NBA Trade Grades: Oklahoma City Thunder pick up rookie Isaiah Roby
By Phil Watson
Thunder add rookie, cut cap number a bit
The Oklahoma City Thunder, in acquiring Isaiah Roby from the Dallas Mavericks, get just a little bit closer to coming below the luxury tax line even as they appear to be solidly in the NBA playoff picture with a 26-19 record, good for seventh in the Western Conference. They are two games behind the sixth-place Houston Rockets and just 2½ in back of fifth-place Dallas.
Conversely, the Thunder have a five-game bulge over the San Antonio Spurs, currently in eighth place.
Patton is in the first year of a three-year minimum contract he signed with the Thunder back in August that pays him $1.62 million this season. Patton became a free agent last April when he was waived by the Philadelphia 76ers.
It’s not a lot of savings for the Thunder, who acquire Roby — who is at $1.5 million this season in the first year of the four-year deal he signed last summer, so their payroll comes down marginally to $131.52 million, still a shade more than $800,000 over the luxury tax line.
According to Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman (subscription required), the Thunder trim their tax bill from $2.3 million to $2 million with the trade.
Roby, listed at 6-foot-8 and 230 pounds, did not appear in an NBA game for the Mavericks, spending much of his time with the G League’s Texas Legends as he has battled knee and foot injuries this season.
In nine games with the Legends, Roby averaged 9.2 points, 7.0 rebounds, 1.1 steals and 1.0 blocks in 21.0 minutes per game, shooting 50.8 percent overall and going 5-for-14 from 3-point range.
He opted to forgo his senior season at the University of Nebraska in favor of entering the NBA Draft and it paid off for him. Per the Omaha World-Herald, Roby’s $1.5 million rookie salary is the largest in NBA history for a second-round pick taken out of college.
While next season’s $1.52 million salary is guaranteed, Roby’s $1.78 million in 2021-22 is not. His $1.93 million for the fourth and final year of the deal in 2022-23 is a team option.
It’s a minor deal that doesn’t move the needle much, particularly given that Roby will likely continue to spend most of his time toiling in the G League, according to Rotoworld.