The Oklahoma City Thunder continued wheeling and dealing on the first day of NBA free agency, as the franchise agreed to trade Steven Adams to the New Orleans Pelicans in a deal that is expected to bring the Thunder multiple future draft picks, including at least one future first-round pick.
The trade, which was first reported by Shams Charania of The Athletic, ends up being a part of a larger, four-team trade which will result in Jrue Holiday landing with the Milwaukee Bucks.
Earlier this week, the Pelicans agreed to trade Holiday to Milwaukee in a deal that saw the Bucks send a bevy of future picks to New Orleanns. The deal involving Adams heading to the Pelicans is an expansion of the Holiday trade, which will also include the Denver Nuggets.
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, Denver will send a 2023 lottery-protected first-round pick to Oklahoma City, as well as two future second-round picks.
Sources: The Steven Adams-to-Pelicans trade includes Denver, which traded a 2023 lottery protected first-round pick for the 24th pick (RJ Hampton) on draft night. That pick is headed to the Thunder — along with two seconds — for Adams.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) November 21, 2020
For the Thunder, the trading of Adams truly represents the end of an era.
Adams, who was drafted by the Thunder with the 12th overall pick in the 2013 NBA Draft, has spent the entirety of his seven-year career with the franchise.
Although a fan favorite, Adams is entering the final year of a four-year, $100 million extension signed in 2016. Similar to Jerami Grant and Dennis Schroder, the Thunder did not foresee re-signing him to a market-value contract at the conclusion of his current deal and ultimately opted to proactively trade him for value.
As a result, Adams will take his talents to New Orleans where he will join a talented club that hopes to compete for a playoff berth. To that end, his acquisition will likely pay major dividends.