With as well as the Oklahoma City Thunder have been playing this year, there is a reasonable argument to be made that a complete teardown and rebuild may not be the best course of action.
The Thunder are the surprise of the season, sitting comfortably in 7th place in the Western Conference, winners of eight of their last 10 and a 12-4 record over the last month.
While Sam Presti and OKC have yet to officially become sellers, that hasn’t stopped other teams from taking a look at what the Thunder might have to offer.
And one of Oklahoma City’s most enticing assets is Danilo Gallinari.
According to Bleacher Report, the Boston Celtics could have an interest in trading for Gallinari.
While Danilo Gallinari of the Oklahoma City Thunder isn’t a power player, he’s a legitimate scorer at 6’10”, and he’s another guy Boston has monitored, per an NBA source.
Gallo’s season-high 30-point effort in Oklahoma City’s 117-104 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday likely bolstered his reputation as a “legitimate scorer”.
And while the Celtics have been reportedly had interest in Andre Drummond, Gallinari would be a less expensive option to add to the C’s rotation.
He’s in the final year of his contract at $22.6 million, and Boston would need to send out at least $17.6 million to match Gallinari’s salary.
Per Nick Pincus, the Celtics “would need to trade out at least $21.6 million to land Drummond”.
The Celtics not the only team interested in Gallinari. The Thunder big-man has also reportedly drawn interest from the Phoenix Suns.
In his first year in Oklahoma City, Gallinari is averaging 18.6 points, shooting 43.7% from the field and 40.2% from three, all up from his career averages.