joebreezy12 | Thunder

542 | 18 hours ago

Your description for some reason leaves off Kenrich Williams and Hartenstein.

Dort, Hartenstein and Kenrich Williams are all team options. They could literally just decline Williams and Dort and get under the 2nd apron.

Joe, Wiggins and Topic could all probably each be moved into another teams’ cap space if necessary.

They’re going to be super expensive, but there’s pretty easy moves they can make cutting depth that wouldn’t impact a theoretical playoff rotation too much.

Blasto05

212 | 17 hours ago

This is also not considering their 2 first round pick salaries.

And there’s limited options of teams able to absorb any amount of salary without sending salary back. Teams are not going to help the Thunder get under the second apron for free lol

Officer_Hops

123 | 17 hours ago

Pretty much any team with the option to would take Topic into cap space with no other compensation.

Lstark5642 | Thunder

43 | 17 hours ago

Thunder are not picking two guys in the first. Every report from a reputable source is that they would rather move up aggressively or trade out entirely than pick twice, which has been true in the last two seasons as well.

I also don’t believe teams truly care to “help” the thunder. It’s about doing what’s best for your team. Look at all the teams that helped boston get under the apron last year.

Blasto05

7 | 17 hours ago

Boston did not get under the Apron for free.

It takes two to tango. Thunder want to aggressively move up but that’s going to take someone willing to move down in a loaded draft class….

Trading out entirely might be more likely.

joebreezy12 | Thunder

39 | 17 hours ago

that’s because boston was trying to get off of a 35 year old jrue holiday making $34m and a 30 year old porzingis making $30m.

all the players okc will try and move off are under 28 years old and all make $17m/year or less

WakiLover | Lakers

14 | 15 hours ago

Yeah it’s not like you guys are trying to move off dead contracts like Gabe Vincent and Maxi Kleber. If the nets or bulls randomly offer Rui like 2 year / 50 mil and he leaves the Lakers, Pelinka probably has Presti on speed dial to grab your guys.

__STOOLKRAKEN | Celtics

1 | 12 hours ago

Boston did not get under the Apron for free.

We made out pretty good though; didn’t have to trade a single first despite the general consensus being that it would take at least a combined two firsts to shed the Jrue and KP contracts.

I still think a Thunder-Bulls trade involving Joe, Wiggins, and picks makes sense for both teams. Bulls take Joe and Wiggins into their cap space and the Thunder erase that $20M, which is almost ³⁄₄ of their current projected second-apron overage. OKC sends #12 and #17 to the Bulls for #15 and a future first and maybe a future second. OKC splits the difference on this year’s selections and adds another future first to the asset vault, while the Bulls now have three firsts including two lottery picks in a well-regarded draft to start rebuilding.

Exciting-Hat5957 | Kings

1 | 10 hours ago

I don’t think the Bulls would give the Thunder another future first. They get the extra first out of the trade for taking on the cap hit

neeskens88 | Bulls

1 | 8 hours ago

There’s no chance the Bulls will give up a future first in any deal, especially with the new lottery.

Blasto05

1 | an hour ago

Boston traded away Porzingis essentially for a first round pick+terrance Mann, and sent that package to Brooklyn to absorb Manns contract to get under the apron.

If Boston are the salary, they would’ve had the 22nd overall Pick and a solid 20min role player who’s contributed multiple times in the playoffs…instead they had to send that player and the 22nd pick just to get off the salary.

Andy_Wiggins | Timberwolves

33 | 17 hours ago

The MLE allows you absorb players in a trade with that level salary or smaller. I don’t know the specific number, but I’d bet 10+ teams have the MLE or cap space.

They’d be able to dump them if needed.

chivestheconqueror | Celtics

9 | 17 hours ago

We have a $27M TPE 👀

Jannopan | Celtics

6 | 15 hours ago

I wonder if OKC has any big in that range who happens to be on a team option.

__STOOLKRAKEN | Celtics

1 | 12 hours ago

That we’re not going to use all of unless it involves Hauser going out.

chivestheconqueror | Celtics

1 | 11 hours ago

That’s absolutely on the table

Mobile-Entertainer60 | Thunder

3 | 17 hours ago

Every team under the luxury tax now has the option of using their MLE as a trade exception. So it’s not just teams with actual cap space who have the capacity to absorb a player without sending a player back.

mioraka | Raptors

2 | 8 hours ago

That’s assuming these are negative value contracts.

Almost all of these guys can at least play 20mins a game on another team, even playoff teams.

And worst come to worst…..they got 13 picks in 7 years. They gonna be fine.

Sumo_Cerebro

1 | 7 hours ago

Wallace and The 2 Firsts to either Brooklyn or Sacramento works out.

They can move up to draft Kingston Flemings or Aday Mara if they need a big.

Blasto05

1 | 3 hours ago

As a nets fan, No. That does not work out.

Nets have plenty of draft capital now as well, they don’t need to stockpile more picks over taking a premium player. Jumping into the top 7 of this draft is going to cost a lot. Jumping into the top 3-4 is going to cost a ton more.

The most reasonable trade scenario I’ve seen for the Thunder is 12+17 for Dallas #9

Dallas has no 2027 first round pick, and no second round picks until 2030. They would likely be open to moving back for an extra pick.

Pomeranian111 | Timberwolves

1 | 5 hours ago

Teams are not going to help the Thunder get under the second apron for free lol

Will Daryl Morey be a gm again? lol.

mommathecat | Raptors

1 | 2 hours ago

I think the Pistons or Magic would GLADLY help OKC to get their hands on Joe, they need shooting so badly and Thunder in the other conference anyway.

