OKC Thunder Top Prospects in the 2024 NBA Draft with Derek Parker

OKC Thunder Top Prospects in the 2024 NBA Draft with Derek Parker

on today’s lock on Thunder podcast we’re joined by Derek Parker to preview the 2024 NBA draft who are some top targets at 12 you are locked on Thunder your daily Oklahoma City Thunder podcast part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day let’s get it going on the lockdown Thunder podcast on the lockdown podcast Network your team every day I am your host media member and inside the thunderbeat riter Ryland Styles follow me on Twitter at randor Styles follow show on Twitter at L thunderpod on today’s show we’re joined by Derek Parker the goat of inside the Thunder co- goat of inside the Thunder the host of his own YouTube channel Derek Parker on YouTube where he does tremendous draft content runs draft I just as well Derek how you doing today dude coo is crazy first off but uh I’m good all day today I didn’t feel locked in and then oh the second I see that intro the locked on Thunder it swipes across my screen I immediately lock in so I’m good man I’m ready to rock I’m glad that you’re locked in you and Nick crane are co- goats of both sites actually uh but Derek the 2024 MBA draft is a week away we’re a week out of the draft are you excited excited like what’s your overall Vibe check on this draft I’m really excited personally I know this draft doesn’t have a sparkling reputation it doesn’t have like the same Superstar punch that a lot of it have had before but to me it’s really wide open like I feel like up to this point we have a lot of Intel we get a lot of these reports coming out and to this point there’s been some of that but there hasn’t been as much as normal it kind of feels like a a calm before the storm a late bloom I don’t know what it is but I’m really excited because it feels like this could go a thousand different directions yeah I think that that is where this draft has the intrig that like you know it’s not the where these like future Superstars going to land it’s the fact that we just don’t know where anyone’s going to go like if you legitimately um on Wednesday took Twitter off your phone and took off whatever news breaking apps that you’re on uh you would be shocked by the results of the draft like you it is incredibly tough to predict uh there is no you know oh the draft is start until Pick X the Draft starts at pick one and uh there’s no consensus that no one really knows what’s going on now with that being said uh you’ve covered this entire cycle uh as a draft expert and you’ve seen all the e and flows who are some guys that stand out for you in this draft that like you said has been uh punched on a little bit all year long yeah if we’re talking like guys I have to rock with we’re going to start with Ron Holland I have him at number one you can check out my board on YouTube have have him at number one he’s one of the best athletes in this draft High motor on defense with really good instincts over three stocks per game in the g- league at 18 years old is Elite don’t care who it is offense and decision-making obviously need to improve but it isn’t that far off again there’s been reports he’ll slide out of the lottery but I don’t buy it if he were there at 12 for Oklahoma City I’d run to the podium uh another one Jared McCain one of the best Shooters in this draft has the ability to handle the rock elad in the pick and roll pretty Elite modern skill set overall great passer really good connective passing not necessarily flashy stuff and then not a detriment on defense either overall McCain’s just a guy that I think you’ll really have a hard time keeping off the floor if he can bomb threes and play mistake free basketball but there there’s a myriad of these potential guys here we’re talking about Oklahoma City probably considering at least 20 different people doing their due diligence and getting interviews on a lot a lot of guys yeah the Thunder are going to be in contact and uh check out nearly everybody in the draft because you just have to do your diligence in that way um looking at the Thunder at at 12 how do you see the value of this pick historically the Thunder have gotten good value at 12 just as a franchise and you know this range has been one that actually you know Bears out some some quality prospects where is it in this draft in terms of like should the Thunder like being at 12 should they aim to move up or or move back or are they kind of right in a Sweet Spot well it it’s all dependent on who your guy is if your guy goes at nine then you’re going to want to go up to nine but I think 12 very generally is a great spot to be in right now because historically we’ve seen the picks maybe five even starting at four through 8 nine 10 11 those get overthought a lot and it it leads to players falling further and further down and you can NAB those guys at 12 13 14 and so on in this draft specifically that kind of starts a little bit earlier in the process like I touched on earlier there’s not these studs at number one and number two that we absolutely for fact no are going there right now we have like a general road map for it but we’re not 1,000% sure and so that causes even more mystery even more overthinking and I think there’s going to be some really really