The Oklahoma City Thunder have receieved plenty of praise in recent years for the team's efforts in the NBA Draft.
OKC acquired all-star wing Jalen Williams and NBA Finals recordholder Chet Holmgren in the 2022 class, which, along with a trade for Shai GIlgeous-Alexander, paved the way to OKC's first title.
Even aside from the team's stars, general manager Sam Presti and company added valuable role players like Aaron Wiggins, Cason Wallace and Jaylin Williams through the draft. Oklahoma City even brought in Lu Dort as a rookie free agent after the First-Team All-Defense honoree went undrafted.
With so much success in the draft and now a championship to show for it, many draft analysts and other observers have tried to pin down the type of players that Presti and the Thunder will covet. Most of the time, thought, these attempts are to no avail, as OKC often surprises even the experts.
Oklahoma City's selection of Josh Giddey at No. 6 overall in the 2021 NBA Draft caught even some Thunder media members off guard. Similarly, virtually every analyst in the draft community was shocked when OKC traded five second-round picks to select Dillon Jones at No. 26 in the 2024 class.
Presti and the Thunder's skilled drafting could make the Thunder a contender for years to come, as the team boasts a mountain of picks over the next few classes after numerous trades prior to the group's rebuilding efforts.
With Gilgeous-Alexander, Williams and Holmgren already signed to long-term extensions, Presti is now tasked with maintaining the surrounding talent on the roster with draft selections. Recent picks like Nikola Topic, Ajay Mitchell and Thomas Sorber are set to be next in line to follow that path.
So, what traits do Presti and company seem to value that could help identify who Oklahoma City will target in upcoming draft classes?
First, Presti and the Thunder seem to value feel for the game.
Players with a good basketball intelliegence who are quick decision makers thrive in Mark Daigneault's system. OKC has targeted good processors like Josh Giddey and Nikola Topic in the draft, but most of the team's roster has strong feel and can make solid passes.
Even big men like Williams and Isaiah Hartenstein are excellent passers for their size.
Feel for the game also extends to being a good off-ball cutter. While this skill seems very niche, players like Wiggins, Dort and Wallace frequently got easy buckets by cutting to the basket in the right situations.
Defensively, the Thunder appear to value players with long arms and active hands who play with high effort and intensity on that end of the floor. Of course, every team would like to have defensive players who fit that mold, but Wallace, Dort, Holmgren, Williams and others all fall into that category.
Finally, being able to run the floor in transition is a key aspect of the Thunder's gameplan.
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