Hell so would we but most of the players we could send back are so cheap (and valuable) it’s not worth it. Gotta get off Poetl is the top priority.

Lost-Photo-631

-1 | 16 hours ago

Their rivals in the West might not, but an up and coming team would. Joe and Wiggins fit into the midlevel trade exception and are better than almost everyone available for that price in FA. The Nets have $40 million in cap space; they would happily take Joe, Wiggins, and Thomas Sorber into their cap space if they can’t get anyone else.

Striking_Moose_8747

-1 | 15 hours ago

They can just stash those guys on g league roster

messibusiness

31 | 15 hours ago

It’s interesting. Their depth is obviously unbelievable but I feel Hartenstein and Caruso are a huge part of why they’re so relentlessly good.

Without Hartenstein they’d still be incredible but maybe not the Death Star they’ve been since he joined. They’ve got wings and guards to burn but C is not easy to replace.

xPoltergeist

1 | 42 minutes ago

Their depth is obviously unbelievable but I feel Hartenstein and Caruso are a huge part of why they’re so relentlessly good.

Both of them were the pieces OKC got before 2025 season that made the ring possible. Regardless of Nuggets injuries, Caruso was the most important piece defending(not going into the specifics of said defense, but still) Jokic and big reason they made it past Nuggets.

BlueHundred | Knicks

7 | 15 hours ago

Yeah, much to non-Thunder fan’s chagrin, the Thunder core isn’t at risk right now. The whole point of a lot of these deals was to have this flexibility. Also, IHart could renegotiate for a longer term deal for less annually if that’s what both parties want to do.

Now, next year, there might be some decisions around Chet/JDub but there’s not much to worry about this offseason.

Altruistic-Star-544

7 | 15 hours ago

Curious to get a thunder fans opinion…let’s assume you decline Dort and Kenrich for cap relief.

Do you trade Isaiah Joe AND Aaron Wiggins? Probably not a ton of value there besides cap relief. But you have 8 “guards” even after declining Dort.

Do you re-sign Cason Wallace or trade him away? Probably can’t afford to have McCain, Ajay and Cason unless you are okay with ditching Hartenstein after ²⁶⁄₂₇ right?

joebreezy12 | Thunder

19 | 15 hours ago

my ideal offseason for the thunder (that doesn’t involve any crazy huge trades) –

- pick at either 12 or 17 and trade the other pick for a future first

- decline team option on hartenstein and re-sign him for something like 3 years $66m (similar to what the rockets did with fred vanvleet last offseason)

- trade joe or wiggins into another teams cap space (both fit into the MLE, so should be a lot of suitors) for maybe a few 2nds.

- either decline dort, or trade him into another team’s cap space.

- decline kenrich team option and re-sign him for the vet min (not sure he’d be open to this, but he said in his exit interview he wants to retire with the thunder)

- extend wallace to hopefully something around $25m/year. this deal wouldnt kick in until year after next

this would slice about $25m from the payroll and get them under the 2nd apron.

their rotation next year would be SGA / Wallace / Jdub / Chet/ iHart with ajay / mccain / joe or wiggins / sorber / jwill off the bench.

LAEverything1

2 | 12 hours ago

Who do you like in the draft for the Thunder?

Scoop1428

1 | 3 hours ago

I personally think Yaxel makes a lot of sense. Switchable, athletic big who can shoot and defend and who is probably ready to play out of the gate.

Intriguing option that I really doubt happens, because of drafting Sorber last year, is Aday Mara.

LittleTension8765 | Lakers

1 | 13 hours ago

What about Topic?

Partzy1604 | Thunder

2 | 13 hours ago

Topic has a contract for the next 2 seasons and any immediate extension will probably be low salary given the history.

Altruistic-Star-544

1 | 11 hours ago

Yeah it’d be nice to lock down Hartenstein after he played well against the Spurs.

I kinda don’t know if Dort has much value at $18M but maybe that’s recency bias. You wouldn’t have much leverage since everyone knows you’ll just cut him if you can’t trade him. Either way, worth asking around.

Re-signing Hartenstein and Wallace to $25M each, cutting Dort and Kenrich and trading Joe and Wiggins would put you at $250 in ²⁷⁄₂₈ before any rookie scale players. Assuming I did the math right ha.

Obviously that’s a fantastic roster locked down for 26-28 but it is well over the second apron in ²⁷⁄₂₈. I wonder if there’s a Wallace, 12th and 17th picks to trade up or grab a wing on a decent contract?

Lighthouse_seek

1 | 3 hours ago

Is ³⁄₆₆ enough for hartenstein? His previous contract was ³⁄₈₇

joebreezy12 | Thunder

1 | 3 hours ago

Correct it was an overpay with a team option in the final year while the Thunder had cap space. Go look at what the rockets did with Fred vanvleet for reference.

Scoop1428

1 | 3 hours ago

I think it could be. the ³⁄₈₇ was an overpay to get him to OKC. Now that he’s paid, won a championship there, and is embedded in the city and culture, I could see him staying for this. Although I would say a ³⁄₇₅ is probably a little more likely/close to market value.