good players both now and for the long term that fall to this 12 spot so again it’s a good spot to be in it’ll be exciting to see kind of how this all unfolds but but I would imagine that that we look at this through the lens of the Thunder Stang put at 12 obviously shuffling up here and there like they did last year for case Wallace you know that’s hard to predict um when you look at number 12 and you combine that with the Thunder’s needs is there anyone who jumps out to you as like the Thunder need this guy to really you know help them I mean I think they’re playing a little bit with house money here and the fact that you could swing on this pick and if you miss I don’t think it really affects your future a ton and if you hit of course that’s great but I I think need is just a little bit of an off word like this could be a pick where you take that swing and you really swing for the fences and try to bolster this roster for the future but there you’ve also like I said you’re you’re playing with house money here and the fact that if you do Miss not a massive deal yeah I think that there’s two schools of thought with like this draft of um do you take your swing where you could miss now now uh versus go going and getting a nearly first Shore contributor so like an example I’ve been wrestling back and forth with would you rather just take Jared McCain Devin Carter somebody like that this year with the understanding of uh while it is a unique position to be a 57 win team and having a lottery pick the Thunder have set themselves up to have this unique position unfold for them uh in the future and like many times in the future including next year uh so like next year uh they get a lottery pick for example that’s a much deeper more talented draft class that like maybe the swing next year uh is still a risk and you could still miss but you have less of a likelihood to strike out versus like right now if you if you think of a high upside swing there’s a chance you just completely fail and like there’s not even hope for the player whereas next year that the prospects are so much better and talented that you take that swing you might still hit a single even though you didn’t get a home run so balancing like win two take the swing versus when to take the Surefire pick uh whenever you’re looking at the need for cost controlled talent for a team that’s going to get expensive with their young core pretty soon yeah I think there’s obviously like the two schools of thought in win Now versus project and that very much exists within the draft space but I’m not necessarily sure it changes the Thunder process they probably have their board and whether he’s going to need two years to develop or no time at all to develop that’s probably their BPA their best guy available so it probably doesn’t change their process a whole lot in the the short term but long term yeah of course we’ll see kind of how the Thunder want to uh go about this draft we’re g to talk coming up as we’re going to do the winners and losers of the draft and grading the draft and everything else that we do around uh the NBA draft what players should the Thunder take that will for sure get a Derek Parker A+ grade in the draft find out coming up but first want here right now better good friends over at eBay Motors Derek eBay Motors is awesome passion drive and patience that’s the formula for a winning Championship it’s also the formula for keeping your ride or dive vehicle alive eBay Motors has everything you need to maintain your vehicle and level it up to Peak performances with superchargers roof racks exhaust kits LED headlights and more whether you’re into speed power style eBay Motors has you covered with over 122 Million Parts to choose from you’re number one Rider die you’ll always find find exactly what you’re looking for uh with eBay Motors guaranteed fit your part is guaranteed to fit your ride every time or your money back because with eBay Motors you’re gonna be burning rubber not cash and with all the parts to choose from it’ll make your car the MVP and bring home the huge win keep your ride or die alive at ebaymotors.com eligible only exclusion Supply eBay Motors guaranteed fit only available for us customers we’re back on the lockdown Thunder podcast on the lockdown podcast Network your teams every day joined by draft expert Derek Parker you can find him on draft digest inside the thunder.com and his YouTube channel Derek Parker Derek we’re gonna do winners and losers on multiple sites probably uh from the NBA draft who could the Thunder select or or you can list off as many players as you want like what group of players could the Thunder select that they would for sure be etched into your Winner’s category or get an A+ grade for their class yeah my head Cannon is kind of Nar it down to about three to four guys that I think they’re realistically really going to think about and obviously like I said earlier this range could be 20 different people so I could be fully off based on this but this is having covered the team and having covered the draft this would be my assessment Cody Williams continues to top that list I think it’s a perfect storm in the fact that he’s got these obvious Thunder Connections in dub they know his work ethic they know his Circle and he does fit the