Kyrie, PJ, Gafford and luka will all be free agents in 2026 and 27 for luka. Anything can happen. Thunder have been the 1 or 2 seed all year long, so I doubt they're too worried about what people on reddit are saying. They signed some bigger bodies if they need them, but still don't really play them. It was a good deal for both teams
Why is a team with 15 first round picks trading their picks for the possibility for more picks instead of addressing their issues with rebounding and size?
OKC has gotten bullied by bigs all season long.
And instead of using their pick to get Gafford for themselves, they gift him to the Mavs.
Presti is a brilliant GM but he's not perfect. And he absolutely botched the trade deadline in a season where OKC is a .700 team and fully healthy.
You should never write off seasons like this to say "we're young, we've got plenty of years ahead of us."
You never know what the future holds. OKC could've made a title run this year if they addressed their size issues.
> we're young, we've got plenty of years ahead of us
If I could title the picture of Westbrook, Durant, and Harden with the towels on their heads after Game 5 of the 2012 Finals, I think that's it. I just hope we either get lucky in who we draw or that we have something up our sleeve next month.
Oske thunder fans legit think that no traditional big can work in any type of minutes on this team. Fanbase is delusional. What Gafford brings> hayward's cardio
Yeah, I’m an OKC fan and they are annoying af with this. Gafford would have been perfect for us, instead we are destined to get killed on the boards by literally every playoff team.
>Why is a team with 15 first round picks trading their picks for the possibility for more picks instead of addressing their issues with rebounding and size?
>
>OKC has gotten bullied by bigs all season long.
Because they want to see what their current system and construction looks like in the playoffs, and Gafford doesn't fit the scheme on offense or on defense.
Tbf, it's obvious the current system has a glaring weakness. After 82 games getting wrecked on the boards, what do you expect it's going to look like in the playoffs? We ain't suddenly going to address that issue with our current roster.
Sure, but it's also obvious the current system has massive strengths. Don't think it's unreasonable at all to bet on a team that has been this successful despite such a major weakness.
And they've been much improved since the ASB, they don't need to win every game on the boards, they just need to stay close to even, win the turnover battle, and hit theopen shots.
you are 100% vright and they get bullied more than most but tbh at teh end of the day doesnt matter what you do you're not gettign someone to battle jokic. I think it sucsk tehy are absolutely destroyed by 2-3 teams in the west but to keep this pace and only make the move when yu absolutely need it. there is nobody on the trade blck that elevates their position so they have time to draft
Could as well bet on Barbary Streisand turning into a giant robot who then proceeds to raise a Mexican Invasion Army to invade Texas leading to a canceled NBA season.
If you want to make the round about argument. The Thunder made the draft night trade that helped get Williams (exceptions) which (plus other assets) turned into PJ.
But damn that means the Thunder could have had Lively as well instead of Wallace.
Lively would be interesting because he has some actual passing chops, but Cason is a really important long-term piece because he makes Dort expendable. Now I don't think they'll move Dort unless something we can't turn down shows up, but his salary is basically the only way to make a theoretical superstar trade work.
Not holding out hope for it but Giddey's late season resurgence has me thinking they'll go knocking on Ainge's door and offer something like Dort/Giddey + picks for Lauri in the offseason, which would fill a lot of holes without forcing us to change the way we play.
What's also left out here is that the Thunder could absolutely benefit from having Gafford for *themselves*.
*Their* 2024 1st rounder was the pick that landed him.
They could have acquired him to help shore up their size and rebounding issues.
Instead they constantly get bullied on the boards.
If the Thunder end up facing the Mavs in the first round and lose... oh boy it's gonna be spicy.
i dont think the trade was bad for okc but wtf is presti doing pick hoarding. i understand this year since its a breakout but this okc team is READY. championship window opened.
That's still pick hoarding. Thunder would've been better off trading that pick for an actual player.
For example, the Thunder could very much use Gafford themselves.
It’s literally not pick hoarding, they have one less pick as a result of the trade, the point of the trade was to give up one pick to try and increase the potential of a future pick.
Sure the Thunder could use Gafford but JWill is still young and getting better, why not give him and extra season and post season to see what he can do. Not to mention OKC are all in on lineups where the big can pass and shoot.
Nothing wrong with OKC taking this season to see what they’ve got and what they really need.
He must know that ownership will not be willing to extend all these guys, so he wants future picks to reload with. They are going to have the most expensive payroll in the league once these extensions start coming due.
kyrie’s oldest but maxi is cooked, mavs biggest weaknesses rn are their starting sf position and the place maxi fills as a stretch 4/5. if they had a mikal bridges og anunoby dillon brooks type at the 3 they’d be best team in the league
That's not even what happened. We literally played Gafford off the court with our five-out offense in the last game, and he wouldn't have sniffed playtime on our team. But nice try.