Scoop1428

1 | 3 hours ago

This is exactly what I see happening and what I’ve been saying. Dort should be declined or traded to where he wants to go. One of Joe or Wiggins has to go. I’d bet Wiggins. Kenrich I could see declined and signed to a more team-friendly deal, but not vet minimum (probably more like 3 for 12 to 15m. Cason I’d say gets the Caruso deal essentially, at around $20-22m/year.

And we’ll see about the draft. If Presti see someone he wants, which it’s Presti so he probably does, AND can use both picks to trade up to nab them, of course he’s going to do it. But, more than likely, I think he picks at 12 and trades 17 to kick the can/keep assets for the future to continue reloading. Question is…can he get someone he wants at 12? Or does he need to trade up? Either way, It’s pretty easy to trust Presti these days when it comes to the draft.

OklaJosha | Thunder

4 | 15 hours ago

Thunder fan:

pretty sure Dort will be gone after signing with Clutch. I hope he gets a big pay day.
Love Joe & Wiggins, but they are not getting the minutes they should and are on great contracts. I think they’d get a lot more playing time on virtually any other team. And have a chance to show they’re worth more money.
same with Kenrich. He’s awesome. Great glue guy. Doesn’t get many minutes but is always solid when he does. Keep if we can but a great trade piece if we need to get under.

I think we go:

SGA, Cason, JDub, Chet, IHart
Ajay, McCain, Caruso, JWill,
Topic, Sorber, Carlson?, Giannis

datsoar | Bucks

6 | 15 hours ago

Oh so you’re delusional

OklaJosha | Thunder

8 | 14 hours ago

lol, just kidding on the last guy

Ladnil | Warriors

5 | 12 hours ago

Bill Simmons and some of the other podcasts don’t really know cap mechanics in detail so they just learn by example of what they saw before, and up to this point the second apron impacting teams has been with contracts mostly signed before the second apron was a thing when the team didn’t plan for the apron rules. So the lesson they learned is that the apron is a soul crushing wall that makes you break up your team.

Well, the Thunder gave out all their contracts with the knowledge that the Aprons exist. And look at that, they planned to have options for how to handle it when they have to pay their guys. Shocking. I’m sure next summer Bill will be dumbfounded that the Thunder miraculously kept Shai Chet and J Dub together, calling Presti a magician.

LittleTension8765 | Lakers

4 | 13 hours ago

You used the number 12 pick on a guy at one point was in talks to go number 1 who you knew would miss the first season with an ACL injury and then had cancer the second season. He’s a 20 year old 6’6 point guard who could be a perfect fit next to SGA. Would be dumb to move off Topic now

M6Df4 | Timberwolves

4 | 13 hours ago

But on the other hand, starting 2027-2028 SGA’s cap hit is expected to reach ~$60m and increase by ~$5m a year through 2030-2031, assuming he picks up his player option. That puts him at 35% of the estimated 2027-2028 cap. SGA, J-Dub, and Chet will total >85% of the 2027-2028 cap just between the 3 of them.

Next year isn’t as much of an issue, but I have to think they’ll make moves starting next year to set up the roster for when those 3 contracts kick in.

joebreezy12 | Thunder

3 | 13 hours ago

Oh for sure at a certain point OKC will absolutely be above the 2nd apron and paying the tax for multiple years. but that’s what you have to do to sustain a title contender.

Double-Slowpoke | Raptors

3 | 15 hours ago

Yeah, Thunder have so many moves they can make. Some of them aren’t even that hard. I would be sad to let Dort just walk, but dumping him and Kenrich Williams is very easy. You don’t need to be Sam Presti to figure that out.

ProfessionalCLA | Spurs

1 | 10 hours ago

Other teams: “Ah yes, let us help the Thunder by taking the salaries of Joe, Wiggins and Topic! I wanna see them win another title!”

MammothHistorian5652 | West

320 | 18 hours ago

Kenrich, Joe/Wiggins and Dort are most likely gone

Jackibearrrrrr | Raptors

148 | 18 hours ago

I mean I don’t think it’s much of a loss. That starting lineup with Cason instead of Dort would be disgusting

tjc815 | Thunder

112 | 17 hours ago

I was on the other side of this until this season. I think Dort has actually fallen off a bit on defense. The decline in his three-point shot is undeniable. Cason is just the better option now, especially if dort is remotely expensive.

korihor4 | San Diego Clippers

10 | 18 hours ago

truly sickening….

Chickachic-aaaaahhh | Thunder

8 | 13 hours ago

Its literally an improvement without a doubt.

Practical_Garlic3015 | Nuggets

4 | 4 hours ago

Cason is very very good.

Dort is not good. At all.

IMKudaimi123 | Bulls

8 | 9 hours ago

Incoming one of the Michigan guys to help their bigs and a wing rookie replacement

Parking-Gazelle-7656

5 | 11 hours ago

Idk man, Dort’s contract is actually pretty team friendly for what he brings defensively. If Presti moves him I think we see a bigger shakeup than just salary dump.

dac2199 | Lakers

3 | 5 hours ago

Maybe Hartenstein too

smalls_1804 | Knicks

3 | 3 hours ago

I mean OKC folks consider Kenrich the new Nick Collison and say they want him to be a lifer. My guess is they just bring him back at a lower number

Simple_Purple_4600

3 | 3 hours ago

he also can play serviceable minutes in the playoffs

early_20_rager | Warriors

213 | 18 hours ago

They’re in a fantastic spot no matter what anyone thinks lol, some players didn’t step up fully against the best defence in the league oh no. They’re championship contenders for the next 2 years at least

SuperVaderMinion | MIN

90 | 17 hours ago

Yeah with their 2nd and 3rd best guards injured as well, the Thunder are fine, though JDub’s health is something that should at least be monitored in future.

otljack | Supersonics

10 | 16 hours ago

when did the consensus chage that ajay mitchell was better than caruso? is caruso not a guard anymore? i feel like even wallace is better than mitchell

AnkitPancakes | Thunder

50 | 14 hours ago

Ajay is definitely a better, more dynamic offensive player. He’s an automatic paint touch. Caruso is great, but can’t really run the offense through him as well.

quizblorg3 | Thunder

13 | 15 hours ago

Matchup dependent it seems like. He absolutely feasted against the Lakers but was neutralized against the Spurs (like pretty much the rest of the team)

demmellers

4 | 16 hours ago

Mitchell has been their x factor this year.