mold and feels a position of need on the wing fluid lengthy at 6′ n he’s got Baseline skills like good defense he can shoot at some has the highle point forward flashes and most of all I really think he’ll personally be in their range I’m not sold he’ll go higher there have been reports that the Pistons really like him at five I think his ceiling is probably around number 10 to the Jazz I could see the bull swinging at 11 so to me Cody’s a legit Target you might have to trade up a couple spots for him but should be getable there’s also Don Holmes 610 big out of Dayton who he’s obviously become a big fan favorite on social media I really like him like that pick too he was one of the best players in college basketball this year per basically every Advanced metric interior Force really bolstered his perimeter game can shoot pass dribble in open space he’s a versatile Defender and there’s also a ton of connections to be made between Holmes and this Thunder team Dayton’s head coach Anthony Grant is a former Thunder assistant coach Holmes was highly touted out of high school chose Dayton stuck with Dayton despite likely having his pick of where he wanted to go after years one and two in college especially too and from what I’ve heard he’s just a great kid seems to have high basketball IQ from interviews that I’ve watched head down kind of worker so that fit makes sense on a variety of levels ultimately 12 is a little bit high for holes he’s on the older side he’s more of that win now veterany type player but in this draft there’s going to be plenty of guy getting and taking a swing on him at 12 likely wouldn’t be the craziest thing Jared McCain we’ve already touched on a little bit but I think his fit with the Thunder is pretty seamless ultimate locker room guy fun high energy feels that always needed three-point shooting need isn’t a detriment on defense and in terms of feel for the game is probably one of the best plug-and-play system guys in this draft and then one last name that just I cannot scratch this itch of the Thunder considering him is khil wear and I’m not necessarily A Khalil wear guy but 7even foot4 he’s 7 foot with a 74 wingspan pretty Mobile interior Force good rim prote who could turn into a great one and he has the ability to extend to the perimeter too most simply he’s just a hybrid seven-footer who can do a ton of things the big knock on him is the motor and his competitiveness there’s been reports he’s crushing workouts though teams are starting to doubt the motor concerns so if the Thunder can get to a place where they think that’s not an issue with wear he’ll probably jump to the top of this list just in terms of having a player like him as a backup who could toggle between reps with hrin without hom grin he’s massive he can do lot of things that’s that’s another guy that I I can’t kind of shake so those are the four three to four that I would really consider right now to be the main options yeah where would fit into this next category for me of like what you mentioned and like there’s more stuff behind the scenes of like it’d be pretty shocking to see the Thunder draft wear not for anything on the court but I it just be pretty shocking uh because of the competitive motor concerns uh and other things for where but if they drafted them that would mean like you said that he’s passed all their tests and if there’s any franchise that you trust with the heavy vetting process uh and to find out how to push your guys buttons and and make them competitive and see how they Teck it would be Oklahoma City uh and at that point to get that signature from Sam on that pick you’d feel pretty good about what he can bring to the table on the court so that’s an interesting one uh where do you land on some of these other guys that are a bit more polarizing let’s start with Zach Ed uh he’s going to be crammed down uh your throat for the next week if you’re in Oklahoma City because people just look at a lack of size and hit the Zack Ed button where are you at on Ed with the Thunder specifically regarding the Thunder I think it’s tough because Ed is a obviously polarizing player again 7 foot4 colossal Center one of the best college players we’ve literally ever seen but he gets a lot of flak for the slower foot speed and things like that and just kind of the general lumbering he’s better than people give him credit for 100% he’s more skilled on both ends than people give him credit for he’s a great play finisher can screen his butt off he’s really good and there’s a world where he adds the ultimate wrinkle for a team like Oklahoma City and being able to throw him out if a big is giving you problems Edy could be a nullifier on that end so I don’t know that I’m necessarily Pro Edy especially at pick number 12 I think you can get better value but I’m not against a wrinkle like that like me and Nick crane Co goat were talking last night and he brought up a lot of good points in terms of Ed’s just a dominant player like he’s just he’s just kind of weird and sometimes having weird can be a good thing yeah weird is good I mean look at you and I unlock on Thunder Derek but uh another name that is polarizing is Tan Salon I believe I said that right Derek what do you think draft of expert uh you did say it right yeah Salon 610 bulky bulky frame stands