Offseason Report Card: Thunder get three As, three Bs and two Cs for summer moves
7. Traded Lindy Waters III
Traded guard Lindy Waters III to the Golden State Warriors for the No. 52 pick
The Oklahoma City Thunder picked up Lindy Waters III three years ago, and at times he has moved back and forth frequently between the Thunder and their G League affiliate, the OKC Blue.
In 104 career NBA games, he has averaged just 12.3 minutes per game, but his per-minute numbers are strong. With the Blue last season he averaged 21.8 points, 6.6 rebounds and knocked down 43.5 percent of his 8.5 attempts per game.
He has proven himself an NBA-quality player.
The path to playing time on the Thunder, however, was extremely limited, and their cap situation didn't benefit much from his low salary. That's what prompted the Golden State Warriors to trade a late second-round pick for Waters, as his low salary helps their cap situation and he could potentially play some minutes this season.
The return, the 52nd pick, was flipped elsewhere by the Thunder, but it represented a very small return for a real NBA player. This deal was fine, but didn't represent any real value to the Thunder.
Grade: C+
8. Drafted Dillon Jones
Drafted Weber State guard Dillon Jones with the No. 26th pick in the 2024 NBA Draft
The Oklahoma City Thunder have a type: strong, highly-skilled guards with a plus wingspan. What is somewhat bizarre is that the Thunder doubled down so heavily on that type, drafting not one but two such players in this year's draft, 12 months after taking Cason Wallace in the lottery of the 2023 Draft.
Dillon Jones has a good handle and can get to the rim with powerful drives and finishes, and his strong free-throw shooting suggests that he can develop as a shooter. He certainly wasn't one in college, however, and on a team like the Thunder he has to shoot to get a whiff of playing time.
Is Jones a large creator at 6-foot-6, a Josh Giddey type, or is he more of a Kenrich Williams undersized forward whose rebounding and playmaking can help in a glue-guy type role?
Whichever it is, Jones was not worth the 26th pick, especially not with much better options on the board. There are things to like about Jones and some very real warts -- he can't defend anyone, for one -- and the Thunder should get a large amount of trust, but Jones looks like a miss and likely someone who would be available later in the draft.
Grade: C-