He’s a much better scorer than Caruso.

StyMaar | Warriors

14 | 15 hours ago

Did you watch the games vs the Spurs? Caruso was Thunder’s best player in the 5 first games! (Shai played kinda meh until game 7)

Parallel-Quality

4 | 14 hours ago

I mean Mitchell was injured so it’s not a fair comparison. Mitchell is for sure the better player regardless.

Just like how Caruso isn’t a better player than Chet just because he played better than him in one series.

Kingbay | Thunder

3 | 8 hours ago

Caruso was great for sure, but his offensive numbers were juiced by the fact that Wemby was leaving him wide ass open on purpose. He hit the open shots he was given. Mitchell has the chance to be a really special combo guard.

voltron818 | Thunder

5 | 7 hours ago

Ajay is absolutely a better creator than Caruso.

Aidanator800 | Hornets

3 | 14 hours ago

The problem is that they’ll have to constantly go up against that elite defense in most seasons moving forward, and one of the people who collapsed big time against it was their alleged third best player who is getting paid 250 million dollars.

burritos4jesus

2 | 3 hours ago

They still won a ring though

I say this as a Warrior fan. That one championship holds A LOT of weight

repo_sado | Knicks

1 | 31 minutes ago

they have enough picks to get someone to take that 250 mil though, when they need to

EverybodyBuddy | Lakers

2 | 12 hours ago

They also have a war chest of first round picks left

The-Rolling-Banker | Thunder

46 | 18 hours ago

Fire sale time

DerrickWhiteMVP | Spurs

68 | 18 hours ago

OH MY GOD THERE’S A FIRE sale

quizblorg3 | Thunder

25 | 17 hours ago

Aaammmmaaaazzzziiinnngggg ggrraaaaaacceee

TimothyN | Pelicans

4 | 17 hours ago

I used to think the idea of a fire sale was cool.

bengcord3 | BOS

7 | 16 hours ago

I think I put a little too much emphasis on the fire, and not enough on the sale

welmoe | Lakers

1 | 17 hours ago

Amazing….grace

tjc815 | Thunder

6 | 17 hours ago

Witnessing the transition in discourse online from shitting on us mercilessly to the other teams wanting all of our players lol

(kind of talking more about Twitter than here)

EverybodyBuddy | Lakers

5 | 12 hours ago

I don’t see a contradiction there.

You guys had the deepest, most stacked roster in the league.

And you failed miserably with it.

voltron818 | Thunder

1 | 7 hours ago

Failed miserably by getting farther than any defending champion of the last 7 years and taking the team with the second best record in the NBA (who’s about to be the next champion) to 7 games despite missing our second best player and a guy who’s arguably a top 5 player on our team.

Bitter Lakers fan lol

tjc815 | Thunder

1 | 3 hours ago

That’s both obtuse and stupid.

ThinkThankThonk | Lakers

-2 | 16 hours ago

For all our problems r/NBA is by far the most level headed discourse online, which is saying a lot

tjc815 | Thunder

0 | 15 hours ago

Minus the game Threads I agree lol

legend023 | Pelicans

42 | 18 hours ago

1: great site

They can let Kenrich go (7 million), probably trade Aaron Wiggins (9 million), and then do a S&T with Lu Dort (18 million). That saves them 34 million and they can probably get a rookie and a few minimum contract guys with that. And I didn’t even mention they can also restructure Hartenstein’s deal

ositola | Lakers

15 | 17 hours ago

Ihart has one season left, nothing to restructure

No one’s trading for dort, they’re going to decline his option

Dhr7468 | Thunder

15 | 16 hours ago

Ihart is a team option too. They could conceivably decline and re-sign long term

AnkitPancakes | Thunder

4 | 14 hours ago

somebody will trade for him if they want his bird rights. i wouldn’t mind a couple seconds or a late first.

ositola | Lakers

5 | 14 hours ago

For 17M? Maybe the nets take him at that price for a second

AnkitPancakes | Thunder

6 | 14 hours ago

i wouldn’t be surprised if your lakers take a stab at getting him. seems like the kind of player that luka needs around him

Alternative-Chance94

1 | 12 hours ago

Even if there wasn’t much of a market for Dort, the equation begins to change if OKC threw in a draft pick or two.

I don’t pretend to know what’s going to happen with Dort, but OKC probably needs to find a way to begin trading or consolidating some of their picks. I don’t think it makes a lot of sense for them to draft 13 players in the first round over the next 6 years (29 players when including second rounders too).

