With the addition of Brooks Barnhizer and the re-signing of Branden Carlson this past offseason, in an effort to cut down on their roster, the Oklahoma City Thunder were forced to make the tough decision of waiving fan favorite Malevy Leons just a few months after agreeing to an Exhibit 10 contract.
Since then, the forward had remained a part of the club's G League affiliate team, the OKC Blue, dropping stat-sheet stuffing averages of 14.8 points, 7.6 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.1 steals, and 1.0 blocks on 50.8 percent shooting from the floor and 43.8 percent shooting from distance.
Still only 26 years old and clearly equipped with a highly versatile set of skills, the hope among many faithful followers of the franchise was that Leons would eventually prove himself to be too good for mere developmental play, rise the ranks and work his way back to the varsity team, be it on a two-way or, best case scenario, a low-cost standard deal.
Roughly two months into the 2025-26 campaign, news has officially broken that the former Bradley University product has, in fact, earned himself a two-way deal in the association. However, according to Hoops Hype's Michael Scotto, it's with the Golden State Warriors.
Former Thunder Malevy Leons signs deal with Warriors
Over the past several years, buying low on the overflow of Oklahoma City's talent collection has been a popular trend among opposing teams strewn across the league.
From the 2024 offseason trade that sent Josh Giddey to the Chicago Bulls to Charlotte finagling Tre Mann into their inbound package with the Gordon Hayward deal from a few years back, many ball clubs have found success with adding on players developed by the Thunder.
Heck, the Warriors already got a taste for what an ex-Thunder talent can do, as they reaped the benefits of the talents that Lindy Waters III brought them during a stretch of games just last year before getting shipped out mid-season in the Jimmy Butler blockbuster.
Now, it appears Golden State is double-dipping in the pool of former Thunder players available for the taking with the signing of Leons.
Of late, the Dubs have had success with pulling out the most from overlooked prospects like Gary Payton II and Pat Spencer. Perhaps Leons is seen as yet another passion project for the organization.
Sadly, with how stacked Oklahoma City's roster is, coming across meaningful opportunities on the hardwood proved to be virtually impossible for the forward. Maybe the Warriors can give him the kind of run that the Thunder simply couldn't.