Thunder Tracker: Cutting Olivier Sarr to Sign Melvin Frazier Jr.
This Oklahoma City Thunder tracker keeps you informed on the latest news and rumors surrounding the team throughout the 2021-22 regular season.
APR 6: FRAZIER IN, SARR OUT In a late season move, the Thunder reshuffled their two-way players. Oklahoma City signed Melvin Frazier Jr. to a Two-Way Contract with just three games remaining in the 2021-22 season.
Frazier (6-6, 210) split the 2021-22 season between the G League Iowa Wolves and Oklahoma City Blue, appearing in 50 games (36 starts) and averaging 13.1 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.46 steals in 30.2 minutes per game.
In a related move, Oklahoma City waived forward Olivier Sarr. This has to happen to clear the spot for Frazier on a two-way deal.
APR 5: TWO NEW 10-DAY GUYS On Tuesday, Oklahoma City added two new players to the roster via 10-day contracts. Both of these players brought on were members of the Thunder’s G League affiliate, the OKC Blue.
Both forward Georgios Kalaitzakis and guard Zavier Simpson joined the team prior to a matchup against the Portland Trail Blazers. Kalaitzakis (6-7, 192) made 31 appearances (two starts) with the Oklahoma City Blue this season and averaged 10.1 points, 3.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 19.6 minutes per game. Simpson (6-0, 190) played in 47 games (32 starts) in his second season with the Blue this year and averaged 12.7 points, 4.6 rebounds and 6.2 assists in 30.3 minutes per game.
APR 1: JAYLEN HOARD EARNS 10-DAY DEAL With a shortage of healthy players, the Thunder brought a familiar face back into the fold. Oklahoma City signed Jaylen Hoard to a 10-day contract, via the NBA’s Hardship Allowance
Hoard (6-8, 215) has played in 20 games with the Thunder over the 2020-22 seasons and averaged 5.8 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 16.1 minutes per game. A native of France, Hoard played in 39 games (25 starts) with the Oklahoma City Blue this year, averaging 10.1 points on 52.9 percent shooting from the field, 6.1 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 23.9 minutes per game.
MAR 28: THUNDER STAR OUT FOR SEASON On Monday night prior to a contest against the Portland Trail Blazers, big news broke for the Oklahoma City Thunder. Over the past few weeks, Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had been experiencing ankle soreness after recovering from an injury that kept him out for an entire month leading up to the NBA All-Star Break.
With the soreness continuing to give him issues, a collaborative decision was made to shut Gilgeous-Alexander down for the remainder of the season.Through 56 games this season, the Thunder star produced 24.5 points, 5.9 assists and 5.0 rebounds per contest.
MAR 28: ANOTHER SEASON ENDING INJURY On Monday afternoon, the Thunder announced that Darius Bazley would miss the remainder of the season with a non-displaced tibial plateau fracture in his right knee. As such, he will miss the remaining eight games of the 2021-22 season.
In what was a positive season for Bazley, he finished averaging 10.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.0 block through 69 games. He's yet another player to get scratched for the rest of the season as the roster continues to get depleted.
MAR 26: END OF ROOKIE GIDDEY On Saturday night before the Thunder’s game against the Nuggets, Coach Mark Daigneault announced that Josh Giddey will miss the remainder of his rookie season with a hip injury.
Giddey hadn’t played in several weeks, but this officially ends his season. He ends his rookie campaign averaging 12.5 points, 7.8 rebounds and 6.4 assists per contest.
MAR 8: SURGERY ENDING SEASONS On Tuesday afternoon, the Thunder put out a press release put out by the Thunder indicated that Lu Dort, Ty Jerome and Mike Muscala would miss the remainder of the 2021-22 season. All three are expected to be ready to return to full action by the start of the 2022-23 season.
Dort underwent a successful procedure to address a labrum tear in his left shoulder.
Jerome underwent a successful procedure on Tuesday as well to address a sports hernia.
Muscala underwent a successful arthroscopic procedure and additional lateral ligament repair on his right ankle.