AceMcStace | Trail Blazers

35 | 18 hours ago

We’ll take 1 Isaiah Joe please

Bandit-Bunny-7727

1 | 5 hours ago

I wouldn’t send even my worst enemies to the Blazers these days.

voltron818 | Thunder

0 | 7 hours ago

Joe and Wiggins for Deni, who says no?

captainkhyron | OKC

1 | 2 hours ago

We do.

green-light-of-death

29 | 16 hours ago

They were what … 7 points away from the finals?

Confident_Pear_8303

18 | 16 hours ago

They were also missing their 2nd and 4th/5th best players. Alot people have no idea how much that hurt OKC.

Slendyla_IV | Thunder

0 | 16 hours ago

9 I think 😭

Low_Instruction4175

20 | 17 hours ago

Presti will find some dipshit GM willing to take Chet’s contract

drkmani | Thunder

20 | 17 hours ago

Honestly I think he just needs to really hit the weight room/ kitchen and also work on a quicker release. He gets bullied by guards because he’s under weight, but that should be much easier to fix than other issues. He has the skills and IQ.

tnorts4

19 | 16 hours ago

Chets body type and style of play won’t allow him to gain weight. He’s a white Temu KD with a couple of inches.

drkmani | Thunder

6 | 16 hours ago

Kd doesn’t need to play defense though. Chet does. Any body will put on mass if you consume a surplus

Musa_2050 | Lakers

1 | 15 hours ago

I don’t think you want to put more weight on Chet. AD lost a step on defense after he bulked up, and his jumper went missing. He also seemed more injury prone.

drkmani | Thunder

2 | 15 hours ago

Not saying he needs to turn into Zion, but he needs enough strength and heft to not get pushed aside by Devin Vassell continuously

Subredditcensorship | Nets

18 | 16 hours ago

you’re actually insane if you think chet will be traded. He had a bad series but he’s easily OKC’s second best player. He’s 100% worth his contract.

Low_Instruction4175

2 | 15 hours ago

As long as Wemby is in the West Chet will not be worth his contract.

AnkitPancakes | Thunder

8 | 14 hours ago

so what’s the plan for any team then? not like the twolves or blazers did much better than us. wouldn’t be surprised if the knicks can’t get it to 7 either (as much as i would want to see a knicks title)

dragonwhale

0 | 12 hours ago

What’s this obsession with this matchup? That matchup wasnt even close to what decided the series.

No one on the OKC was defending their matchups well. Harper, a rookie was toying with OKC.

In fact, Chet was the only reason Spurs werent scoring 140 every game. Every time he was off the floor. OKC was BLEEDING points. Every starter on OKC has a horrible plus minus against the Spurs except for Chet.

I speak for every team in the NBA. Give us Chet and we will pay him that money with a smile on our faces.

flowexplorer

2 | 12 hours ago

People who say this type of thing obviously only watched game 7.

He had a great season and is a great player.

amazingoopah

1 | 16 hours ago

I mean that would be a good use of that hoard of 1st Rd picks if he can find a taker

Appropriate-Shock306

19 | 18 hours ago

They’ll just keep replenishing their draft capital by moving one of these players, continuing to draft well, and using rookie-scale contracts to surround SGA and/or J-Dub with affordable talent. It’s a sustainable model that will keep their championship window open for years.

Recitinggg | Grizzlies

8 | 18 hours ago

Until you draft someone that doesn’t end up working out

Appropriate-Shock306

26 | 18 hours ago

Dawg, I don’t think you realize how many picks they have and how many more they can get. They’re not going to hit every pick but given Presti’s record, it’s more likely a hit than a miss.

Blasto05

6 | 17 hours ago

They have a ton of seconds and their own first round picks. So bunch of late selections.

They have 2027 Denver (protected 1-5) and 2027 Spurs (protected 1-16) both of those assumed to be late.

The only draft picks of actual value they might have are a 2027 Clippers swap which is supposed to be a bad draft class, and a 2028 Dallas swap.

After those 2 picks it’s really nothing special.

joebreezy12 | Thunder

2 | 17 hours ago

they also have 2029 denver protected 1-5. the new draft lottery rules actually make a top 5 protected pick more valuable than under the previous rules

let’s say denver for some reason denver misses the playoffs or only makes the play in. under previous rules, the pick could jump up into 1-4 (and denver keeps it), or it stays at 13, or 15 or wherever denver finishes. under the new rules it could land anywhere from 1-16 with a much more even distribution among all those slots. okc could theoretically get like the 7th pick from denver if they finish just out of the playoffs, whereas that would have been impossible under the old rules

KiowaBear | Thunder

0 | 14 hours ago

I mean maybe, how many all-NBA players has he even drafted? Like 2?

AnkitPancakes | Thunder

2 | 14 hours ago

at this point i think it’s 5: KD, Russ, Harden, Chet, JDub

PG, CP3 and Shai were All-NBA players that he traded for

Vet100

2 | 17 hours ago

But that’s the same for every team & no team is guaranteed to contend every year or draft well or both.

Recitinggg | Grizzlies

3 | 17 hours ago

Sure, I only said that to say that the Thunder are there in part because of some luck that everyone’s worked out well, it’s when the picks don’t work out that you can’t keep the cycle going.

math-yoo | Cavaliers

16 | 17 hours ago

Dort is about to put on a Wizards uniform.

brnccnt7

7 | 17 hours ago

Ad Trae Dort big 3?!

madlabdog

16 | 18 hours ago

Presti’s turn to swap salary for future FRPs.

