Oklahoma City Thunder: 2018 NBA Draft grades
With relatively late picks in the 2018 NBA Draft the Oklahoma City Thunder got good value out of their picks by taking the best option for all three.
The Oklahoma City Thunder faithful had to wait a while to see who their team was going to pick, but after 52 picks in the 2018 NBA Draft, they were up at No. 53.
With their first pick, they selected Devon Hall out of Virginia. A couple of picks later, they chose Kevin Hervey out of UT-Arlington.
The Thunder also traded for athletic wing Hamidou Diallo, who could be used as a Jerami Grant replacement down the road.
All three are players that could help the Thunder with their skill-sets. With Paul George and Carmelo Anthony possibly leaving and with OKC having ongoing conversations with both of them, the Thunder entered the draft picking players that would fit with Russell Westbrook and possibly help out the bench.
Not all #Thunder employees were at the practice facility for the draft. OKC's Director of Basketball Communications, among others, were at a surprise birthday party for Paul George. Sam Presti says conversations with PG13 are ongoing. pic.twitter.com/MSRpyd7AcC
— Dylan Buckingham (@DylanBuckingham) June 22, 2018
These second round pickups may see G League time, but they will be able to develop and help the team, as their ability to defend and hit shots will eventually create depth for a team that needs help for the second unit without the cap space to go out and sign players.
OKC was never able to move up into the first round, where there were some highly talented players. The Thunder may have missed on a good player that can help right now, but the money may not have been there.
Presti on Paul George: "We're looking forward to the opportunity to sit down and have a more specific conversation with him. We've been in touch with him. He's been consistent like he is."
— Erik Horne (@ErikkHorne) June 22, 2018
The Thunder traded their first round pick to the Utah Jazz in the Enes Kanter trade that sent Reggie Jackson to Detroit. The Minnesota Timberwolves ended up getting that pick after they traded Ricky Rubio to the Jazz.
Josh Okogie was picked with the 20th pick. Okogie is a player that could have helped the Thunder at 6’4″ with a 7’0″ wingspan, not to mention his ability to play both offense and defense.
The two players that the Thunder picked may not be as good as Okogie, but it was a good draft for OKC based on where it had to choose from.