MAR 3: GIDDEY WINS AGAIN Once again, Josh Giddey has won Western Conference Rookie of the Month, this time for February. He had the best month of his career, that included a variety of accolades outlined by the Thunder in a press release.
Giddey appeared in 10 games (all starts) for the Thunder during the month and averaged 16.3 points, 8.7 rebounds and 7.7 assists in 33.4 minutes per game. Giddey becomes the ninth player since 2000 to earn the first four Rookie of the Month honors, joining Luka Dončić, Karl-Anthony Towns, Andrew Wiggins, Damian Lillard, Blake Griffin, Chris Paul, LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony, and is the 13th player all-time since the awards inception in the 1981-82 season.
His rebounds and assists led all rookies for the month, while his points ranked third. Giddey was one of only four NBA players to average at least 15 points, eight rebounds and seven assists in the month, joining Giannis Antetokounmpo, Luka Dončić and Nikola Jokić.
Giddey recorded three consecutive triple-doubles from Feb. 12 – Feb. 16, joining Oscar Robertson as the only rookies in NBA history to record three straight triple-doubles. On Feb. 14 at the Knicks, he posted a career-high 28 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists, becoming just the fourth player to record a triple-double in their Madison Square Garden debut.
He led all rookies with four games of 10 or more assists and tallied five double-doubles, tied for the most by a rookie in February. Giddey leads all rookies with 16 double-doubles this season.
FEB 23: SGA IS BACK After missing an entire month of action with an ankle injury, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is officially healthy and back in the lineup. Coach Mark Daigneault confirmed this at practice on Wednesday, saying SGA would play the following night against the Suns.
On the season, Gilgeous-Alexander has been Oklahoma City's best player. Despite being just 23 years old, he's produced 22.7 points, 5.5 assists and 4.7 rebounds per contest.
FEB 21: SARR FILLS TWO-WAY VOID Following Aaron Wiggins being promoted to the 15-man roster, there became a void in Oklahoma City. The Thunder would need to find a player to fill their second two-way roster spot alongside Lindy Waters.
On Monday afternoon, Olivier Sarr was given the opportunity to fill that spot, being signed to a two-way deal by the Thunder. The 6-foot-11 center has appeared in 23 games (two starts) for the OKC Blue this season, producing 7.7 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 15.7 minutes per game. Prior to this deal, Sarr had signed two 10-day contracts with the Thunder per the NBA’s COVID-Related Hardship Allowance and played in two games where he averaged 2.0 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.0 blocks in 7.0 minutes per game.
FEB 10: TWO-WAY DEAL SWAP Up to this point in the season, Paul Watson Jr. had been on a two-way deal in Oklahoma City. However, his age and lack of production resulted in him ultimately being waived and his two-way deal given to another prospect.
READ MORE: Trade Deadline Tracker
Replacing Watson Jr. going forward is Lindy Waters III, who grew up in Oklahoma and played college ball at Oklahoma State University. Showcasing his talent with the OKC Blue this season, he earned a promotion and can now split time between the G League and NBA.
FEB 10: TRADE DEADLINE WRAP-UP Following a fairly quiet trade deadline, the Oklahoma City Thunder essentially had the same roster as before. It was a deadline in which increasing the value of future draft capital was prioritized.
OKC did acquire KZ Okpala from the Heat, but he was waived the day after the deadline. Now, there's an open roster spot for the Thunder, as Mamadi Diakite was waived to make this trade happen.
FEB 2: GIDDEY WINS THIRD-STRAIGHT ROOKIE OF THE MONTH AWARD Once again, Thunder rookie Josh Giddey has won the NBA’s Western Conference Rookie of the Month award. He’s won the award every month of the season thus far.
Giddey appeared in 14 games (all starts) in January, averaging 13.3 points, a team-high 8.6 rebounds and 6.1 assists in 33.2 minutes per game on the month. He collects his third consecutive Rookie of the Month award and becomes the first Thunder player to earn the honor three times.