SimplyElite7

1 | 3 hours ago

They have 2 firsts that they can’t pay for until they make the necessary roster adjustments, they could probably just flip one of their firsts this year for a salary dump

PaintIntelligent7793

13 | 18 hours ago

They’re about to shed some salary, but they also have picks over the next few years. That is their strategy.

Fart_Frog

11 | 18 hours ago

They don’t really need to do that much to get under the apron.

Dort and Wiggins are gone which is like 27 million.

Kenrich Williams likely gone too - another 7 million.

Though they might see if Kenrich is willing to sign a team friendly deal on the vet minimum for one more year, depending on how many of the draft picks they actually use.

It would be amazing if they could extend Wallace, but I don’t think they have the space for both Wallace and Hart. More likely they keep them both in ²⁶⁄₂₇ and see how the young players have developed by then. I figure they both cost around 25-30 mil a year.

So that ²⁷⁄₂₈ summer is when the hard choices happen.

Rrypl | Celtics

1 | 13 hours ago

Yeah, after next season SGA gets a ~$25m raise, I’m curious if they already do the necessary moves to facilitate staying long term below the 2nd apron right now or if they just skirt by this off-season and then have to do the whole dance again a year from now.

pericles123 | Cavaliers

-2 | 16 hours ago

Dort/Wiggins gone, Ken.Williams is trash, salary dump if needed -that said - if there is a guy in this draft they really like, they should put together a package and go him, they have the assets and adding - for example - Boozer to this roster - doesn’t stand in the way of them having championship aspirations for the coming seasons.

Humble-Picture7347

7 | 17 hours ago

Oh, Sam Presti was totally unaware of this, and by luck he has seven eventual first round picks who will be technically rookies through 2027.

asanoayaki | Celtics

5 | 18 hours ago

CJ Mccollum takes another soul

asleepinthedesert

5 | 14 hours ago

Seems a little crazy that chet and j-dub both gonna make more money than sga next year.

JeremyJammDDS | DAL

4 | 17 hours ago

sam presti said 2nd apron isn’t an issue if it means keeping this group together. It just depends on how they vital they see dort and hartenstein going forward. They could just let it ride one more year, but Presti isn’t the type of guy to let guys walk for free. Joe and Wiggins are as good as gone. they’ll most likely pick up the team option on wallace, then sign him to an extension.

Warm-Equivalent7148

2 | 18 hours ago

Joe, oh Isiah Joe You have, oh Isiah-iaha Joe A giant heart and a good soul Oh, Isiah-iaha Joe Joe, oh Isiah Joe You are, oh Isiah-iaha Joe A great sailor with fists of steel Violent and angry, they talk Of a thunder, a plane, that will come Discussions begin And punches fly In a thousand situations Joe is the winner

cholula_is_good | GSW

3 | 17 hours ago

This was always the plan. They have so many picks they can allow role players to walk and replace them in the draft or trade for replacements on friendlier deals.

ThisIsNotSpartha

1 | 4 hours ago

They are in great spot ofc but the norm is rookies to not have that great of an impact in the first seasons.

wing3d | Spurs

3 | 15 hours ago

Chet will have a beer gut by next year in Milwaukee

baseball_suuuuucks | Pacers

2 | 4 hours ago

Chet would have a gut if he swallowed a jawbreaker.

A1Horizon | Bulls

3 | 4 hours ago

The Thunder played their cards as well as they could, but I think dynasties are functionally impossible at this point. Everyone is pointing to the Spurs as next up, but wait till Wemby Steph and Dylan are making 60, 40 and 40M

repo_sado | Knicks

1 | 17 minutes ago

the second apron comes for us all

Katesburneracct

2 | 17 hours ago

Damn, have you given this information to Sam Presti?

JigglyBush | Timberwolves

1 | 14 hours ago

He’s allowed to read Reddit too, hopefully he’s taking notes.

Livueta_Zakalwe

2 | 14 hours ago

They knew they were going over the 2nd apron when they maxed out JDub and Chet. Their plan was to shed some combo of iHart, Caruso, etc. and fill out the roster with their seemingly endless supply of draft pics. Unfortunately for OKC, turns out JDub is chronically injured and Chet… Wouldn’t be surprised to see one of them go.

No-Alternative2897

2 | 14 hours ago

Shai is gonna get paid 70M soon, Chet will reach 50M too. What they gonna do with mcCain, wallace and aj? Even if they drop some of the guys like dort/wiggins/joe/ihart. It will just continue to get expensive.

They better pray jdub gets healthy because that another 50M sitting.

gradedonacurve | Knicks

1 | 18 hours ago

Thunder fans didn’t wanna hear it 2 years ago, but the second apron is inevitable.

Dirks_Knee | Mavericks

1 | 17 hours ago

They have a path to get under the 2nd apron. I’m more wondering if OKC might try to over correct and move Chet for Giannis.

Slendyla_IV | Thunder

1 | 16 hours ago

We won’t do that.

Most likely Dort/Wiggins are gone

wedontliveonce | Bucks

1 | 17 hours ago

Here’s an article analyzing this. It’s pretty spot on in terms of their options IMHO.

Adorable-Writing3617 | Spurs

2 | 17 hours ago

It’s not surprising how much you have to pay people to live in OKC.

SeaCounter9516 | Thunder

1 | 17 hours ago

I’m so excited to see how high the dort hate gets once he’s a laker next year lmao

brnccnt7

1 | 17 hours ago

I’ll take a million

Chinbie

1 | 16 hours ago

This will test OKC front office as now they need to decide what will they do with that one… BOS celtics forced to trade many of their players due to that 2nd apron and now OKC has some work to do…

Will they trade some of their core players? Will they even trade Chet and bunch of other players plus picks for Giannis?