How, exactly? By killing our floor-spacing even more? We have a top-5 offense. Why the hell does everyone on reddit think that Daniel Gafford is someone we would want?
Yeah. I think the Celtics are a good case study—they were good with Robert Williams, but they’ve been incredible with KP. I think “lob threats” are getting rather overrated—most bigs can finish lobs pretty reliably if the defense loses them, and the difference between a hyper-athletic big and an average one doesn’t make nearly as much of a difference as playing five-out.
They get an insane amount of second chance points. Chet is a great player, but it's hard for a team to function with 0 above average rebounders. As the pace slows down in the playoffs, each point matters more. If you play a team like the Mavs, Lakers or Nuggets, you'll lose for sure, unless you go absolutely lights out from three.
It's hard for a team to function? We're toggling with Denver for the 1-seed in an insanely good western conference. If you think we'll lose *for sure* to those teams, then why doesn't Vegas think so? Or smart basketball analysts like Zach Lowe, who just said he'd take the Thunder in any first round series. We sacrifice rebounds for another style of play. Gafford can't stay on the court against us. Same thing happened tonight against the Pels. Valenciunas couldn't stay on the court, and Zion was rendered ineffective in the closing quarter. There are two sides to the issue, and no one ever seems to think about what OKC's offense does to opposing bigs (with the exception, *maybe*, of AD). What is actually a problem for us, potentially, is overall size--not that we lack another big big, but that teams like LAL are bigger than us all around, and can be physically disruptive to our offensive flow. Gafford does not help us there, except very minimally, while also ruining our spacing (which we need).
We average 3 fewer rebounds than our opponents per game on the season. We force almost 4 more turnovers per game than we commit. That’s to say nothing of blocks (where we also excel). It’s better than a wash and that’s why it doesn’t really matter.
I get what you’re saying but I think you went too far with it. Gafford could definitely help you with your glaring weaknesses in rebounding and interior defense. “Not sniffing playtime” is truly crazy
Don’t worry, Thunder fans have assured me that they don’t, in fact, need a big who can rebound, dunk/catch lobs, and guard the rim, despite getting bullied by opposing teams’ big guys every game.
OKC is never winning a championship. They are unwilling to make win now moves and their ownership will not want to pay the required payroll to keep all these dudes.
What’s the point of winning a chip when you can just keep hoarding young talent and future picks and have the basketball nerds gush over your “upside” for the next decade.
It’s the Presti way.
To quote your guy, "Everybody tough when they up." Let's see how the Mavs perform in the post-season before we start giving them labels like Top 2 or whatnot
You’re leaving out the pick swap.
An unprotected swap!
Wow they might get the 24th pick in 2028 instead of 26th!
I mean I agree but if you’re gonna make a post like this just actually use all the assets for the trades haha.
Kyrie, PJ, Gafford and luka will all be free agents in 2026 and 27 for luka. Anything can happen. Thunder have been the 1 or 2 seed all year long, so I doubt they're too worried about what people on reddit are saying. They signed some bigger bodies if they need them, but still don't really play them. It was a good deal for both teams
Why is a team with 15 first round picks trading their picks for the possibility for more picks instead of addressing their issues with rebounding and size? OKC has gotten bullied by bigs all season long. And instead of using their pick to get Gafford for themselves, they gift him to the Mavs. Presti is a brilliant GM but he's not perfect. And he absolutely botched the trade deadline in a season where OKC is a .700 team and fully healthy. You should never write off seasons like this to say "we're young, we've got plenty of years ahead of us." You never know what the future holds. OKC could've made a title run this year if they addressed their size issues.
> we're young, we've got plenty of years ahead of us If I could title the picture of Westbrook, Durant, and Harden with the towels on their heads after Game 5 of the 2012 Finals, I think that's it. I just hope we either get lucky in who we draw or that we have something up our sleeve next month.
The cap benefits of the trade give OKC way more flexibility moving forward. That being said, I wish OKC traded for Gafford themselves.
Oske thunder fans legit think that no traditional big can work in any type of minutes on this team. Fanbase is delusional. What Gafford brings> hayward's cardio
Yeah, I’m an OKC fan and they are annoying af with this. Gafford would have been perfect for us, instead we are destined to get killed on the boards by literally every playoff team.
>Why is a team with 15 first round picks trading their picks for the possibility for more picks instead of addressing their issues with rebounding and size? > >OKC has gotten bullied by bigs all season long. Because they want to see what their current system and construction looks like in the playoffs, and Gafford doesn't fit the scheme on offense or on defense.
