Oklahoma City Thunder
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The Oklahoma City Thunder are attempting to turn their core into a championship, while a majority of the league is focused on final preparation before the 2025 NBA Draft. While the NBA Finals is Oklahoma City’s focus for now, teams do think the Thunder might have something up their sleeve on draft night.
According to NBA insider Jake Fischer, teams picking inside the lottery of the 2025 NBA Draft are “preparing for” the Thunder of moving up into the lottery.
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Oklahoma City THunder draft picks 2025: 15th overall, 24th overall, 44th overall
Oklahoma City certainly has the draft assets to move up, either offering teams the 15th and 24th overall picks or the 15th overall pick and a future first-round pick. While no specific targets were named, the Houston Rockets (10th overall pick) are open to moving the selection and teams like the Brooklyn Nets (8th overall pick) Portland Trail Blazers (11th overall pick) could be targeted.
One incentive for trading up for the Thunder could be the desire to land NBA-ready talent this offseason on rookie contracts. With Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren due to receive contract extensions, Oklahoma City needs to start consolidating its picks to find the best young talent on cheap talent that it can.
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Recent NBA mock drafts have had players like Georgia Bulldogs big man Asa Newell and Michigan Wolverines center Danny Wolf as potential options for Oklahoma City. If the Thunder were to move up into the top 12 picks, it could put them in a position to land someone like Duke Blue Devils center Khaman Maluach or French point guard Nolan Traore.