Hours before the 2020 NBA Draft, Thunder general manager made headlines when ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that the club reached agreement with the Philadelphia 76ers that would land Al Horford in Oklahoma City.
Shortly before the Wojnarowski report was another rumor out of Dallas that had the Thunder and Mavericks discussing a sign-and-trade deal for Danilo Gallinari. The potential move, which was first reported by veteran NBA personality Matt Babcock, was believed to be centered around the Mavericks sending the 18th overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft to Oklahoma City.
Although Gallinari is a free agent, the Mavericks are not in line to have the requisite salary cap space to make him a competitive offer as a free agent. Therefore, Dallas would win by acquiring a player that can help the team build around Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis at the expense of the 18th overall pick.
Babcock described the progress of the talks as being in the “discussion” phase, meaning that no deal is imminent. Shortly before the draft, however, ESPN’s Tim MacMahon quoted Dallas’ Donnie Nelson as saying that there was an even chance that the Mavs would move up, move down or stand pat with the pick.
The Mavs and the Thunder are discussing a trade that would send Danilo Gallinari to Dallas in a sign-and-trade and the 18th pick to OKC, per sources.
— Matt Babcock (@MattBabcock11) November 18, 2020
With respect to Gallinari and the potential sign-and-trade deal, a player who is a free agent — in this case, him — has to agree to terms with the acquiring team in order for the trade to come to fruition. Those negotiations usually result in a deal being finalized, but it is worth mentioning that sign-and-trade deals are more complicated than normal trades because the player being traded has to also agree to terms with the acquiring team.
For example, a reported sign-and-trade deal between the Sacramento Kings and Milwaukee Bucks hit a snag on Wednesday when The Athletic’s Sam Amick reported that Bogdan Bogdanovic (in this case, the player being traded) couldn’t immediately come to terms on a contract with the Bucks.
Whether Gallinari ultimately lands in Dallas or not, it stands to reason that he has played his final game as a member of the Thunder. Each of the moves the team has made recently has been done with a focus on two key initiatives: getting younger and acquiring draft capital. Re-signing Gallinari on a market-rate contract would serve neither interest.
Rather than lose him for nothing to free agency, Presti is likely to continue to try to attempt to use his influence and leverage and maximize his assets.