Note: i do believe Chet needs to be traded as his contract is way expensive plus he is on Western conference and they will meet Wemby many times, and lets be real Chet is scared of Wemby… so its best that they trade him to an eastern conference team so that it can lessen the times that he can face Wemby

Menace2UrMom | Spurs

1 | 16 hours ago

It comes down to, do they move off the right mix of chet / dort / jdub and bring in someone that moves the needle past what they gave up?

It’s not easy. As brilliant as presti is at scouting drafting and fleecing other teams for picks, his success rate for free agents , trades for players, and team fits not nearly as good. And don’t say Shai because while he was good in la he basically grew into his game the same time as half the thunder roster.

And don’t talk to me about then trading their picks and a player for a high pick in this draft. While it might happen its risky to think a rook will contribute on this rosters timeline.

axolotlorange

2 | 16 hours ago

SGA is 27, so what 5 years in his prime left, worst case scenario.

JDub and Holmgren are younger.

5 years is plenty of time to develop young talent

Menace2UrMom | Spurs

0 | 15 hours ago

It is. But also enough time for orgs to go completely left

Chet seems to be the best player he’s gonna be. Jdub, OKC fans are already telling me they are ready to move off. Ditto for Dort. Just saying, dudes tend to get slightly better, or decline. They rarely stay the same.

By the time any room is a baller, it’s possible he’s just replacement stats

axolotlorange

2 | 15 hours ago

OKC was just #1 in the West. And lost in the WCF in game 7 a year after winning it all.

JDub had a hurt year. We will see how he is next year once healthy. He was an all star, all NBA, and all defense last year.

Holmgren had a really bad series. It happens. This year he was an all star, all defense, all nba,

Well run organizations do not make panic decisions at the first sign of adversity

Both are 25 and under.

Menace2UrMom | Spurs

0 | 14 hours ago

As a spurs fan I 100% hope they run it back

axolotlorange

1 | 14 hours ago

It went to game 7 and one of the Spurs wins was double overtime.

The Spurs didn’t destroy the Thunder, they barely got past them.

So I really doubt that if you were being objective, you’d feel this way.

Also, whoever suggested running it back? The Thunder absolutely have to make some moves. Just panic trading their stars is not the answer.

Or should the 05-06 Spurs have panicked traded Ginobili, Duncan, or Parker?

Menace2UrMom | Spurs

0 | 13 hours ago

Eh I’m not so sure games 2 and 5 get reffed like that in the future if they play again. But good luck.

who_Knows00475

2 | 15 hours ago

There’s zero chance okc moves from Dub or Chet… they’re both ²³⁄₂₄ all nba and all defensive players. Those aren’t dudes you trade away. They’ll likely accept Dorts team option and try to package him and Wiggins for literally anything lol

Menace2UrMom | Spurs

2 | 15 hours ago

Well ur the exception, I’ve read a ton of posts from OKC fans convinced jdubs hamstrings are a constant issue.

who_Knows00475

1 | 15 hours ago

I think they could turn into an issue if he doesn’t take proper time off however he was the 2nd best player on a championship team while having a torn ligament in his wrist… I think you give that guy some grace as a front office

IgnorantGenius | Clippers

1 | 16 hours ago

How much tax do they end up paying on that?

Little_Obligation_90

1 | 16 hours ago

It would be interesting in the Thunder actually get enough draft picks to trade 1 of Chet/Jdub + picks for Booker.

Oopthealley | NBA

1 | 15 hours ago

fix your post!! those salaries obviously are far short of 250 mil bc you didn’t include any players with options/the full roster.

Successful-Pie6759 | Spurs

1 | 14 hours ago

Chet holmgren for Daaron fox. Aside from wemby, who says no

Chickachic-aaaaahhh | Thunder

1 | 13 hours ago

Wheres dort?

yelsamarani | Cavaliers

1 | 13 hours ago

this batch won already. Meanwhile we’re paying lots of money as well, but for the right to see Harden choke, Mobley channeling Ayton instead of Wemby, and get unceremoniously swept away in the conference finals.

LebrontosaurausRex | Hawks

1 | 13 hours ago

They cheaped out with Harden I’d be shocked if they didn’t take steps to avoid this.

LAEverything1

1 | 12 hours ago

Isaiah Joe and Aaron Wiggins to the Lakers please

No-File-2329

1 | 11 hours ago

Ok so with the new tanking rules allowing 8th and 7th seeds in the lottery if a team is over the second apron for 2 years in a row but ends up as the 8th seed does the lottery just have one less pick thus moving up everyone’s odds or do they like cancel each other out somehow.

GunnarH89 | Thunder

1 | 11 hours ago

I trust Sam Presti to figure things out

steepex

1 | 8 hours ago

Time to let chet go unfortunately

Relevant_Departure_5

1 | 4 hours ago

they gonna trade away dort, joe, wiggins, and kenrich for late future 2nd round draft picks. just to clear cap

300_yard_drives

1 | 4 hours ago

Caruso is probably gone too

Relevant_Departure_5

1 | 4 hours ago

nah they want caruso there he too valuable and on a good contract for the next 4 years. if they were to get rid of anyone else itd be jwill but theres no need. just trading those 4 puts them below the apron. if chet didnt choke prob ihart but ihart might be too valuable now

Itchy-Secret8085

1 | 3 hours ago

I think winning a chip and being a game away from another finals appearance justifies the $$$ but back to back would of been better cause it’s a better chance they bring the guys back for a 3 peat now they can potentially do a mini rebuild of certain core players which can be a risk

Itchy-Secret8085

1 | 3 hours ago

why didn’t Joe and Wiggins play?

