As if they needed any more firepower, the top-ranked OKC Thunder frighteningly find themselves in a position to come away from the 2026 NBA Draft with an obscene number of top-flight talents.
With the LA Clippers floundering and the Utah Jazz surging during these early stages of the season, Oklahoma City is already realistically looking at the possibility of landing two top-10 picks in next June's festivities.
On top of this, considering they're owed the top-four protected pick of the Philadelphia 76ers, there's also a possibility where Sam Presti and company find themselves on the clock three times during the first round alone.
In the event that this latter hypothetical winds up becoming a reality, Christopher Kline of FanSided.com has already seemingly mapped out a way in which the Thunder could not only come away from the night as undisputed winners but also set themselves up to continue their reign of domination for the better part of the next decade.
Thunder add three top-billed prospects in latest NBA Mock Draft
In FanSided's latest 2026 NBA Mock Draft, the Thunder are on the board for the ninth (via LAC), tenth (via UTA), and 18th (via PHI) picks, where they were found snatching up Washington forward Hannes Steinbach, Auburn guard Elyjah Freeman, and Houston big man Chris Cenac Jr., respectively.
In one fell swoop, this proposed approach to draft night sees Oklahoma City address two of its arguably weakest positions, power forward (Steinbach) and center (Cenac), while continuing the trend of Presti taking on elite-sized guard prospects in the likes of Freeman.
In this new era of tax aprons and crippling salary cap hardships, teams are more concerned than ever about the state of their payroll.
However, even with the fact that they committed to more than $800 million in new, standard contracts to the likes of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, and Chet Holmgren alone, and are currently projected to enter into the dreaded second apron next season, they may ironically be the one club that's not all that worried.
The reason for this is the fact that many believe the bevy of draft picks heading their way over the next several years will be used to bring in cost-efficient, high-upside young prospects to replace players attached to pricier paydays.
With this proposed mock, the Thunder could rather seamlessly swap the roster spot of Isaiah Hartenstein and his $28.5 million salary for the shot-swatting savant Cenac, Kenrich Williams and his $7.1 million salary for the positionally versitile Steinbach, and, if it were to sadly come down to it, Lu Dort and his $18.22 million for the incredibly athletic and lengthy Freeman.
Though there are still seven months to go between now and June, and, in turn, a lot can change along the way, having their draft night play out anywhere close to the way Kline is currently projecting would very likely prove to be an all-out win for the Oklahoma City.