JAN 31: A THIRD 10-DAY FOR DIAKITE As soon as his second 10-day deal expired, the Thunder signed Diakite to yet another contract. A high energy forward, he has appeared in eight games for the Thunder this season and averaged 3.0 points and 3.3 rebounds in 11.6 minutes per game.
JAN 21: DIAKITE EARNS ANOTHER 10-DAY As the trade deadline inches closer, the Thunder announced on Friday that they have signed forward Mamadi Diakite to another 10-day contract. He's appeared in four games for the Thunder this season, averaging 3.5 points and 2.3 rebounds in 11.8 minutes per game.
The 6-foot-9 forward is extremely versatile and would be an excellent option for a two-way spot in OKC if one were to open up over the next month. With a chance Aaron Wiggins gets converted to a full-time deal at some point and Paul Watson Jr. not showing much promise thus far, Diakite could have a real shot at that happening.
JAN 11: WELCOME BACK DIAKITE Forward Mamadi Diakite was signed by the Thunder on a 10-day contract on Tuesday. A young prospect that the front office has monitored for a while now, he was impressive in training camp with the Thunder but suffered a hip injury that ultimately resulted in him not making the team.
The 6-foot-9 big appeared in two preseason games for the Thunder this season, producing 4.5 points, 2.0 rebounds and 1.00 block in 12.2 minutes per game. He appeared in 14 games (one start) last season with the NBA Champion Milwaukee Bucks and averaged 3.1 points and 2.4 rebounds in 10.1 minutes per contest.
JAN 11: POKU TO BLUE As the Thunder begin a string of road games, the team announced that forward Aleksej Pokusevski has been sent to the OKC Blue. This will be a great opportunity for him to get valuable G League minutes.
Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said Tuesday afternoon that this was a move that has been planned since before Christmas, as the Blue have a dense schedule ahead. It’s expected that Pokusevski could spend at least a week in the G League.
JAN 9: SARR GETS SECOND CHANCE Over the past few weeks, the Thunder have given a variety of players a chance on 10-day hardship contracts. These were given out to fill the depleted roster due to players in health and safety protocols.
Each player that has earned a 10-day contract to this point is a member of their G League affiliate, the OKC Blue. Rob Edwards, Scotty Hopson, Olivier Sarr and Jaylen Hoard have all spent time with the Thunder through this unique time.
However, the only player to earn a second 10-day contract to this point is Sarr. On Sunday morning, the team announced that he was being signed for another ten days, which would give them center depth over the next week or more. Thunder coach Mark Daigneault says that this signing was to directly fill the minutes of Isaiah Roby, who is currently in health and safety protocols.
JAN 4: THUNDER MAKE TRADE WITH JAZZ In a move that saved Utah money, OKC absorbed the contract of Miye Oni and got a 2028 second rounder for doing so. In a subsequent move, the Thunder waived Gabriel Deck to make the transaction possible.
Now that Oklahoma City has an open roster spot, it will have much more flexibility the remainder of the season.
JAN 2: GIDDEY MAKES HISTORY In a Sunday night game against the Dallas Mavericks, Thunder rookie Josh Giddey became the youngest player in history to record a triple-double. He finished with with 17 points, 14 assists and 13 rebounds in the loss.
Giddey also became the youngest player to ever lead all players in points, rebounds and assists in a game. It was a breakout game for the 19-year-old, stepping up to the plate in the absence of Gilgeous-Alexander.
JAN 1: GILGEOUS-ALEXANDER ENTERS PROTOCOLS On the first day of the new year, SGA entered health and safety protocols. The Thunder's best player, this will be a huge blow for the team.
To this point in the season, OKC is 0-4 without Gilgeous-Alexander in the lineup. As such, Josh Giddey will carry an even heavier offensive load in his absence.
DEC 28: JOSH GIDDEY, FAVORS AND COACH DAIGNEAULT ENTER PROTOCOLS On Tuesday morning, Josh Giddey became the latest Thunder player to enter health and safety protocols, bringing the OKC total to five players.
Shortly after, Thunder coach Mark Daigneault joined Giddey. In his absence, assistant Mike Wilks will serve as acting head coach for OKC.
