The NBA draft lottery is approaching rapidly and so is the offseason, meaning the peak of NBA draft talks is around the corner. In typical Oklahoma City Thunder fashion, they have stockpiled picks for the upcoming draft and should have at least two first-round selections.
In a recent mock draft from Sam Vecenie at The Athletic, the Thunder made two selections in the first round, taking two versatile forwards. They are unique players for their positions and can play at multiple spots, making it easier for them to slot into the Thunder rotation if chosen.
One of those forwards is a French prospect similar to current OKC rotational forward Ousmane Dieng, entering the NBA as a raw prospect with the tools to be successful. The other came onto the college scene in surprising fashion after utilizing the transfer portal and was able to showcase his skillset at the Power 5 level.
Here’s who the OKC Thunder opted to take in this mock-draft scenario.
Wolf transferred to Michigan from Yale last offseason and quickly emerged as head coach Dusty May’s most unique player. The 7-foot forward averaged 13.7 points, 9.7 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game this season while shooting 49.7% from the field and 33.6% from three.
What makes him such a unique prospect is his ability to run the floor, handle the ball and command an offense. Wolf is an extremely mobile player for being seven feet tall and has point guard-like tendencies on offense. He gained traction for some flashy passes at times during the season, but he has legitimately good decision-making skills.
Even if forward isn’t a need for the Thunder, it’s hard to see a world where Wolf wouldn’t fit on the roster. He isn’t a player who commands the ball and could play a similar role to Jaylin Williams, if needed. Oklahoma City has plenty of depth at the position and making his way up the rotation might be hard, but a player of his experience and skillset should be an immediate contributor for many teams next season.
In opposite fashion to Wolf, Penda would almost certainly be a project player. The 20-year-old wing plays a similar brand of basketball as other young French wings, like Dieng, New York’s Pacome Dadiet and Charlotte’s Tidjane Salaun. He’s raw and would have a long way to go, but taking a shot on a player with high upside never hurt anybody.
In this scenario, bringing on multiple rookies in this class would be hard. It’s very likely the Thunder are fond of who’s currently on the roster and would like to maintain a majority of it, regardless of how the playoffs go. Taking a guy like Penda, who could stay overseas or develop in the G League, would allow OKC to keep a spot open.
Regardless, Penda is a fluid and lanky forward who has high-upside shooting ability. He would make an immediate impact as a defender and is able to put the ball on the court and attack the rim. Penda is young and would take years of development, but it’s a pick that could pay off in the long run.
In this prediction, the Thunder stuck with the big-man theme in the second round. They took Serbian forward Bogoljub Markovic, a 6-foot-11 versatile scorer, with the 44th pick and Kentucky big man Amari Williams with the 59th.
With all of these selections, there’s a common factor of creativity and versatility in the players the Thunder choose. Finding a playmaker at the forward and center positions clearly would be an emphasis of this draft and with these four selections, that would certainly be the case.
Crafting needs for the Thunder in this year’s draft is slightly challenge, given the construction of their current roster. Free agency fallout will be done, for the most part, by the time the draft comes around, making a forecast for OKC’s 2025 NBA draft even more challenging.
