A calm deadline is a success for the OKC Thunder
By Rylan Stiles
The OKC Thunder could realistically swap Darius Bazley in an underwhelming move.
The Oklahoma City Thunder selected Darius Bazley with the 23rd overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft via a trade with the Utah Jazz. Bazley, fresh out of high school with a gap year as a New Balance intern, was supposed to usher in a new wave of Thunder players.
While many initially viewed Bazley as the same old raw non-shooting athlete Sam Presti always drafts, I was breaking down his high school tape to realize he was a 6’9 playmaker with plus handles and passing ability for his size.
However, none of that materialized early on in his NBA career. Bazley is the perfect small-ball five with the ability to cut back door, rim run, and screen while also running the break after hauling a rebound.
While Darius Bazley has flashed that in small spurts, especially this past month against the Miami Heat, it has not been consistent enough to warrant another contract.
Given the roster crunch of this upcoming summer, it seems the writing is on the wall for the future of Darius Bazley. He could be moved at the NBA Trade deadline, but do not expect much return. Instead, it should look similar to the Hamidou Diallo/Svi Mykhailiuk swap.
Though the fact Darius Bazley is still a good teammate in the locker room, encouraging on the bench as a good vibes guy, still bought into the team, and one of the squad’s best defenders, it might be worth it to play out the season with Bazley on the roster given the lackluster return. Will anyone be an actual upgrade?