Thunder rumors: 3 trade targets they can land, and 3 that are purely pipe dreams

Thunder could land Andre Drummond

The Chicago Bulls haven't yet decided how they want to approach the NBA Trade Deadline. Their track record suggests that they will cling to their veterans and chase the Play-In Tournament, while common sense screams at them to move those veterans and finally commit to a rebuild. In only a few days the league will find out for sure.

One player who is a candidate to be traded on either path is Andre Drummond, the two-time All-Star center who has kept his career alive by relentlessly attacking the glass and surviving defensively. He is having a great season for the Bulls, one of the few who are, and would be a strategic target for the Thunder to buoy their rebounding; he's certainly a better target than his fellow Chicago center, Nikola Vucevic.

Drummond makes just $3.5 million on an expiring contract, and the Thunder would then be able to let him walk or bring him back as a backup center next season. A pair of second-round picks has an excellent chance at getting a deal done.

Thunder could land Kelly Olynyk

The Thunder could look at their center rotation and think that they need size and rebounding; that's a fair assessment. They could also see the strength of their offense when they put a stretch-big at the 5, and look to add a reliable player who can continue to stretch the court in a meaningful way when Chet Holmgren steps off the court, and who could occasionally play alongside him in double-big lineups that invert the defense by placing shooters on the perimeter.

Kelly Olynyk is both a realistic trade target and a player who fits that ideal. The journeyman big is shooting 42.9 percent from deep this season and averaging a career-best 4.3 assists per game. He's no game-changing defender but he plays hard and has proven himself reliable enough on contending teams. A real first-round pick could potentially bring Olynyk over from the Utah Jazz.