Tbf, it's obvious the current system has a glaring weakness. After 82 games getting wrecked on the boards, what do you expect it's going to look like in the playoffs? We ain't suddenly going to address that issue with our current roster.
Sure, but it's also obvious the current system has massive strengths. Don't think it's unreasonable at all to bet on a team that has been this successful despite such a major weakness. And they've been much improved since the ASB, they don't need to win every game on the boards, they just need to stay close to even, win the turnover battle, and hit theopen shots.
you are 100% vright and they get bullied more than most but tbh at teh end of the day doesnt matter what you do you're not gettign someone to battle jokic. I think it sucsk tehy are absolutely destroyed by 2-3 teams in the west but to keep this pace and only make the move when yu absolutely need it. there is nobody on the trade blck that elevates their position so they have time to draft
Because we are betting on Luka leaving which isn’t the absolute worst bet if the mavs don’t find success
Could as well bet on Barbary Streisand turning into a giant robot who then proceeds to raise a Mexican Invasion Army to invade Texas leading to a canceled NBA season.
This post is a good example of why you shouldn’t Reddit While Intoxicated.
Yeah .. oppost makes zero fucking sense.
Our oldest guys is Markieff at 34. Kyrie JUST turned 32
34 is like the average age of the Clippers
He doesn't really play . He's their mascot
Kyrie could retire any week. Not any season, any week. All depends on what conspiracy he has subscribed to.
Yeah Luka and the 400 other nba players also can retire any week, what a dumb take.
naw
They just helped us get Gafford, not PJ.
If you want to make the round about argument. The Thunder made the draft night trade that helped get Williams (exceptions) which (plus other assets) turned into PJ. But damn that means the Thunder could have had Lively as well instead of Wallace.
Wallace is really good, but damn would they be good right now with Lively.
Lively would be interesting because he has some actual passing chops, but Cason is a really important long-term piece because he makes Dort expendable. Now I don't think they'll move Dort unless something we can't turn down shows up, but his salary is basically the only way to make a theoretical superstar trade work. Not holding out hope for it but Giddey's late season resurgence has me thinking they'll go knocking on Ainge's door and offer something like Dort/Giddey + picks for Lauri in the offseason, which would fill a lot of holes without forcing us to change the way we play.
i don’t think pj happens without gafford tho it was all sorts of finicky idk
Hey, Presti took a gamble at a possible valuable pick swap in 2028 if Luka were to leave.
this but unironically its not a terrible strategy at all especially considering kyrie is on our team, and OKC is flush with picks anyway
It's not a gamble. We gave up nothing at all for a swap to an almost certainly better draft class.
Predicting a class who are currently 13/14 year olds as a stronger class is definitely a thing you could do in this point in time.
lmao “almost certainly better” bro must be able to see the future
Lmaooooooo
Didn't you trade a pick?
Pick swap. We didn't give up a pick, if that's what you're asking.
Huh? The Thunder sent their pick to the Wizards in exchange for the Mavs' pick swap.
Yes we did
Oh. That’s a gamble then. Even though it was 1 or 4 firsts we had this year.
Thunder gave Mavs a '24 pick for an unprotected '28 pick swap. That '24 pick and Holmes got us Gafford.
gamble was probably the wrong choice of word. Probably better to say he took a chance on the possibility of a better pick.
The Beal trade literally just happened and is worse.
Bradley Beal was so overrated. If they somehow got John Wall in his prime instead, he would have been a better fit.
Maybe even DRose in his prime.
He is owed over the next three years 50,2//53,6//57,1(Player Option) with a full no trade clause.
Mavs definitely turned it around
What's also left out here is that the Thunder could absolutely benefit from having Gafford for *themselves*. *Their* 2024 1st rounder was the pick that landed him. They could have acquired him to help shore up their size and rebounding issues. Instead they constantly get bullied on the boards. If the Thunder end up facing the Mavs in the first round and lose... oh boy it's gonna be spicy.
>Instead they constantly get bullied on the boards. They're top 5 in the league in DRB% since the ASB.
Ty OKC bros. We will remember this forever 🥰
i dont think the trade was bad for okc but wtf is presti doing pick hoarding. i understand this year since its a breakout but this okc team is READY. championship window opened.
Presti did the opposite of pick hoarding. He sent the Wizards a 1st to get the Mavs' pick swap. It was a move that made sense all-around IMO.
That's still pick hoarding. Thunder would've been better off trading that pick for an actual player. For example, the Thunder could very much use Gafford themselves.
