According to those in the know, the OKC Thunder may not be done making moves this season, even after their recent acquisition of Nique Clifford from the Sacramento Kings.
Because of this, they should be interested in monitoring the ongoing situation out in New Orleans.
On Friday, reports surfaced that 2022 NBA All-Star Dejounte Murray has requested a trade out of NOLA. Leading up to this announcement, rumors had consistently been circulating about internal turmoil within the Pelicans' locker room.
Though this news may involve just one player, it could be a sign of what may be to come for New Orleans as the season progresses, with a domino effect potentially setting in for the hapless organization.
Losing their franchise point guard could theoretically prompt the Pels to commit to a long-overdue, full-fledged rebuild here in 2026-27, which, in turn, could lead to a fire sale down in the bayou this trade season.
Should this end up being the cast, the Thunder must jump at the opportunity to try and poach some of their supporting-cast players.
Pelicans players have long been linked to Thunder as trade targets
As ESPN's Tim MacMahon recently noted, though Oklahoma City "will explore the market" for opportunities to upgrade their roster this trade season, no one should be expecting to see them make "a big splash."
Presumably, this means that instead of star chasing, the Thunder will prioritize well-fitting role players who are perhaps of lesser league-wide status than, say, an established star like Dejounte Murray.
Fortunately, there's a long-standing interest between OKC and a number of the point guard's NOLA running mates.
The most popular name that has regularly been linked to the Thunder over the years is Trey Murphy III, a player who has already been tabbed as a top target for Sam Presti and company this season.
Other, less buzzed-about candidates could also be guys like veterans Herbert Jones and Saddiq Bey.
All of these talents could be seen as viable options to help flesh out OKC's decimated wing depth amid their injury-plagued start to the season, for each has a proven track record of contributing on both ends of the floor.
Fortunately, the Thunder have the draft capital (seven tradeable first-round picks, 19 second-rounders) and collection of exciting young players (Nikola Topic, Thomas Sorber, etc.) to entice a rebuilding team like the Pelicans could prove to be to make any number of trades.
All things considered, Oklahoma City should be closely watching New Orleans following this recent Dejounte Murray news.
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