to add even more to that crushing it in the lmb Pro a league for cholet he’s really really raw in a lot of areas and I know you like him but he struggles to put likeing on D yeah he struggles to put on the floor a little bit the decision making isn’t great to me it kind of stems from a cognition issue but he was just so productive due to his motor and he can hit threes he can run and dunk he’s massive he’s just a real spark plug in that way he’s almost like the anti- Jen in that his motor and his physicality drive his production rather than that like pure processing which is not a bad thing for either of them I’m not like ragging on Usman Jen he’s great I think we’ve seen more than enough in the g- league I think he’ll get his fair shot this year but the like approach to the game is very different and I think that can it can lend itself well for a guy like Salon Who projects to be a really good role player thank you I’m so tired of people just like looking at tan and being like Oh that’s just Usman Jang like no it’s not like it’s not Usman Jang and and I cover Usman Jang more than anybody because I go to the blue games and like I love Usman Jang like he’s he’s gonna be a good player I believe I’m not selling stock Usman Jang but they could not be further opposites of each other uh these two prospects so it is very very very um telling on your shelf to compare the two at all I I think that you mentioned uh what kind of separates him is is motor and his I think his aggressiveness already at this age to to have that dog in him not The gimmicky Barking kind like the actual dog in him where he’s gonna go get in somebody’s Grill he’s gonna want to take the big shots he he wants the basketball um you you can see him demanding opportunity um and that’s the difference like you can get mad at PJ Washington and derck Jones Jr for having these outlier Series in in Oklahoma City you know how they had those series they had the dog in them they wanted the basketball they wanted the chance they wanted shots they Dallas had more of those guys than you did and that’s how you create outlier series The Thunderhead guys who didn’t want the shot and who who passed it up and who uh did not want to uh be in that moment for the most part like even their even their top guys like JB was a was a fer in that series uh you need more guys who are who are willing to be aggressive and then give yourself the chance to have that shot variance I think that that thein does that like he’s going to take an open three if you leave him open and and he has the ability to hit them spoiler alert for next week so if you’re if you’re loyal as you should be Styles points reader um skip ahead 10 seconds he’s on the all juice team Derek he’s on the all juice team First Team all juice team he’s on that that Welch’s Grind All juice oh he’s he’s juice let me just say rightfully so again just to throw it back to the kind of ooze soong comparison you could look at these two guys on paper without watching their game and say yeah they’re both French they’re both in the same height range they’ve both got the long wingspan they they even do some of this some similar things they can both run and dunk they can both hit threes I I implore anyone who thinks that to go watch Salone and if you’ve seen Jen and you watch Salone you will quickly realize that the I don’t quite know how to phrase it but the drive on salon’s end is is just so much more you know he’s dunking and yelling and screaming and hyping his teammates up and he’s energetic and he and that doesn’t always lend itself to success I will say like sometimes that leads to bad decision- making bad shot taking things like that but he has the drive and to quote a a baller he has the juice he does have the juice Derek uh this question deserves a lot of caveats and who I’m gonna ask the question then give the caveats who would you be just shocked if the Thunder drafted at 12 surprised that they the selection at 12 now surprise like doesn’t have to be a bad thing so so whenever we say our names those of you listening don’t just think that we think that that’s a bad pick it’s just a pick that we would be shocked if the thunder made it as you know their as covering this team very closely uh and again at 12 not to say if they end up with this Prospect later in the draft or at a future at a future you know time uh it’d be much different but specifically they turn the draft quar in at pick number 12 no moves up or down and this is the prospect who are some realistic names there that you’d be surprised at yeah on the like jaw-dropping scale I think hearing Ed’s name at 12 would would like probably do it like that’s probably as high as it gets and it’s not because I can’t see the vision I I can I think he’ll be a good NBA player for a long time but that would I mean that would be shocking right like he’s one of the most polarizing players we’ve seen I wouldn’t say the Thunder necessarily are magnets towards those type of players so that would be shocking another name who kind of comes up is Rob Dillingham there’s these reports that he’s now working out for Miami Philadelphia teams like that that he could slide out of the lottery he on a lot of people’s boards mine included I have him number three he would be the best player available at 12 I’d