The Oklahoma City Thunder traded with the Philadelphia 76ers at the start of this rebuild, placing Al Horford in Sam Presti’s trade value rehabilitation program. That deal netted OKC the draft rights to Theo Maledon, Vasilije Micic, a 2025 first-round pick (top-six protected), and of course, Al Horford. The Thunder then flipped Horford to Boston in return for the 16th pick in the 2021 NBA Draft (Alperen Sengun), who OKC traded to Houston for two future first-round picks, which were parlayed into the 11th overall pick in the 202 NBA Draft (Ousmane Dieng).
While that trade package already looks like a win for Oklahoma City, after three summers of back-and-forth flirting, it has a chance to get even better. Vasilije Micic is finally in the NBA after seemingly using the Thunder for leverage for his Euroleague contracts the last two years. Micic took an in-person meeting with the franchise in Bricktown and has inked a contract with the Thunder.
Vasilije Micic finally signs with the OKC Thunder. What does the future hold for the two sides?
The Oklahoma City Thunder have signed Vasilije Micic to a three-year deal worth 23.5 million dollars to join the team, according to his agent, Jason Ranne. Ranne has a strong working relationship with OKC, and his agency Wasserman Basketball represents multiple players currently on the Thunder roster.
EuroLeague G Vasilije Micić – one of Europe’s best and most accomplished players – has agreed on a 3-year, $23.5M deal to join the Thunder, Jason Ranne of @Wassbasketball tells ESPN. A two-time EuroLeague champion and an MVP, Micic brings a significant skillset and IQ to OKC. pic.twitter.com/SBjxHHRftJ
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 1, 2023
While Vasilije Micic is a high profile champion in the Euroleague, the sentiment around this signing in the NBA is that Micic understands what he signed up for. The nearly 30-year-old guard will not take away from development for the Thunder or leapfrog their young starting core but instead add to it.
Micic plays winning basketball, offering a veteran presence in the locker room and a steady hand leading the second unit off the bench for Mark Daigneault.
The two-time Euroleague MVP has lowered his previous starting demands, which helps elongate the Thunder’s depth and make OKC a better club. Micic can be the lead ball-handler and even get buckets for the second unit, which takes the pressure of staggering Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, and Josh Giddey for all 48 minutes off of the core and allows Daigneault to toy with playing the trio together even more.
At times last year, the unit without multiple starters struggled to score or look organized on the offensive end. The near 30-year-old immediately changes that. The Thunder also view Vasilije Micic as a player for them next season, turning down trade interest in the Champion multiple times along the way.
It has been a long journey to get here, but Vasilije Micic finally signed with the Oklahoma City Thunder.