4 trade targets Thunder must have on their radar ahead of 2024-25 regular season

The OKC Thunder are coming off a top-seeded, 57-win campaign and currently find themselves heading into 2024-25 with the second-best odds of taking home the Larry O'Brien Trophy.

However, even with their top-tier status coming into the new season, they could still use for a few more tweaks to their talent pool on their hopeful journey toward the promised land.

Sure, Sam Presti and company managed to address some of the most glaring weaknesses within their arsenal in frontcourt size and backcourt shooting via the additions of Isaiah Hartenstein and Alex Caruso, but it's hard to confidently qualify Oklahoma City as a perfectly constructed squad.

Because of this, over the next several months this Thunder front office may end up looking to make some more win-now moves to better the team's odds of raising their first-ever championship banner, and, should they look toward the trade route, there are four players they could realistically look to acquire.

Trade targets Thunder must have on their radar in 2024-25

4. Dennis Schroder

Everyone loves a reunion story, especially when it involves someone as beloved as Dennis Schroder was during his two-year tenure in Oklahoma City.

Proving himself to be a sixth-man savant with the Thunder, the point guard was a tremendous offensive initiator and overall creator for both himself and his teammates, as he went on to average 17.0 points, 4.1 assists, and 3.6 rebounds while shooting an efficient 36.1 percent from distance from 2018-19 through 2019-20.

Though his status of being a front-running Sixth Man of the Year threat may no longer be all that prevalent, Schroder is still more than capable of providing the previously mentioned offensive attributes that, frankly, coach Mark Daigneault's squad could certainly use more of, especially following the departure of top set-up artist, Josh Giddey this summer.

Even with the likes of Alex Caruso, Cason Wallace, and Isaiah Joe all slated to be gunning for much-deserving minutes within OKC's backcourt rotation, the club still seems to lack any semblance of pure point guard insurance behind primary handler, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

At the right price, Schroder could be a worthwhile option to consider filling such a role.

3. Kelly Olynyk

This summer, the Thunder went about and addressed their lacking size and physicality within their frontcourt rotation by adding Isaiah Hartenstein on day two of free agency.

At 7-feet, 249 pounds and coming off a career-best campaign with the Knicks where he dropped 8.7 points, 9.4 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks in 48 starts, the big man not only brings a menacing stature to the club's front line but also adds more toughness on the boards and in the shot-blocking department.

And yet, even with Hartenstein's arrival and his newly-formed tandem with fellow 7-footer, Chet Holmgren, there's still a case to be made that Oklahoma City should still be looking to add more size to their roster, for, outside of this duo, they have just one other full-time player who measures in at above 6-foot-7 (Jaylin Williams at 6-foot-9).

Adding someone like the 6-foot-11, 240 pound Kelly Olynyk would bring the Thunder necessary frontcourt depth, while simultaneously adding a sharpshooting tweener big who sports a 36.9 percent conversion rate from distance for his career.

On top of this, he has ample experience serving as a consistent contributor for teams who have embarked on deep playoff runs, one of which came while suiting up for the Miami Heat where he would go on to drop impressive averages of 11.6 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 1.4 assists on 41.2 percent shooting from deep during their 2020 NBA Finals appearance.

Though he may be entering into his 12 season in the association, it's quite evident that Olynyk still has plenty left in the tank -- averaged 9.8 points and 5.3 rebounds on 38.7 percent shooting from distance last season --, and bringing him aboard to serve in a reserve role behind Hartenstein and Holmgren could prove to be an absolute luxury for the Thunder.

2. Cameron Johnson

Last season, the Thunder rolled out natural wing, Jalen Williams as their primary four option. Heading into this year, many suspect that either Chet Holmgren or Isaiah Hartenstein, both natural fives, will now be found manning the position.

In other words, Oklahoma City sorely lacks in true power forward options.

Because of this, Presti may be open to the idea of pursuing a more traditional four to add to this title-hungry core, and Cameron Johnson just might be one of the more optimal targets they could look to target.

Entering his sixth season in the association, the former lottery pick has made a name for himself as a lock-down defender and a lights-out shooter from distance who, in 2023-24, dropped impressive averages of 13.4 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 2.4 assists on 39.1 percent shooting from deep while hoisting up a career-high 6.1 attempts per night.

Being he's in the prime of his career at 28 years old and sports a build (6-foot-8 with a 6-foot-10 wingspan) and style of play that contending teams covet within their frontcourt rotation, of all the players mentioned on this list Johnson would almost certainly cost the Thunder the most in a hypothetical trade exchange.

However, considering the franchise has an overwhelming amount of draft capital at their disposal and Johnson's current employers, the Brooklyn Nets, are seemingly amid a full fledged rebuild and, thus, are at a point where such assets are incredibly valuable, making such a deal become a reality may not be as far fetched as some may think.

1. Dorian Finney-Smith

At this point, it should be obvious that the tanking Nets roster several players we believe could be of great value to this Thunder team, and, as far as skillset, position, and how realistic an acquisition could be, Dorian Finney-Smith should be the most highly sought after player in the borough.

Throughout his eight-year professional career, the forward has received ample experience contributing within the rotation for playoff-bound teams, with one of his latest and most prominent appearances under the bright lights advancing as far as the Western Conference Finals in 2022 while with the Dallas Mavericks.

Since 2019-20, Finney-Smith has only proven capable of posting effective two-way averages of 9.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 1.7 assists on 37.1 percent shooting from distance while sporting a sound defensive rating of 114.

While there are some OKC fans who seem to be a bit down on the idea of adding the 31-year-old to the roster, with many citing his lack of rebounding abilities as a primary concern, what he provides from a positional, versatility, and overall toughness standpoint could easily make up for such a shortcoming.