Spotrac’s Keith Smith reported on Tuesday that teams around the league believe the Oklahoma City Thunder are going to be a popular trade partner during the 2022 NBA draft due to a roster crunch with picks Nos. 12, 30 and 34 available.
The Thunder own four of the top 34 picks, and, with the team already full of young talent, some believe the team will have to consolidate picks.
“They don’t have roster spots for four guys,” said one source to Smith.
Talking to teams about the NBA Draft, the team that keeps coming up as a natural trade partner for everyone is Oklahoma City. But not for #2. That seems to be off the table for now. Most are looking at #12, #30 or #34. As one put it: "They don't have roster spots for four guys."
— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) June 7, 2022
Which I mean — duh. Thunder general manager Sam Presti even admitted himself during the exit interview that the team might not take on four rookies despite owning four picks. This could especially be the case with 30th pick; it seems smart to trade out of that spot to avoid paying a first-round salary to a guy who would’ve probably been there in the second round.
Also, the current Thunder roster doesn’t scream “keep me” guys. There are plenty of dispensable players on the roster the Thunder could easily move on from if it really wanted to draft a certain player.
Regardless, I think it’s a safe prediction the team will not bring in four rookies and will likely try to bundle some of its picks and potentially players to move up.
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