be shocked if Oklahoma City swung on him he’s 6-1 needs the ball in his hands a lot of the time isn’t good defensively probably the worst defensive prospect in the top 15 20 maybe even further Wings span’s only at 6’3 he’s another one I would be pretty shocked to see on the Thunders board yeah I like all those and another way to describe this would be like guys at Mick you go hm like H they really they really did it they really drafted this player at 12 uh along with Edie like I’d be shocked at Edie I’d be shocked at at kware at 12 again for other reasons um with those two guys I’d also be pretty shocked if they took jacobe Walter who like is getting some late Budz around this range I I just I’d be shocked in a in a very Furious way if they took chobe Walter what do you think of his game yeah I I liked him for a lot of year I still like him I think I would be a little shocked if they took him at 12 I it’s so weird because some of the things he does is exactly what the Thunder needs he projects to be a great shot maker he’s got like a plus four or five wingspan sometimes the defense looks great he’s really good at slashing he’s great at drawing fouls gets to the line like four or five times a game which is great he was one of the better players as a freshman on one of the best teams in college basketball he does a lot of things well but the things that he doesn’t do so well passing and playmaking defense in general those are the things that the thunder look for so he’s green lit in a lot of areas but he’s also kind of a no-o in a few areas so I I can see it like if you’re talking about this pick as like a backfill to role players for the next three to four years that makes sense because maybe you lose some of these Off the Bench Shooters and you plug Walter in in a few years that makes sense but some of those things I just can’t quite get around even though on paper it makes sense yeah I’m with you and we’ll we’ll talk more about thundery guys plus the value of this draft moving up and down coming up we’re back talking about our good friends over at FanDuel check them out today that’s fanduel.com locked on go there right now because new customers get $200 in bonus Bets with the winning of any $5 bet that’s 200 bucks in bonus Bets with the winning of $85 bet at f.com lockon f.com lockon to win big on your bucket list now the NBA Finals is over but if you only want to bet on the NBA you can still do so at fandle here’s how you can bet on next year’s NBA champion where the Thunder have top five odds you can bet on next year’s MVP award where SGA has top four odds you can bet on the NBA draft who will be the number one overall pick right now the odds say Zachary rashay what a what a surprise that would be who would be brownie james’ next team the Thunder have odds on that as well plus 3,500 check it out today at f.com lockon we’re back on the lockdown Thunder podcast on the lockdown podcast Network your teams every day thank you so much for making us your first listen every single morning every single day here for you talking Thunder basketball with Derek Parker Derek Parker on YouTube you can find him at draft digest and Si Thunder Derek when you look at this draft correct me if I’m wrong I defer to you as the expert usually we can pick out like this is a Sam prey guy like this is a guy Sam pry would absolutely fall in love with and in this draft like we’ve mentioned some names that we like there’s like yeah you know Sam would like that guy the th the Thunder would be in on that guy but they all have a certain drawback that would like give you pause or hesitation to to write that pick and Sharpie like for as much credit as a thunder get for being this tight lipped cards close to the best organization the the players that they’ve targeted like you’ve been able to to pick it out of the lineup pretty quickly um you know whenever you’re looking at the draft especially a week out do you see anyone that that we’re missing of like a guy that you think you could uh maybe not Sharpie in as the name but but you read it in pen erasable pin yeah to your point there’s a lot of guys that that are in that range that we could like theoretically Envision with the Thunder but every single one of them this year and honestly this is true for years past but everyone this year has those one or two things just like Walter that could hinder you a little bit just they they don’t let you grab the Sharpie they they let you grab the erasable one so to kind of rebuttal my earlier points Cody Williams he’s a guy who checks a lot of box but kind of suffers from the same Jing thing in that he’s very thinly framed sometimes he’s not as aggressive the flashes are just that they’re not very consistent donon Holmes I don’t think the Thunder have ever drafted anyone as old as him in the lottery Jared McCain love a lot about him but he’s 63 doesn’t really have a plus wingspan either khil we we obviously talked about his issues so I think we’re running the game at like I said there’s 20 different guys we could talk about them all they all do some things thundery some things not but there’s no one this year to me that is just the absolute box Checker are you with me on Devin Carter Island in a general sense or for the Thunder yes I like Devin Carter a lot I I ended up giving