The OKC Thunder moved up two spots in the 2023 NBA Draft, getting into the top ten to secure Cason Wallace with the tenth overall pick from the Dallas Mavericks. In order to do so, the Oklahoma City Thunder had to take on Davis Bertans’ contract and ship out the 12th overall pick.
A lot has been discussed regarding the plan for Davis Bertans in Mark Daigneault’s rotation this season. With the OKC Thunder still needing to trim their roster down from 21, there are still three cuts to make. In many people’s eyes, Davis Bertans was on the roster bubble, but with a contract too large to waive, some thought he could be involved in a preseason trade.
Did Sam Presti tip his hand on the possible OKC Thunder rotation when discussing Davis Bertans?
This OKC Thunder team not only has one of the best young cores in the entire NBA, but the franchise has some of the best depth they have ever compiled. Sam Presti was asked about the amount of depth this team possesses, and he rattled off Isaiah Joe and Davis Bertans in his assessment.
Sam Presti was asked about the bench and said “You look at Isaiah Joe and Davis Bertans and those guys would make it on most of the [best shooters in the league] lists.”
— Rylan Stiles (@Rylan_Stiles) September 27, 2023
The OKC Thunder have to play Davis Bertans in less than 75 percent of their games this season, which will allow his contract to drop from 16 million dollars owed to just five million dollars owed if released this summer.
While that remains a priority for the Thunder cap sheet, it still leaves a ton of wiggle room for the OKC Thunder to play the sharpshooter throughout the season to help boost the team’s shooting ability.
Sam Presti is extremely calculated, and this could tip the hand of the Thunder using Davis Bertans in that Mike Muscala, Dario Saric role this upcoming season.