooting 49-percent from the floor, and 21-percent from distance. Deck, a really good basketball player, could never crack the OKC Thunder rotation during his time with the team. Despite finding success overseason, in the Olympic setting, and relative NBA success, we will see what is next for the 26-year-olds basketball career.