him a lottery grade I think he’s going to be a really good NBA player uh you know 63 he’s got the plus six wingspan one of the best defenders in this draft very obviously gets after it he’s got all the intangibles he scores it well he can shoot it at a high level did a ton of stuff just in general on offense great player great player but the things that hold me back from him on the Thunder specifically are just how frenetic and fast-paced he’s a fireball and again earlier to salon’s Point like that’s great A lot of the time but sometimes it’s not and that rears its head with Devin Carter in the decision making the shot diet things like that so the Thunder are a team that want to play really clean basketball basketball like they don’t want to have a high number of turnovers they don’t want to take bad shots and there’s a chance you draft dein Carter and you plug him in and that erases because he’s around all of these good decision makers and good passers and things there’s also a chance he plug him in and that doesn’t necessarily get better and he a little bit sticks out like a sore thumb so again he’s a guy that I could fully see them taking wouldn’t be surprised in the least but there’s also just a few things that don’t make him as thundery to me so I want to break this into a couple categories I’m going to give you a couple names that are rising in draft position and like do you believe they could be in the Thunders range as reported and then a couple guys who are sliding um as in like should the Thunder be a team that takes them if they do have an actual draft night slide so the couple guys that are rising uh kesan George from Miami and Bob Carrington from Pittsburgh what are your thoughts on both especially with how they would fit with a thunder yeah Kean George is really interesting he’s a guy who I’ve kind of had pegged as a thunder guy for a long time I don’t think he’s necessarily in the 12 range I don’t know if I buy that he’s Rising I buy that there’s maybe a couple teams in the late teens or early 20s that like him I don’t buy an astronomical rise necessarily but he is thundery in that he can do a little bit of everything at 69 he was a guard who had a massive growth spurt can hit threes at a high volume can really function on either end of a pick and roll good on defense generally so he I get more than a lot of players he would probably be in a top 10 top 12 of Thunder guys that I made bub Bub’s hard he he’s tough he can do so much stuff on offense that others can’t he’s big he had a two to one assisted turnover ratio phenomenal in the mid-range like next level in the mid-range but there’s so much that he has to work on in terms of pure impact to be able to get to a workable area he’s really really going to have to land with the right developmental fit and I’m not sure the Thunder are that team so when you’re looking at sliders sliders so far like there’s been the Rob Dillingham one we’ve kind of dismissed already but Ron Holland is like a guy that might be sliding and nicoa topic is a guy that might be sliding for different reasons uh let’s save Holland and first go to top pit like what do you make of his slide du to injury and like would would he be a a player worth investing in with the understanding of like this guy’s probably missed the entire year yeah I I’ve had topic as a top five to six grade all year I think he’s phenomenal I get the slide I do because the knee injury two knee injuries at 18 years old is not great and the big thing for me he had a reported seven foot wingspan which doesn’t necessarily translate to stardom but if you look at the wingspan of a lot of the best drivers and slashers and rim finishers in the league they all have that really plus wingspan Shay’s a great example of that and topic was reported to have a seven foot wings span and it ended up negative at 65 which is like a seven inch swing and obviously for his play style which is a on ball point guard really really high cerebral high IQ passer but the only way he really truly gets consistent offense right now is slashing that’s a big hit I will say if he’s there at 12 I mean I think you have to consider it he’s a player like I mentioned McCain earlier in terms of the x’s and o’s in terms of play style he’d be really really easy to plug and play with the Thunder system defense not there yet shooting not there yet but he’s a player who I really genuinely believe could end up a top three player in this class so if he’s there at 12 you’ve got a little time like it’s it’s not life or death where you would need to rush him out the year after and he immediately has to make an impact we’re talking about this pick again as a potential backfill for role players in the future whenever you got to get these contracts up and things like that so topic to me does make sense at Pick 12 I think I have him six my board so I would swing hard and and swing fast on toich hard and fast just the way we do it DP uh you and I both have Ron Holland number one I was very very validated whenever I saw that you had Hollin one as well uh it’s been tough for me to go back and forth between him and SAR but uh nonetheless I don’t see a pathway for Ron Holland to fail as a basketball player in the NBA which in a draft class with no star power and like perceived to be no