Since moving to Oklahoma City in 2008 and rebranding from the Seattle SuperSonics to the Oklahoma City Thunder, this franchise has seen a lot of success through the years. Guys like Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden all played big roles in the Thunder becoming who they are as an organization, but over the last few NBA seasons, this franchise has changed direction.
This year, the Thunder finished 22-50, their worst record since moving to Oklahoma City. However, they are not in the same “rebuilding” position as some of the other teams who finished near the bottom of the standings.
The Thunder own the rights to 38 total draft picks through the 2027 NBA Draft, including three first-round picks and three second-round picks this year. OKC has a chance to do something really special over the next few years and that is in large part because of their talented young core.
Luguentz Dort, Darius Bazley, Theo Maledon and Aleksej Pokusevski are all young talents that the Thunder have big plans for over the years, but Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is their “prized possession.” SGA came to OKC in 2019 as part of the Paul George trade and since then, he has been a star for the Thunder.
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His season was cut short this year due to a foot injury, but in 35 games, Gilgeous-Alexander averaged 23.7 points, 4.7 rebounds, 5.9 assists and shot 41.8% from three-point range. Oklahoma City loves what they have in their young guard, but his value is at an all-time high right now, so could they potentially look to trade him in the offseason?
Given that OKC is on the verge of building something special for the long-term success of their organization, it seems unlikely that they will look to trade Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, but if they do make him available, here are four teams who should aggressively push to trade for him.