The Oklahoma City Thunder are signaling that they don’t intend to be aggressive in the trade market this season, according to NBA insider Brian Windhorst.
Despite leading the Western Conference, the team has yet to see both Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein healthy and on the floor together.
Windhorst also highlighted that the Thunder unsuccessfully pursued Gordon Hayward in an in-season deal last year, missing out as the trade deadline passed.
A rival general manager shed light on the Thunder’s strategic approach: “With all their draft picks, they can do anything, but they benefit if they can convince everyone they plan to do nothing,” the executive explained.
“Every team that wants to deal with them will want them to overpay. Plus, teams who want to make a trade will want to engage them because it would raise the price for everyone else.”
Armed with a treasure trove of future draft picks, Oklahoma City is in a position to make impactful moves.
However, by keeping their intentions under wraps, they could avoid pressure from other teams to pay steep prices or disrupt the broader trade landscape in the league.
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