Competitive_Smile007

1 | 2 hours ago

Chet J Will Dort,

One of if not more will be gone by next season

Kuresuchan

1 | 25 minutes ago

this is the main reason why we dont see repeats anymore, teams cannot lowball players anymore and keep their core without expecting players to demand bigger and bigger contracts.. It keeps the parity tho.

RegionSuperb7171

0 | 17 hours ago

As a thunder fan I have complete and utter faith in Presti’s ability to 7D chess move the org to a successful team. Even our bench guys could be a significant grab for a lot of teams with almost minimal convincing required.

WeenisWrinkle | Hornets

0 | 16 hours ago

Good problem to have.

Full_Ad6898

0 | 15 hours ago

I’m trading the 2 first to move up to draft Mara or Yax from Michigan. 7’3 guy or a solid wing never hurts.

vapemyashes | Timberwolves

0 | 15 hours ago

Their window closed so fast. it’s incredible.

Difficult_Tackle9505

0 | 14 hours ago

Who cares. The finals start in two days.

gza_liquidswords

-1 | 18 hours ago

I think Hartenstein is gone unless he is willing to take a huge pay cut.

OpeDefinitely | Pacers

-3 | 18 hours ago

Stats in 2024-2025 NBA Finals:

Chet ($48M AAV): 12.3pts, 8.9rbs, 1.6blk on ⁴⁰⁄₁₆ shooting splits.

Myles Turner ($27M AAV): 10.6pts, 4.5rbs, 1.5blk on ³⁸⁄₂₁ shooting splits.

On the other side of the ball, Chet has more defensive accolades. But last season, Turner anchored two of the NBA’s top-5 high usage lineups by both net rating and defensive rating. Chet did not.

__

By NETRTG, the top 3 5-man lineups last season (min 300 minutes together) were:

1) iHart - Wallace - Dort - JDub - SGA: NET 15.9 (1), DETRTG 101.0 (1)

2) Turner - Siakam - Mathurin - Nembhard - Haliburton: NET 11.9 (2), DETRTG 11.9 (2)

3) Turner - Siakam - Nembhard - Nesmith - Haliburton: NET 11.1 (3), DETRTG 107.7 (5).

Interestingly, 6th best net rating & 4th best defensive rating was operated by Harden but anchored by Zubac with the Clippers. 👀

[deleted]

7 | 18 hours ago

[removed]

OpeDefinitely | Pacers

-2 | 18 hours ago

Yes, but throughout the 2024-2025 season, the Pacers’ lineups anchored by Turner were better defensively than OKC’s lineups anchored by Chet.

OKC’s iHart-anchored lineups did better, although there are some sample size concerns.

joebreezy12 | Thunder

4 | 17 hours ago

Ok and the season you are pulling data from Chet was making 12m per year. Not 41

OpeDefinitely | Pacers

-2 | 17 hours ago

Both players signed new contracts in the ensuing off-season. Both players’ 2024-2025 season ended on the same exact day.

Dhr7468 | Thunder

4 | 17 hours ago

Chet had a 103 defensive rating, Myles had a 114. You’re just fuckjng wrong man. Go look up the shots contested at the rim and rim dfg% while you’re at it.

OpeDefinitely | Pacers

2 | 17 hours ago

Offensive & defensive ratings are lineup stats, but which group do you think did a better job of slowing players down & funneling them into their shot blocker? Wallace - Dort - JDub - SGA or Siakam - Mathurin - Nembhard - Haliburton?

It’s kind of besides the point, though, because I’m questioning whether Chet was worth the extra $20M in AAV and/or whether Myles was overpaid. Not whether Myles was/is actually better. The comment was meant to provoke thought.

Dhr7468 | Thunder

0 | 17 hours ago

Well good cause it’s not close and you’re out of your mind if you think it is. The advanced stats like epm and LEBRON say Chet was already worth far more than 20m aav than Turner this year, and his contract hasn’t even kicked in yet. He’s on an upward trajectory pre-prime and Turner is trending down post-prime.

OpeDefinitely | Pacers

1 | 17 hours ago

My personal belief has been that Chet is clearly worth more, with the biggest differentiators are age & rebounding (the latter of which tends to give a big boost to bigs by most advanced stats). And you’re right: Myles had been declining for years prior to last off-season. It’s just hard to pin down the difference in value.

I mostly think that Myles was just overpaid by Milwaukee, but I really do wonder whether Myles would justify his contract on another team with a very high acuity PnR guard like Haliburton (Lakers?). The other side of the coin is that it’d also be interesting to see how Chet would do on a different team with totally different offensive & defensive systems.

For a number of reasons that transcend this particular comparison, I’ve been down on the stretch 5 archetype in general. But Chet has youth and time on his side, and he fits extremely well on his team.

gdirrty216

-2 | 17 hours ago

They have to trade JDub not just for cost but for room for younger guys

The Oklahoma City Thunder will be paying their roster 250 million dollars which is over the second apron by 21.1 million at the turn of the league calendar year

Stats in 2024-2025 NBA Finals: