3 Thunder at serious risk of departing in potential NBA Expansion Draft

Coming into the 2024-25 NBA season, the OKC Thunder are considered one of, if not the deepest team in the entire association.

With stars both super and budding like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, and Chet Holmgren leading the charge and sensational role players like Isaiah Hartenstein, Alex Caruso, and Luguentz Dort rounding things out, in truth, this Oklahoma City squad boasts a rotation that could easily see double-digit contributors on a nightly basis.

In virtually every circumstance, this type of depth is extremely coveted across the league, and it's a major reason why this club is viewed as a favorite to take home the Larry O'Brien Trophy this coming year.

However, one setting in which such a stacked talent pool could be seen as a negative for an organization is in a potential NBA Expansion Draft and, per recent rumblings, it's quite realistic that one could find itself taking place in the not-too-distant future.

Thunder players at risk of departing in potential NBA Expansion Draft

Based on the latest intel from league insiders and personnel, the NBA is seriously considering expanding by adding a couple of new teams into the mix, with the earliest such a happening would take place being 2027-28.

In such a scenario, each existing team will be able to protect eight players from being entered into the draft pool, and, for most teams, this number covers essentially every core and foundational talent.

For the Thunder, however, this would see several of their current players be made available to be snatched up in a potential expansion draft, and, of those who fall into the unprotected category, there are a few, in particular, who could easily find themselves being relocated.

Ousmane Dieng

Barring any unforeseen third-year leap, falling on the outside looking in on the protected list in an NBA Expansion Draft would almost certainly be Ousmane Dieng.

Through two seasons played in the association, the combo forward has found himself revolving in and out of the G League and has seen only 72 combined games played while sporting mere averages of 4.5 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 1.2 assists in 13.0 minutes a night.

Still, despite his lacking presence at the varsity level, there's still plenty of intrigue in Dieng as a talent, and an incoming squad starting from scratch could prove to be more than willing to snatch up the likes of a recent lottery selection.

Still only 21 years old, the French baller has shown flashes of brilliance in his game while leading the charge for the club's developmental affiliate, the OKC Blue.

During his tenure with the team, he's shown himself to have the makings of a quality contributor on both ends of the floor thanks to his combination of athleticism and size (6-foot-9 with a 7-foot wingspan) and has dropped impressive per-game averages of 16.2 points, 8.2 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 1.1 steals, and 1.0 along the way.

This past season, Dieng paved the way toward the Blue's first championship since 2004, and was named NBA G League Finals MVP for his efforts.

While he's still undoubtedly raw, the upside that this youngster possesses is quite clear. Because of this, an incoming club would likely like to get their hands on the versatile play that Dieng could provide to a frontcourt rotation.

Dillon Jones

Outside of point guard, there's an argument to be made that the most important position in the modern-day game of basketball is the wing. From guys like Jimmy Butler and Kawhi Leonard to reigning Finals MVP Jaylen Brown, it seems that a large chunk of the top players in the association at the moment seem to be small forward/ shooting guard hybrids.

Though no one is expecting Dillon Jones to be any one of these all-time talents, coming into his rookie campaign he projects as a highly versatile wing who can handle the rock, bully his way into the interior for down-low scoring opportunities, create looks for his teammates, and guard multiple positions thanks to his impressive 6-foot-11 wingspan.

During his four-year collegiate career, Jones established himself as quite a unique talent, one who can stuff the stat sheet and play bigger than his position generally warrants due to his bulky 235-pound frame.

During his final year at Weber State, the 22-year-old posted solid all-around averages of 20.8 points, 9.8 rebounds, 5.2 assists, and 2.0 steals while shooting 48.9 percent from the floor.

Jones is a young prospect attached to a rookie-scale deal for the next several seasons who, with his wide array of skills, can contribute in a plethora of different ways on the hardwood.

In other words, he's exactly what any rebuilding (or, in this hypothetical case, just building) team would love to have within their arsenal.

Nikola Topic

Coming into the 2024 NBA Draft, there were many who believed that Nikola Topic could have been a realistic contender to be selected with the number one overall pick in the festivities had it not been for his partially torn ACL sustained in May.

Due to the ailment, however, the Serbian-born baller wound up dropping to the Thunder at 12 overall on the night.

Considering just how deep they already are along with their recent successes with red-shirting injured rookies during their debut season (Chet Holmgren, for example), his sitting out the entirety of 2024-25 while he recovers was a move considered by many to be one only the Thunder could easily afford to take a chance on, especially when considering the intangibles he possesses when healthy.

Before going down with his unfortunate knee ailment, the 19-year-old found himself off to a hot start with the Crvena Zvedza in Belgrade, as he was showcasing his natural ball-handling and driving abilities while averaging 17.9 points and 6.8 assists per night.

Despite sporting the size of a modern-day wing (6-foot-7), Topic plays with a game that resembles a true and natural point guard with his quick first step, ball-handling skills, and impressive dime-dropping abilities.

Though his long-range shooting stroke still leaves a bit to be desired, being he's only 19 years old there's strong reason to believe that he'll be able to work his way toward adding such an attribute to his already impressive bag of tricks.

On the Thunder, Topic could prove to be a tremendous contributor within the rotation alongside centerpieces like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, and Chet Holmgren. However, on another club such as, say, an expansion team, he could realistically serve as a cornerstone talent who could be built around moving into the future.