The OKC Thunder are in the midst of one of their worst slumps in years, as they find themselves boasting a middling 6-6 record over their last 12 contests and have endured their lone two losing streaks of the campaign along the way.
Despite all the doom and gloom narratives being preached by haters and worrywart fans alike, The Athletic's Fred Katz believes there's still plenty of reason for optimism for Oklahoma City, especially considering the time in which these hardships are taking place.
During a recent appearance on The Zach Lowe Show, the senior writer went as far as to say that "If I'm the Thunder, I probably feel very happy this is happening now," as he stressed that they still have ample time to address many of their most glaring areas of concern on the hardwood, be it internally or, more exciting, via the trade route.
"The trade deadline is a month from today, and they've got time to figure out, well, ok, maybe we do need another offensive rebounder here," Katz said. "Maybe they could use another athletic guard who could help them against San Antonio, who obviously is a tough matchup for them."
Fred Katz suggests Thunder may want to scour trade market for help
Despite being the reigning NBA Champions, boasting the best record in the entire association this year at 30-7, and led by 2025 MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the Thunder still have several areas of concern within their on-court play this season.
Katz hit on a few during his discussion with Lowe by highlighting Oklahoma City's lowly production in the offensive rebounding department (second-lowest rate at 9.2 per night) and lacking depth as far as athletic and, presumably, lanky guards are concerned -- after all, he did reference their struggles against the Spurs.
However, arguably more dire than both is their need for a reliable catch-and-shoot talent, especially one who can space the floor, as they currently rank in the top 10 in attempts from deep yet are only cashing in at a 17-ranked 36.3 percent clip.
Over their recent 12-game slump, they've hoisted a whopping 27.6 attempts from beyond the arc in such sets, but are converting at a fourth-worst 32.9 percent success rate.
Now, as fans have learned throughout the years, Sam Presti is by no means an advocate for making in-season moves. In fact, a few years back, he went on record stating that "external solutions always bring with them a lot of risk."
However, with a treasure trove of draft capital at their disposal and clear weaknesses in their in-game execution, Katz believes the Thunder might want to consider a change of heart if they truly wish to become the first repeat champion since the 2018 Warriors.