3 Options for the OKC Thunder at pick 50 in the 2023 NBA Draft
By Rylan Stiles
The OKC Thunder could use Zach Edey as a matchup nightmare if he stays in the 2023 NBA Draft.
What a world we live in, how far we have come, where Zach Edey staying in the NBA Draft would mean he is openly taking a pay cut from the NIL opportunities he would have at Purdue. However, if he stays in the draft, he would be an interesting option for the OKC Thunder to select at pick 50 and place on a two-way pact.
Zach Edey dominated college basketball, being one of if not the best players in the country the last two seasons for the Boilermakers. Edey stands 7’4, 306 pounds, with a 7’10 wingspan. This allows him to be a matchup nightmare at the NBA level.
Despite his positive testing at the NBA Combine with agility drills and flashing better-than-expected mobility, I do not believe Edey can be a heavy-usage NBA player. However, he can be a ten-minute-per-game “junk it up” player that we all know Mark Daigneault would weaponize for the OKC Thunder.
When selecting Edey, the goal should not be a rotational piece but rather Boban Marjanovic. The Dallas Mavericks used Boban as recently as the 2020 season as a playoff wrinkle that threw the L.A. Clippers off and forced them to alter their approach on the biggest stage.
For the OKC Thunder to have a weapon like that, after playing small 90 percent of the contest, then bang here is a 7’4 300-pounder would be interesting.