Last season, a total of 11 players gave the Oklahoma City Thunder at least 900 minutes of service. Three of those players now play for other teams: Lu Dort, Aaron Wiggins and Isaiah Joe. Two of them, Jalen Williams and Cason Wallace, have already suffered injuries that may end their seasons. Another, Alex Caruso, has a sprained ankle. For Wednesday's game against the Dallas Mavericks, Chet Holmgren is also out with right knee patellar tendinitis and Ajay Mitchell is questionable with a right ankle sprain.
In other words, most of Oklahoma City's core rotation from a year ago, aside from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, is not available right now. Inevitably, that has sparked quite a bit of speculation. The Thunder are as asset-rich as any team in the NBA. They have the picks to go trade for a difference-maker and a roster spot to add a free agent. The question here is who, and on Wednesday, ESPN's Brian Windhorst stirred the pot with an intentionally cryptic rumor.
"And this is one thing that I've talked to executives about, and I don't mean to be cryptic, but I'm being cryptic," he said on his Hoop Collective podcast. "If you're going to, if they're going to acquire a player, it would not be a surprise if they acquire a player they've already had."
This makes plenty of sense on paper. The Thunder are very particular about their culture. Bringing in someone new is far riskier than reacquiring someone they already know, and given their asset surplus, they can afford to be picky. Given Windhorst's track record of cryptic reporting leading to seismic transactions, let's take a look around the league to see which former Thunder players, if any, make sense as reacquisition targets.
The illegal targets
The Thunder traded Dort, Joe and Wiggins last offseason. Given how things have played out, Oklahoma City may regret doing so, and given this rumor cycle, fans will inevitably call for them to try to reacquire one of last season's core pieces. Alas, Dort, Joe and Wiggins are functionally not obtainable to the Thunder. The NBA does not allow teams to reacquire players they have traded until the following season. That means Dort, Joe and Wiggins are off limits for now.
There is a very narrow exception to this rule, but it is not likely to come up. If the player is traded a second time and then gets waived, the original team can re-sign him upon clearing waivers. This happened with Mike Conley and the Minnesota Timberwolves last season. Of course, no team is likely to waive Dort, Joe or Wiggins, so we should assume for the sake of argument that they are off the table.
What Jalen Williams and Cason Wallace injuries mean for the Thunder and why a trade isn't so simple Sam Quinn
The impractical targets
The Thunder have been so well-run for so long that the NBA is now littered with extremely accomplished Thunder alumni. Of course, these players are, in most cases, either so expensive that they would be impractical for Oklahoma City's purposes or so vital to their existing teams that they likely are not functionally available. So let's roll through those players now:
- Domantas Sabonis and his $45.5 million cap figure are simply too pricey for an Oklahoma City team that is deepest in the front court.
- Kevin Durant is essential to a Houston Rockets team that, right now, probably has similar or better championship odds than the Thunder, so don't expect him to be available through trade. Besides, he's never exactly conveyed a desire to return to Oklahoma City.
- Jerami Grant is a useful player who suits Oklahoma City's positional need at forward. However, at $34.8 million, he simply makes too much money to be proactively targeted. The Thunder would have to give up one of their five most expensive players (Gilgeous-Alexander, Williams, Holmgren, Caruso or Isaiah Hartenstein) to match his salary, and that is presumably a non-starter for a player like Grant.
- James Harden, aside from being too expensive, just doesn't fit Oklahoma City's playing style. Gilgeous-Alexander is just a far better primary creator at this point, and Harden's defensive deficiencies would be problematic for a team that's built around defense.
- Steven Adams is plausibly affordable for the Thunder financially, but is impractical because he plays in Houston, plays their position of greatest depth, and has quite a few injury concerns of his own.
The former All-Stars
The players listed above are all currently under contract with teams trying to win today. There are, however, quite a few famous Thunder alumni who are theoretically much more gettable. Four stand out:
Russell Westbrook
Russell Westbrook SAC • PG • #18 PPG15.2APG6.7SPG1.33P/G2 View Profile A reporter asked general manager Sam Presti on Monday about potentially bringing back retired team legend Russell Westbrook. Presti gave a typical non-answer. Fans would certainly love to see Westbrook in a Thunder uniform again, but the question here is whether he'd be able to accept a small enough role for this to be worthwhile. Westbrook, who announced his retirement in August, is a high-usage player whose value is mostly derived from having the ball in his hands. His issues as a shooter are well-documented, and while he's capable of the sort of intense on-ball defense the Thunder prefer, he's never been consistent as a team defender. All in all, Westbrook is probably just too high-maintenance an addition given what the Thunder could expect out of a 37-year-old.
Chris Paul
Chris Paul TOR • PG PPG2.9APG3.3SPG.693P/G.625 View Profile The point guard Westbrook was once traded for, Chris Paul, makes a bit more sense. He and Gilgeous-Alexander thrived together during the 2019-20 season. However, Paul fell off a cliff during his brief return to the Clippers last season, and he's a notoriously demanding locker-room presence. He's now 41 and has shown no interest in playing in the NBA again after announcing his retirement in February, so we can probably cross him off the list.
