What should you expect the OKC Thunder to do with the second overall pick?

The most likely scenario is the OKC Thunder just stay put at two, and select Gonzaga Center Chet Holmgren

The Oklahoma City Thunder are known to zig when everyone else zags, always throwing up smoke screens and decoys for all of us who pay way too much attention to this process. Of course, except for that time that we all knew Aleksej Pokusevski was the pick for the Thunder a month before the draft. Then, you have instances like last year where we were all convinced James Bouknight was the pick at six only to watch the UCONN bucket getter fall to the Hornets with the 11th pick in the 2021 NBA Draft.

However, if I had to bet money on the outcome of Thursday Night’s NBA Draft, I would bet Presti goes a more conventional route with the second overall selection, taking Chet Holmgren the unicorn center out of Gonzaga.

Granted, this is contingent upon Holmgren not being selected by the Orlando Magic with the 1st overall pick, though all signs four days out still point to Auburn Forward Jabari Smith being the pick for Orlando.

Chet Holmgren was a consensus All-American, conference defensive player of the year, rookie of the year, and an all-conference member for the WCC. In 32-games, Holmgren averaged 14-points, ten rebounds, and two assists per game, while shooting 60 percent from the floor and 39 percent from distance.

Holmgren swatted 3.7-blocks and swiped nearly a steal per contest on the defensive end. His elite rim protection, perimeter shooting, and off-ball defense headline why the seven-footer should be the pick for Oklahoma City.

The Gonzaga product fits every mold and checks every box of what Sam Presti has looked for in the draft in recent vintages. Aleksej Pokusevski walked so Holmgren could run.