Thunder Offseason: Pivotal Months Ahead

The NBA playoffs are underway, as the top teams in the league continue their seasons while teams like the Oklahoma City Thunder have officially entered the offseason.

In what should be a pivotal offseason, the goal for the Thunder will be taking another step in the right direction. Whether that’s a big or small step, it’s about staying on the correct path towards contention. Amidst a rebuild, Thunder GM Sam Presti is prepared to be patient throughout the process.

“We’re running our own race, we are not watching the clock,” said Presti at the end of the season. “We know our time is going to come.”

There’s several key events upcoming during the offseason that will dictate what the Oklahoma City roster looks like next season and beyond.

2022 NBA Draft

Especially for a small market team, rebuilding through the draft is a key driver. As such, Presti and his scouts will be hard at work during the draft combine that will take place May 16-22.

On the second day of the combine, the Thunder will find out where their two lottery picks officially land. Currently slotted in the fourth and 12th (via LA Clippers) positions in the lottery, they’ve got a small chance at landing two top-four picks. On May 17, final draft positions will be determined on lottery night.

From there, it’s about conducting workouts and interview with prospects to determine who is worth taking in different ranges. The 2022 NBA Draft will take place on June 23 in New York.

Free Agency

While Oklahoma City rarely lands top prospects in free agency, targeting young players who need a fresh start could become a priority throughout the rebuild. Additionally, the Thunder will have the opportunity to sign several of their current prospects to extensions this summer.

The official start of the 2022-23 NBA league year is July 1, when a moratorium period begins. At this point, any restricted free agents can sign an offer sheet and franchises can start signing players to rookie scale contracts, minimum salary contracts, and two-way contracts. This is also the timeframe in which teams can exercise the team options for players on 2023-24 rookie scale contracts.

That moratorium period officially ends at midnight on July 6, when free agency fully opens. At this point, teams across the league can begin officially signing players, extending players, and pulling the trigger on trades.

This is also the date in which teams can start offering restricted free agents and their current teams can match.

For the Thunder specifically, Darius Bazley and Lu Dort are prime candidates for extensions. Now that they’re fully eligible for adding years onto their respective deals, those conversations will begin soon. Presti has confirmed those talks haven’t begun yet, but will certainly happen during the offseason.

In terms of trade targets, Oklahoma City will likely wait until the draft to determine the types of trades that should be considered. Depending on where the Thunder’s picks fall and the positions they’re able to acquire, the immediate needs of the team could change drastically.

All 15 of the players that finished the season in Oklahoma City under a full-time NBA contract are all on the books for next season, meaning the distribution of roster spots will be interesting to see over the next few months. With that in mind, OKC won’t have to worry about losing players to free agency.

The Thunder could also look to deal Derrick Favors, who has indicated he plans to opt into the final year of his deal worth roughly $10.2 million.

Summer League

The Thunder will compete in two different summer leagues this offseason. They’ll participate in the Salt Lake City Summer League from July 5-7 followed by the Las Vegas Summer League from July 7-17.

The roster for each of these leagues will vary for Oklahoma City. Presti has indicated that some of the more experienced prospects will compete in Salt Lake City while the younger players will be more focused on Las Vegas.

There will likely also be some crossover in these rosters. Aleksej Pokusevski is expected to at least play in Salt Lake City while the newly drafted rookies will be in Las Vegas.

NBA Summer League is a great opportunity for teams to evaluate the talent in their respective systems and see the development of their players through the offseason. It’s also a chance for young players to get more time on the court against quality NBA talent.

For the Thunder, this is a key piece of the offseason.