Source: [Will upload the clip when [Run it Back](https://x.com/runitbackfdtv?s=21) Twitter account uploads it.]
Shams Charania, on his daily segment on Run It Back on FanDuel TV, said the following about the Oklahoma City Thunder.
League executives have not sensed urgency from the Oklahoma City Thunder to acquire star-level talent on the trade market. Many believe the Thunder are content focusing on the group of guys they currently have and don’t want to disrupt their depth and chemistry.
He mentioned that this team is not playoff tested and it’ll be hard for the front office to decide what to acquire to elevate the team until they find out what they lack in the playoffs.
by UnbiasedNBAFan_
34 Comments
Why would rush it
The owner I’m sure learned from harden debacle
You better pay the guys and go to Luxary tax
Why would they? They’re playing incredible ball and they have an opportunity to let them get serious playoff experience this year and then re-evaluate for a big move in the offseason to put them over the hump next year. There’s no rush.
Trading a 2024 first rounder for a 2029 first rounder and kick the can further down the road. I can already see the moves Presti will make
jalen williams and chet will get max extensions, plus giddey will get a fairly large one in 2025. i could see isaiah joe getting a shooter type extension in the 80 mil range too and obviously shai will get his supermax. they have 2-3 years but after that they’re gonna have to pay up or cut down
looking like warriors of the 2020’s.. now we’ll see if wemby joins in FA after losing to them in the wcf 😁
I think they should be open to moves at this point but not desperate at all.
This is precisely like the Celtics a few years ago. Trade Tatum for Durant, trade Jaylen for a dozen different veterans, blah blah blah.
You don’t push your chips in until your young stars are nearing their primes. Everything OKC does for the next couple of years is total gravy, and the dumbest thing they could do is try to win right now. Their time to win is in a few years.
The only big issue the Thunder are going to have is paying everybody. Shai, Jalen, and Chet are all going to be maxes in a couple of years. Giddey can still get there but even if not he won’t be cheap either. Then the young role players are all playing themselves into nice pay days as well. How deep into luxury tax are the Thunder going to want to go?
So they definitely don’t want PJ Tucker’s veteran presence?
Smart don’t make a move unless you have too
This is reminiscent of the Thunder making the finals with a young KD, Westbrook and Harden. I imagine they don’t want to repeat that mistake.
The team is good enough to contend so it would be stupid to not spend some of their endless worse assets on depth rentals.
No reason to get a star though.
The Thunder are not going to trade for a star. It wouldn’t make sense. It’s already going to be hard enough to pay this roster, and they won’t do anything to jeopardize the ability to keep Chet and Jalen long-term.
However, I find it very hard to believe they won’t make any deal at all. Presti loves his trades and hates letting players go for nothing in return. With Poku expiring and Bertans effectively expiring, it would be dumb not to use their salaries to improve the team. It won’t be a star, but guys like Olynyk and DFS would be sensible targets that they wouldn’t have to push all the chips in to get.
EXACTLY.
Why cash in all the chips when you don’t know who you are yet? You only find out who you are as a team in the post season.
Y’know, it wouldn’t be the most exciting trade, but John Collins for Bertans + filler + our pick back kinda makes sense.
Collins is the better player, and AFAIK the Thunder need better rebounding and floor spacing, which Collins can provide. Collins can’t really create his own shot (and Utah’s passing is kinda trash atm), but his shot has recovered (40% from 3 this season), and he’d thrive with more space in the OKC offense.
Now granted his contract is too big, which is the main reason to say no. Still, he’s a movable piece, and makes OKC better this season.
Jazz get the worse player, and probably get rid of Bertans next season. But we would get our pick back, and that pick is more valuable to us than OKC simply because of the flexibility it offers (in terms of trading the thing away).
IDK, I may be completely off. OKC fans lemme know if I’m being dumb.
I think they should make a move for a high end role player. DFS for Bertans and draft picks would make sense
We are 30 games into this run. Can we at least have a season to enjoy this before we worry about RINGZ and window’s closing?
The team is playing well and they seem to be enjoying themselves. Chet is only going to get better. They have a young core that no team is going to want to meet in the playoffs.
Wow Shams, really astute observation. What gave it away? The fact that a majority of the players are under 25 and still a top 3 seed? The fact that they got an MVP candidate with role players who compliment him?
Can’t wait to trade Bertans for an expiring + get picks for it
As they should, use this season to see how far you can go and what you need with all those picks in the holster. Then reassess in the offseason. Aren’t they the #1 team in the west?
Let this group play a playoff series first. Then figure out if there are glaring holes that can’t be filled by players continuing to grow
Must be a slow news day, this is one of the dumbest things I’ve read in awhile
Shai and Chet have the makings of a really impressive star pairing.
Might be a dumb question, but seeing as they have so many early draft picks in the coming years, how can those picks be used to mitigate the upcoming salary of the developing stars that they have right now?
Iirc, OKC owners were not willing to go over the cap to pay Harden back then hence the trade. So if that is still the case. then perhaps those draft picks can be used for salary purposes since they have so many?
OKC probably just need to see what they lack through a playoff run and then add some strong role players to fill the gaps. No need for a big swing at the fences theyre doing great. Shai is him.
Take a lesson from the Cavs. We swung big instead of keeping the Garland-Lauri-Mobley-Allen core and growing.
Its made us stall in neutral and also hamstrung the future
Which is the correct choice. Their one true need is a star wing. They should be content to wait until one is available.
Why would they? The group they’re running out there now has gotten them 2nd in the west and the 4th best record in the league. They’re in no rush at all to make anything happen.
shai is already an mvp
Shit, SGA has been a very vocal leader this year making it well known that it’s HIS team of FRIENDS. It’s like the cool kid forming a supergroup of cool kids and keeping along the cool outcast of friends, too (Tre Mann)
I’m hyped for SGA’s progression this season as a leader, as there’s been times previously where he wasn’t that vocal.
I was getting downvoted to shit for saying Raps should offer OG for Giddey. I believe from this Charania take, the Raps FO definitely asked around and OKC shut it down.
Don’t they have time and the definitely the resources to wait and see how this and next season plays out?
Sensing urgency is like smelling blood to executives. Even if OKC wanted to bet some picks on this team they shouldn’t broadcast it.
I think it’s a fair process for them to exercise. I’ve been wondering it since the end of last year, start of this season in talking with friends. “If Chet pans out, what do they need with their picks, and who do they trade?” It’s not an easy answer. Although they have people more likely than others, it’s still not a “yeah there’s no way we’ll have success with __________” as evidenced by what they’re experiencing now.
I have seen this stuff play out exactly on MyBasketballGM. Presti and this group are gonna win like 3 of the next 10 titles if they keep this up.