Victor Oladipo
Victor Oladipo MEM • SG View Profile Here's a sneaky one: Victor Oladipo. He spent this offseason trying to fight his way back onto an NBA roster. The Sacramento Kings worked him out, but did not sign him. He has not played since the 2022-23 season, but is still only 34. The healthy version of him fit into Oklahoma City's defensive culture, and after several years out of the league, he'd likely be happy with any role the Thunder could offer him.
Al Horford
Al Horford GS • C • #20 PPG4.7RPG4BPG.67 View Profile The only non-guard in this section: Al Horford. The Thunder, again, have plenty of front-court depth. If they did elect to trade one of their bigs for help elsewhere, though, Horford is still useful in a smaller role and the Golden State Warriors simply aren't competitive enough to turn away offers for players in their 40s. The Thunder have several trade exceptions big enough to fit Horford, and his salary is just below the $6.9 million in second-apron space they currently have available.
Probably not sensible or cost-effective, but can't be ruled out
Any of these three players theoretically could have landed in one of the last two categories. For reasons I'll explain, I wanted to separate them:
Paul George
Paul George BOS • SF • #13 PPG22.3APG3.5SPG2.253P/G3.5 View Profile George is more expensive than any player we've covered thus far. The only scenario in which this would make sense is one in which the Thunder trade Jalen Williams to Boston (along with a few other contracts, for the sake of legality). That, obviously, is enormously unlikely. It just isn't so crazy that it should be taken off the table altogether. The Celtics already showed a willingness to take a step back this season in the name of the longer view when they traded Jaylen Brown for George in the first place. The Thunder, however, have much more at stake this season given their impending financial cliff. George, with his player option, could actually help on that front by potentially renegotiating a slightly longer deal that suits the Thunder's needs. There would have to be draft picks going to Oklahoma City, and George would have to be willing to take a team-friendly contract that pays him less than Williams is due next season. But if you squint hard enough, you can see something that sort of makes sense here.
Josh Giddey
Josh Giddey CHI • PG • #3 PPG7APG7.3SPG.53P/G.5 View Profile The Thunder traded Giddey in part because his shooting made him an iffy off-ball fit next to Gilgeous-Alexander. Well, Giddey has made at least 38% of his catch-and-shoot 3s since coming to Chicago. The Bulls have a new front office that didn't bring Giddey in, and he's struggled to start this season. That doesn't mean they'll give up on him, but it means he could be gettable at the right price. Alas, price is the biggest hurdle here. The Thunder have no obvious way to cobble together the $25 million in tradable salary they'd need to match Giddey's contract without incurring an untenable first-apron hard cap. This would have to be a part of something bigger we can't foresee, so it's unlikely, but if the Thunder do something surprising, there might be a pathway here.
Dennis Schröder
Dennis Schroder CHA • PG • #17 PPG14.0APG4.5SPG.33P/G.8 View Profile The Thunder could fit him into the trade exception they have leftover from sending out Dort, though they'd have to shed money elsewhere to duck the second apron. Schröder would likely be gettable for second-round picks later in the season (especially if Charlotte rookie Christian Anderson shows he can handle real minutes), and he'd simply be a spare ball-handler on point-of-attack pest defensively. He wouldn't have a big role in Oklahoma City, but the Thunder know him and what he brings to the table. Truthfully, though, the Thunder would probably just prefer to stick with what they have... unless things get worse.
The two best fits
Alright, we've spent the bulk of this story writing about players who wouldn't fit. Let's talk about the players who could. There are two standouts here:
Ousmane Dieng
Ousmane Dieng MIL • SF • #21 PPG2.7RPG1.7 View Profile The Thunder ironically chose Dieng one selection ahead of Williams in the 2022 NBA Draft, but Williams outplayed him and Dieng could never find a role in a crowded Thunder rotation. That rotation is less crowded now, especially at forward, and Dieng took advantage of all of the extra playing time he got for the Milwaukee Bucks after the trade deadline last season. Dieng has held a much smaller role for the Bucks this season, so he's theoretically gettable. He can't be traded until Dec. 15 because he just signed a free agent contract, but the Thunder likely don't want to rush into a move anyway.
Ty Jerome
Ty Jerome MEM • PG • #2 PPG29.8APG6.5SPG.753P/G2.5 View Profile This is the likeliest big swing on the table for Oklahoma City, if any is even possible. Jerome is in the middle of a breakout season for the Memphis Grizzlies and could be well on his way to an All-Star selection. He's also 29, has serious durability concerns, and is functionally on an expiring contract considering his player option. If the Grizzlies view this as a flash in the pan, or a chance to sell high on someone they don't want to give a big contract to next summer, the Thunder could be their chance. His cap figure is only around $9 million, so he's very obtainable. His shooting makes him an easy fit on any roster, and the Thunder have quite a bit of experience managing the workloads of high-impact players with durability concerns like Alex Caruso.
Jerome is a bit duplicative of Ajay Mitchell, but beggars can't be choosers. If the Thunder have to reorient their roster more around offense to maintain this season's title window, they should do so. Oklahoma City has enough of a draft surplus to trade for even an expensive rental. The question simply comes down to whether or not the Grizzlies view Jerome as a long-term fixture or a pleasant surprise they're willing to cash out. The former is likelier, but we can't rule out the latter.