generational Talent no you know star littered you know class it’s really tough to pass up on but for some reason there’s reports that he’s sliding and I think that these reports will end up wrong on Wednesday but should he slide to the 10 through 12 range where it’s like way more realistic to go up and get them how excited would you be if the Thunder draft did r on H and how excited should The Listener be if the Thunder landed both of our number one guys yeah had Ron Holland number one since the preseason I watched his g-league ignite season which again yeah 100% had ups and downs I watched that though evaluated that and I still have him number one despite players like Alex SAR Rising Zachary rashay Rising I think he’s a complete stud to your point I don’t see a world where he’s not at the least an NBA contributor in he’s got the high motor phenomenal defense again three stocks per game I think it was two and a half Steals and point eight blocks per game at 18 years old in a professional league is Elite and it’s not always the cleanest thing you’ve ever seen But the motor’s High he’s Snappy in his movements the defense is phenomenal I don’t see him not succeeding on that end of the court and then the offense again throwing it back to coo Nikki crane last night to his point he said that people say the offense is bad and that’s not true the shooting is bad the rest of the offense is great he’s great in transition he’s great slashing of course he could stand to get a little more efficient everywhere but the shooting is the real issue and the shooting to me isn’t that big an issue with the exhibition games he’s shot 27% on three attempts that’s pretty much fine factoring in the fact it was an NBA three-point line NBA ball his shot diet was pretty tough in general he didn’t have a point guard setting him up I think Ron Holland’s phenomenal again I’ve had him at number one all year I haven’t even really got to consider his fit with the Thunder because I thought there was no way he he’d even be there as well I thought there was no chance so this is I mean this moment truly is the first time I’ve had to consider it and I think it works great I think you can slot him in on the wing he’s a play finisher he can go up for lobs he can get out and transition he can shoot wide openen threes which of course he’s taken and making I think that bolsters his three-point percentage and then defensively he fits like a glove that would be a home run pick in my mind home run pick I it would be so much fun if the Thunder drafted Ron Holland Derek I want to do two more players and then ask you our final question this this subcategory is throw me a Lifeline because I’m out on yees Mei for the Thunder specifically not for the NBA in general I think that’ll be a productive NBA player for the Thunder specifically I see this just traditional Rim Runner who needs his guards to spoon feed him and the Thunder do not have good passers in the live dribble pick and roll so like how are the Thunder going to maximize him uh and and make him and and squeeze out all the value out of him what is your thoughts on use me he’s a guy that you do like individually when it comes to the Thunder should I be drifted back into the boat I’ll I’ll do my best to to pull you ashore 610 72 wingspan not a shooter but one of the most elite play finishers again like you said in this draft Here’s the the the catch in the caveat he started playing basketball competitive basketball four years ago he just earned all Big 12 defensive team at 18 19 years old whatever he is there is so so much room for improvement there’s massive growth room for massive growth he’s a completely blank canvas in terms of multiple players he’s bouncy great Target around the rim he has the ability to pull the put the ball on the floor in space which makes his upside to me pretty astronomical it makes his fit with the Thunder better in that he’s not necessarily a five out player but if he has space on the perimeter and can drive it which as a big he’s going to have in the Thunder system that’s me makes him a play I don’t know that I see him as a thunder pick I would be ecstatic if he was he’s one of my favorite players in this draft but he is interesting in that again I don’t want to say he’s Joel embiid or anything like that but he’s got he’s got some of the tendencies that embiid had going into the league in terms of there’s a lot of potential growth there and and I want to clarify that I do like him as an NBA player but for the Thunder I just don’t see how they maximize him I I like the idea of him the ball in the deck and and I Love the clips of him doing it at Baylor but in the NBA when scouting reports are more important when you’re when you’re you know targeting how to uh pick your poison and and and match up correct when you’re facing Shay dub and and Chad he’s he’s an electric cutter he’s an electric driver with the ball in his hands how do you do that whenever nobody’s within 10 feet of you like how do you uh maximize that skill set of yours whenever you’re going to be just ignored on the perimeter and you’re not going to have the guards that treat you right that that get you the ball in advantageous spots now if J anday took a step as a live ball as live ball passers to to set up their big men this would be