Over the past five years, the Oklahoma City Thunder have been able to rack up draft capital and assets. It all began on July 19, 2019 when OKC sent Paul George to the Clippers for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Danilo Gallinari, five first-round draft picks, and the rights to swap two other first-round picks.
Not only has Shai become a top player in the league, but one of the picks turned into rising star Jalen Williams and others, which helped propel the Thunder to the first seed in the West last season with 57 wins. But that is just the tip of the iceberg.
ESPN's Bobby Marks ranked the '5 NBA teams that hold most first-round draft picks', and the Thunder placed second (only behind the San Antonio Spurs).
With a potential 13 first-round picks and 16 second-round picks, the Thunder are set to be a top team in the NBA for quite some time. Not only could OKC place as a top seed in the league for years to come, but they could also have a top lottery pick in those same years as well.
Marks later went on to describe how the Thunder have the upper hand:
Where the Thunder have an advantage over other high-spending teams is the surplus of 13 first-round picks (and inexpensive contracts) available to retool their roster. One of those first-round picks is unprotected in 2026 from the Clippers. The Thunder also have the right to swap firsts with a Paul George-less Clippers team in 2025 and 2027.
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Many of these picks go from this year all the way up until 2030, so it will be quite interesting to see how the Thunder roster will change and develop over the course of those years, as well as how successful OKC can truly be.
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