It’s literally not pick hoarding, they have one less pick as a result of the trade, the point of the trade was to give up one pick to try and increase the potential of a future pick. Sure the Thunder could use Gafford but JWill is still young and getting better, why not give him and extra season and post season to see what he can do. Not to mention OKC are all in on lineups where the big can pass and shoot. Nothing wrong with OKC taking this season to see what they’ve got and what they really need.
He must know that ownership will not be willing to extend all these guys, so he wants future picks to reload with. They are going to have the most expensive payroll in the league once these extensions start coming due.
Lol is this post serious?
kyrie’s oldest but maxi is cooked, mavs biggest weaknesses rn are their starting sf position and the place maxi fills as a stretch 4/5. if they had a mikal bridges og anunoby dillon brooks type at the 3 they’d be best team in the league
Best team in the league lmao
Yes mavericks and nuggets (led by the two humblest and most pure superstars) are by far the best 2 teams in the west
I’d like to add Reeves and Kirk Heineken as honorable mentions.
Bradley Beal is employed. JA still plays for the Cavs. Bridges trade.
Stay in school
Thanks Thunder!
It could be worse. It's not like they orchestrated 9/11 or something
Yeah pj Washington and Daniel Gafford are the difference between a playin team and an ECF team .
This, but unironically
When they're replacing Dwight Powell/Richaun Holmes level players in the rotation, yeah they can be.
That's not even what happened. We literally played Gafford off the court with our five-out offense in the last game, and he wouldn't have sniffed playtime on our team. But nice try.
Gafford would have helped you against Giannis at least
How, exactly? By killing our floor-spacing even more? We have a top-5 offense. Why the hell does everyone on reddit think that Daniel Gafford is someone we would want?
You’re telling me you don’t think Gafford would get minutes over Jaylin Williams?
Yeah. I think the Celtics are a good case study—they were good with Robert Williams, but they’ve been incredible with KP. I think “lob threats” are getting rather overrated—most bigs can finish lobs pretty reliably if the defense loses them, and the difference between a hyper-athletic big and an average one doesn’t make nearly as much of a difference as playing five-out.
Many OKC fans have made this observation
Many watch, but few understand.
Big time!
Rebounding. It'll matter against teams with elite big men like the Lakers.
I’ll take my chances against the mediocre lakers. AD is great at fucking up our offense but we don’t lose to them because of rebounds.
They get an insane amount of second chance points. Chet is a great player, but it's hard for a team to function with 0 above average rebounders. As the pace slows down in the playoffs, each point matters more. If you play a team like the Mavs, Lakers or Nuggets, you'll lose for sure, unless you go absolutely lights out from three.
It's hard for a team to function? We're toggling with Denver for the 1-seed in an insanely good western conference. If you think we'll lose *for sure* to those teams, then why doesn't Vegas think so? Or smart basketball analysts like Zach Lowe, who just said he'd take the Thunder in any first round series. We sacrifice rebounds for another style of play. Gafford can't stay on the court against us. Same thing happened tonight against the Pels. Valenciunas couldn't stay on the court, and Zion was rendered ineffective in the closing quarter. There are two sides to the issue, and no one ever seems to think about what OKC's offense does to opposing bigs (with the exception, *maybe*, of AD). What is actually a problem for us, potentially, is overall size--not that we lack another big big, but that teams like LAL are bigger than us all around, and can be physically disruptive to our offensive flow. Gafford does not help us there, except very minimally, while also ruining our spacing (which we need).
They disagree with me, and we won't see who's right until the playoffs start.
Regular season. You are doing nothing in the post season with that level of rebounding
We average 3 fewer rebounds than our opponents per game on the season. We force almost 4 more turnovers per game than we commit. That’s to say nothing of blocks (where we also excel). It’s better than a wash and that’s why it doesn’t really matter.
Yawn Lmao I guess we’ll see if rebounding of all things matters 😂
I get what you’re saying but I think you went too far with it. Gafford could definitely help you with your glaring weaknesses in rebounding and interior defense. “Not sniffing playtime” is truly crazy
> We literally played Gafford off the court with our five-out offense in the last game Wasn't Gafford great in the game you guys lost by like 40?
Don’t worry, Thunder fans have assured me that they don’t, in fact, need a big who can rebound, dunk/catch lobs, and guard the rim, despite getting bullied by opposing teams’ big guys every game.
OKC is never winning a championship. They are unwilling to make win now moves and their ownership will not want to pay the required payroll to keep all these dudes.
What’s the point of winning a chip when you can just keep hoarding young talent and future picks and have the basketball nerds gush over your “upside” for the next decade. It’s the Presti way.
To quote your guy, "Everybody tough when they up." Let's see how the Mavs perform in the post-season before we start giving them labels like Top 2 or whatnot
Mavs made a deal that SGA can take the MVP votes away from Luka