Considering all three of their primary centers in Chet Holmgren, Isaiah Hartenstein, and Jaylin Williams are all hobbled with injuries, many believe the OKC Thunder should be interested in adding some outsourced talents to their frontcourt arsenal.
Since Sunday's unfortunate diagnosis of Holmgren, from media pundits to mere keyboard warriors, hypothetical ideas of how to address Oklahoma City's need for more big men have been circulating at rapid rates.
Recently, the folks at Newsweek jumped in on the action and rattled off five players, in particular, they believe are worthy of being targeted by Sam Presit and company on the trade block.
Some of the names mentioned are certainly worth a gander. Others should be steered clear of at all cost. Today, we at TI break down each one and determine which should be pursued and which should be passed on.
Recently listed trade targets for the OKC Thunder
Jonas Valančiūnas
Mentioned first in writer Ricardo Klein's piece is veteran big Jonas Valančiūnas, who, now in his 13 season in the association finds himself playing through his first with the Washington Wizards.
Throughout his professional tenure, the Lithuanian-born baller has made a name for himself as a quality paint presence and boasts impressive career averages of 13.3 points and 9.4 rebounds while cashing in on a whopping 68.9 percent of his shot attempts within three feet of the basket.
Over the years, Valančiūnas has also managed to add a 3-point shot to his arsenal, as he's cashed in on roughly 35 percent from beyond the arc for the past six seasons now.
Someone of this style of play coupled with his 6-foot-11, 265-pound build could be of great benefit to virtually any team that covets big man help. Though the Thunder may currently constitute as such a team, however, perhaps a trade like this would be a bit too short-sighted.
Though Holmgren may be sidelined for the foreseeable future, at some point this season he will be making his way back to the hardwood, with an expected return month being January. Before this, of course, they will soon be adding splashy free agency pick-up Isaiah Hartenstein back into their rotation to man the middle, and then, presumably soon after, Jaylin Williams will also be cleared.
At full strength -- something the Thunder will have at some point this season -- they have three quality pivot options already in tow. Adding a third, especially someone like Valančiūnas who can really only be used at the five, would limit the team's desire to roll out highly versitile rotations.
Verdict: Pass
Cam Johnson
Cam Johnson has been a player linked as a possible trade target for the Thunder for some time now, and it's easy to see why.
On top of the fact that they could use more long-range snipers (currently rank 13 in 3-point shooting), OKC could also stand to add a legitimate power forward option to their rotation, as they only have Jalen Williams as a competent weapon at the position, though even he's somewhat of a misfit due to his 6-foot-5 size.
The former first-round pick finds himself amid yet another impressive season with the Brooklyn Nets, as he's sporting per-game averages of 17.2 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 2.6 assists while shooting 47.4 percent from the floor and 38.6 percent from deep.
Though perhaps not the "big man" many may be expecting Sam Presti and company to pursue following the Holmgren injury, with his knockdown shooting abilities and more than serviceable defense bringing on a guy like Johnson would be a move more geared toward addressing other areas of weakness within their rotation that won't necessarily be resolved with time and health.
Verdict: Pursue
Jerami Grant
A familiar face, Jerami Grant has already endeared himself once to the Oklahoma City faithful during his two-and-a-half-year stint back in 2016-17 through 2018-19. Might he be an option to do it again in 2024-25?
While his talents have been wallowing away on tanking teams like the Detroit Pistons and Portland Trail Blazers over the last four years, the power forward has still managed to turn himself into a borderline star what with the fact that he's averaged at least 19.2 points, has hit 37.8 percent of his triples, and has played overall solid defense throughout this span.
Now, through 12 games played into his age-30 season, Grant is still producing at a similar kind of level, as he's currently posting 18.3 points, 3.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.2 blocks.
His versatility, along with his enviable 6-foot-7 frame and 7-foot-3 wingspan would help bolster OKC's roster in a major way, while their bigs remain out with injuries and, perhaps more importantly, once they return, especially considering he'd be able to be utilized anywhere from the three down to, if necessary, a small-ball five.
For the right price, a reunion with Jerami Grant could be a very interesting idea for the Thunder to consider.
Verdict: Pursue
Robert Williams III
Robert Williams III is genuinely one of the most polarizing big men the game currently has to offer.
On the one hand, when he's on the court there are very few centers who sport the athleticism, defensive abilities, rebounding chops, and rim-running skills that he does, and his per 100 averages of 17.7 points, 16.5 rebounds, and 4.6 blocks are a clear testimony to this.
However, on the other hand, the "when" aspect of this sentiment is what makes him so polarizing.
Throughout his seven-year NBA career, the 27-year-old has played in over 35 games in a season just twice, and only recently returned to the hardwood for in-game action after a 2023-24 campaign where he saw just six games played.
Granted, the production he's put forth since making his way back has drawn quite a bit of attention, especially his latest outing against the Minnesota Timberwolves where he posted 19 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, and 3 blocks on 90.0 percent shooting from the field.
Still, the idea that the Thunder would entrust such an injury-prone player like Robert Williams III to be their insurance policy for frontcourt injuries seems a bit too far-fetched and far too risky.
Verdict: Pass
Walker Kessler
The Utah Jazz found themselves a true gem of an old-school big in Walker Kessler back during the 2022 NBA Draft, as he's quickly become one of the game's best rim protectors down in the frontcourt.
Now, through nine games played in year three, the 23-year-old is off to quite a hot start as he's currently dropping career-high averages of 9.2 points, 10.7 rebounds (3.8 offensive), and 2.8 blocks all while shooting a highly efficient 68.6 percent from the floor.
Considering these tremendous attributes that, without Chet in the fold for the next two months or so, the Thunder could certainly use more of along with the fact that his age fits the timeline this roster finds itself on, on the surface his addition to the equation seems to make a ton of sense.
Then again, even with all these truths, we still find ourselves running into a similar problem that we had with a hypothetical Jonas Valančiūnas pursuit in the sense that he's solely a center, and an old school one at that, which could lead to distribution problems with guys like Jaylin Williams and Isaiah Hartenstein.
Add this to the fact that his services will not be coming cheap for whoever inquires about his services, and it may be best for the Thunder to spend their assets on a talent who can better diversify their current talent pool.
Verdict: Pass... sadly