It's no secret that the OKC Thunder have had to walk a financial tightrope this offseason, cutting ties with Aaron Wiggins, Isaiah Joe, and Lu Dort. The departure of the three beloved players left GM Sam Presti and company with just $6.9 million of breathing room under the second apron and one roster spot still to fill.
With so little wiggle room, Presti may have found the best possible solution, and it might make last month's Isaiah Joe trade all the more worth it.
News broke earlier Saturday that the Denver Nuggets restricted free agent Spencer Jones agreed to a two-year, $12 million offer sheet with the Thunder. The move means that Denver now has until Sunday at midnight to match the offer, or else Jones will be moving cities.
The deal walks the thin line between OKC's current payroll and the second apron without pushing them over the edge, and it backfills the shooting depth lost with the three trades earlier this summer.
Thunder's new potential wing fills perimeter hole left by Joe's departure
Though Isaiah Joe found himself on the outside of the rotation looking in, he still represented a significant advantage for the Thunder over the rest of the league. Not many teams can say they have a career 40.6 percent three-point shooter waiting in the wings in case something happens to their rotational perimeter players. Though Joe proved to be an extraneous piece, he was an important insurance policy in his last year with the team.
Spencer Jones is coming off a season in which he shot 39.6 percent from three in his own right. The former Stanford product carved out a respectable role in Denver, where he logged 37 starts in 64 games. Just 25 years of age and entering his third season in the league, the perimeter wing is younger and bigger than Joe while sharing a similar knack for the three ball. He is three inches taller than the now-Piston at 6'7".
Assuming the Nuggets fail to match the offer, the transition from Joe to Jones represents a more than $5 million discount while maintaining a similar level of shooting supremacy. It also serves to bolster the Thunder's relatively thin forward situation. Most of their depth resides at the guard and center positions.
If the move finalizes on Sunday night, it will be yet another example of Sam Presti's genius. He continues to prove capable of playing by the NBA's new financial rules and simultaneously maintaining a championship-level roster. Thunder fans will likely be on the edge of their seats for the next 24 hours, hoping that Nuggets camp remains quiet.
Add us as a preferred source on Google