Perhaps lost in the hoopla of their championship fallout and overall summer spending spree is the fact that Lu Dort is eligible to sign an extension with the OKC Thunder.
The veteran has two years, $36.4 million left on his current five-year, $82.5 million deal, though 2026-27 is controlled by a team option for $18.2 million.
Considering the career year he just had on both ends of the ball, Dort is eligible to ink a new three-year extension at a total worth of over $80 million.
Of course, after shelling out a whopping $877.21 million in new, standard deals this offseason, with a potential total of $822 million being committed to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren, and Jalen Williams alone, it's widely believed that the Thunder are in no rush to add such a contract figure into the mix any time soon.
Frankly, the fact that he could make somewhere in the ballpark of $20 to $30 million rather easily if he were to wait for the open waters of next summer's free agency should make Dort somewhat hesitant to push for a new extension right now himself.
However, though perhaps unlikely to happen any time soon, there's still the possibility of both parties coming to terms on a new, multi-year pact over the coming months -- one that handsomely compensates the beloved defensive stalwart while simultaneously saving the Thunder a few bucks compared to what he could have gotten elsewhere along the way.
Thunder would need to trade Cason Wallace if they extend Lu Dort
Should this extension happen, there's no denying that the transaction would be welcomed and celebrated by both the franchise and fanbase. After all, Dort is a homegrown talent who rose the ranks from undrafted free agent to integral part of Oklahoma City's 2025 title run.
Of course, such a signing would also presumably mean a Cason Wallace trade would be in OKC's plans.
As noted by The Athletic's Sam Vecenie on a recent episode of Game Theory Podcast, "at the end of the day they're going to have to pay one of Lu Dort or Cason Wallace," and, while it may be sad to hear, this couldn't be more accurate.
Whether it's them trying to avoid rotational redundancy or the simple act of cutting down on costs to duck the dreaded second apron while guys like SGA, J-Dub, Chet, and Alex Caruso see their new paydays kick-in, if a Dort deal is signed Wallace should automatically be seen as a shoo-in to be shipped out of the Sooner State as a result.
The former lottery pick is heading into the third season of his rookie-scale deal in 2025-26 and, in turn, will be eligible for an extension next summer.
With his impressive two-way play that just saw him rank fifth in the NBA in total deflections, sixth in total steals, and place within the 95th percentile in defensive estimated plus/minus last season, while averaging 8.4 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 2.5 assists a night on 47.4 percent shooting from the floor and 35.6 percent shooting from deep along the way, Wallace has proven to be a budding star.
Because of this, there's a realistic chance that the 21-year-old could field an offer well north of $20 million a year if he were to wait for the 2027 free agency period, which would price him out of the Thunder's range entirely, especially if a Dort extension was already in the books.
Because of this, in the event that the veteran gets locked down for the long haul between now and next summer, the obvious follow-up move would be to try and flip Wallace's final year under contract for more valuable future draft capital rather than lose him for nothing the following offseason.
We've seen Sam Presti part ways with highly talented, young former lottery selections in the past already. A Dort extension would all but guarantee that another one of these players would be on the move.