an awesome pick like this would be a great pick but I’m not making a pick at 12 under the pretense of like hey these two guys have to get a lot better for him to be good I don’t know I I just don’t see that but you you’ve you’ve at least talked me into not just drowning if the Thunder do select him at 12 I would at the very least grab the life preserver and let you try to pull me into uh into the deck now this next one Tristan D Silva is like everyone’s thundery guy but Derek when I look at my big board when I look at your big board when look at like just the the options in this draft and the lack of consensus and like how much stuff’s going to be able to be shifted around and moved around there’s just no way that he’s the most inspiring pick available at 12 like to me Kristen the Silva is the definition of me and I just don’t think that the Thunder should settle for meh at Pick 12 like how wrong am I yeah I I tend to agree with you I like Tristan D Silva I I think there is a potential role in the NBA for him but to to your met point he is a jack of all trades master of none he has like no Elite few skills to fall back on whereas like me’s got the jump out of the gym athleticism McCain is one of the most elite Shooters in the class Ron Holland has a little bit of everything especially the defensive instincts D Silva is good to average at everything but there’s no elite elite fallback skills and to me when in having him 27th or 28th whatever I had him on my board that’s kind of what I look at I think the NBA jump can just be so tough on guys who don’t have really really Reliant skills and I I think sometimes that NBA jump just punches those guys in the face and it’s a little hard to adjust to how much more athletic everyone is how much faster everyone is how much better scoring how much better you have to be on defense maybe he completely proves me wrong and he plugs in and he’s immediately good like haime hawz that was a player that I didn’t for the same reasons I didn’t know Haim hakz was as Elite a guy as he was at the jump shooting and he’s great on defense I had him low on my board and that that was a Miss for me so maybe I haven’t learned my lesson maybe D Silva is my my killer this year but I I tend to agree with you in that he’s definitely not the flashiest pick well I’m glad we can agree here’s the last question the Thunder do not have a second round pick this year is there value in trading back into the second round and picking up another player as the Thunder head into the summertime with up to four roster spots available at their disposal and at least one two-way spot open because you know sorry about it like it it’s a sad tragic thing that you got hurt during the G League finals you’re you’re just not going to be able to use that spot on the VR because his his Achilles you know of course is shot so you’re gonna have a two-way spot open at minimum like that’s before you discuss what to do with keante and Flagler so you’re gonna have the two-a option and there’s a lot of just sicko names that I really like in this draft in the second round do you feel the same way would you trade into the second round would you trade into the first round again and just buy another first round pick like how aggressive would you be in this draft yeah I think there’s a decent chance I’m really good to even great players fall into the late first second round of this draft again in a draft that’s as flat as this one there’s such a high likelihood that someone the Thunder have as a first round grade maybe even 15 to 20 grade is simply not on other teams Radars I don’t think it’s out of the question they trade back in I think my earlier point where players get pushed further and further back that’s going to keep happening that’s going to happen night one that’s going to happen night two there’s going to be really good players selected at at 25 30 35 40 we’ve seen it before in every draft this draft especially magnifies that so wouldn’t Shock Me in the slightest if they’re considering all their options and especially trading back into the late part of this draft I’m excited to see how this all unfolds I have a lot of second round Darlings that I’ll be uh peppering you with in private but maybe you’ll grace us again with your presence to discuss them on the show Derek thank you so much for joining us where can they find you on Twitter and all of your work that you do yeah Twitter D Park okay rzy rise spot of writing inside the Thunder draft digest YouTube D- Parker those are the spots those are the spots Derek thanks for joining us and until next time be good and be good to one another

The Oklahoma City Thunder control the No. 12 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft and Derek Parker is joining Rylan Stiles to break it all down. Who could the OKC Thunder select? How good is the 2024 NBA Draft? Is Zach Edey or Ke’el Ware Thunder fits? Nikola Topic slide? Ron Holland buzz. DaRon Holmes II bucking Thunder trends. Tristan da Silva, Yves Missi, Cody Williams, Ja’Kobe Walters, Devin Carter, Jared McCain, Kyshawn George and Carlton Carrington all discussed. Should Sam Presti acquire more picks in this draft? Tidjane Salaun is not Ousmane Dieng, Rob Dillingham is not a fit for OKC.

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