Entering the 2022-23 season, virtually no one expected the Oklahoma City Thunder to knock on the door of a playoff berth. Led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and head coach Mark Daigneault, the Thunder did exactly that, winning 40 regular season games and a Play-In game before falling one victory short of the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference Playoffs.
Gilgeous-Alexander’s breakout as an All-NBA player headlined the progress for Oklahoma City, but the Thunder made a substantial leap in the aggregate. Josh Giddey and Jalen Williams produced at a high level at a young age, and the Thunder pieced together league-average units on both ends of the floor without any contribution from injured lottery pick Chet Holmgren.
The future projects to be bright for Oklahoma City behind Gilgeous-Alexander, Giddey, Williams, Holmgren, Lu Dort, and a bevy of draft picks. It remains to be seen how the Thunder will add to their core with more established pieces, but the flexbility is there to unlock myriad doors for Sam Presti’s team. They took advantage of some of that flexibility on Draft night, trading up from No. 12 to No. 10 with Dallas by taking on Davis Bertans’ contract.
Roster Needs: Shooting, Frontcourt help (even with Holmgren back)
Cason Wallace (No. 12 overall), B: The fit could be a bit of a challenge for Wallace in OKC with a backcourt that is already quite full with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Josh Giddey, Lu Dort, and others. In a vacuum, Wallace is a solid pick here, though, as he might be the best perimeter defender in the draft. There are some questions about his offensive ceiling, particularly as a shooter, but the overall package is encouraging.
2023 Free Agents:
Dario Saric (UFA)
Roster:
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Chet Holmgren
Josh Giddey
Jalen Williams
Luguentz Dort
Kenrich Williams
Isaiah Joe (non-guaranteed)
Jaylin Williams
Ousmane Dieng
Aleksej Pokusevski
Tre Mann
Jeremiah Robinson-Earl (non-guaranteed)
Lindy Waters III (non-guaranteed)
Aaron Wiggins (non-guaranteed)
Source: https://uproxx.com/dimemag/2023-nba-draft-grades-oklahoma-city-thunder-cason-wallace/
