As OKC Thunder players drop like flies, Sam Presti has officially opted to bring a fresh new talent into the mix. On Friday, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype revealed that Oklahoma City intends to sign Ochai Agbaji to fill their 15 and final roster spot.
Agbaji has been a name floating around Thunder circles for months now, and for good reason.
The 2022 lottery pick boasts a player profile that this OKC front office historically covets. Measuring in at 6-foot-5 with a near 7-foot wingspan, Agbaji is a long and lengthy wing who can cover multiple positions and run and gun up and down the floor thanks to his high-level athleticism.
Needless to say, the Thunder look to be taking a swing on budgeted upside with this particular signing. Considering his flashes of potential throughout the years, it's easy to see why.
Thunder taking a low-risk, high-reward swing on Ochai Agbaji
While he's yet to find the kind of on-court consistency that most expect from a top-14 draft pick, one could argue that his constant movement between teams throughout his now five seasons in the association has played a significant role in that.
Despite posting a solid rookie season as a member of the Utah Jazz, finishing with averages of 7.9 points and 2.1 boards on 35.5 percent shooting from deep, the Kansas product was traded to the Raptors midway through his second season.
In his first full campaign in Toronto, he would find his production leveling up even higher, as he found himself posting 10.4 points and 3.8 rebounds on 49.8 percent shooting from the floor and 39.9 percent shooting from deep while ranking in the 94 percentile in perimeter isolation defense and the 74 percentile in rim deterrence.
Unfortunately for him, following the 2024-25 season, the Raptors decided to shift their focus from player development to more of a win-now mentality, which ultimately led to him being traded to the Nets.
As was the case in each of his previous two migrations, Agbaji still was able to find a way to produce admirably despite being forced to learn a completely new scheme on the fly, averaging 6.7 points and 2.3 rebounds per game on .455/ .349/ .786 shooting splits in 20 games played in Brooklyn.
In the end, the Nets declined his $8.8 million qualifying offer, thrusting him into the open waters of unrestricted free agency, where he would receive a camp invite from the reigning champion Knicks. Of course, New York felt their open roster spot would be best suited to bring in another backup center, signing James Wiseman to a standard deal and waiving Agbaji instead.
Now, in just a matter of five years, Agbaji is slated to suit up for his fourth team in the Thunder. In many ways, due to their defensive-minded approach to the game and need for extra help on the wing following the recent injuries to Jalen Williams and Cason Wallace, OKC may very well be the best fit for his services yet.
At only 26 years old, there's still time for Agbaji to find his footing in the league and turn into a quality rotation player. The Thunder are clearly now hoping he can become that for them.
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