Later that day, center Derrick favors also entered health and safety protocols, bringing the Thunder's number of absent players to six.
DEC 27: MORE PLAYERS ENTER HEALTH AND SAFETY PROTOCOLS Less than 24 hours after Bazley and Mann entered health and safety protocols, Aleksej Pokusevski and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl both joined them.
At that point, Oklahoma City was down four players due to this. Expect at least two players to be signed to hardship exceptions to help fill out the roster in the meantime.
DEC 26: START OF HEALTH AND SAFETY PROTOCOLS For the first time this season, the Thunder have entered a player into COVID-19 health and safety protocols. Darius Bazley was listed on Sunday's injury report as out due to this.
This is the first time all season as well as last season that a member of the Thunder has missed time due to health and safety protocols. Now, Oklahoma City will look to be cautious to avoid more players around the locker room from also entering these protocols.
Shortly after, Thunder rookie Tre Mann was also announced as out due to health and safety protocols.
DEC 18: BAZLEY TO BENCH Prior to OKC's Saturday night matchup against the LA Clippers, Thunder coach Mark Daigneault announced a starting lineup change. Darius Bazley would be moved to the bench, as rookie Aaron Wiggins was slotted into the starting lineup.
This wasn't a disciplinary move according to Daigneault, the team would just like to see what Bazley looks like off the bench. “This is not an impulsive decision," said Daigneault. "This is something we’ve discussed. We can’t afford to not see players in different circumstances.”
Bazley had started in every. game he played this season.
DEC 14: POKU TO BLUE The Thunder announced on Tuesday morning that Aleksej Pokusevski had been assigned to the OKC Blue. He will be joined by Theo Maledon and Isaiah Roby.
This is great timing for Polusevski to spend some time in the G League with the light schedule the Thunder have this week. For a player his age, any experience is crucial in development. In 26 games with the Thunder, Pokusevski is averaging 4.5 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 14.8 minutes per game.
DEC 2: SGA OUT CONCUSSED It was announced by the Thunder on Thursday that their best player in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has entered concussion protocol and will be out for the foreseeable future. Gilgeous-Alexander sustained a concussion following two common fouls late in the fourth quarter (1:29 and 1:13 marks) of Wednesday's game against the Houston Rockets and he has been placed in the NBA’s concussion protocol.
Per the NBA’s Concussion Policy, he will go through a series of steps designed to ensure an athlete exhibits symptom-free behavior before resuming basketball activities. There is no predetermined timetable to complete the protocol, as each injury and player is different and recovery time can vary in each case.
DEC 1: GIDDEY OUT WITH FLU Thunder rookie Josh Giddey has the flu and will miss the Thunder's next two games against the Houston Rockets and Memphis Grizzlies. Oklahoma City coach Mark Daigneault says that both Giddey and Derrick Favors are currently sidelined with this sickness.
This is a huge blow for the Thunder, as Giddey is one of the team's best players at 19 years old. To this point in the season, he's been the team's best facilitator and one of the best rebounders as well.
NOV 18: AN INTERIM COACH Thunder coach Mark Daigneault began practice on Thursday by stating he will not be traveling with the team on their upcoming road trip as he and his wife are expecting their child to be born any day now.
In his absence, which shouldn't be more than a handful of games, assistant coach Dave Bliss will take over as acting head coach. Oklahoma City's next three games on this road trip are against the Milwaukee Bucks, Boston Celtics and Atlanta Hawks.
NOV 11: MALEDON SENT DOWN After starting in nearly 50 games at point guard last season as a rookie, Thunder guard Theo Maledon has struggled in the 2021-22 season. As such, he has been assigned to the OKC Blue to get some reps in the G League.
This is a move that should help him build confidence. To this point in the season, he's averaged just 2.2 points and 1.3 assists, while shooting 20.6% from the floor and committing 1.2 turnovers per contest. On Friday, the Blue and Thunder both play on the same day, meaning Maledon will likely play for both teams in consecutive games.
Along with Maledon, Kit Krejci and Isaiah Roby have also been re-assigned to the Blue temporarily.
OCT 29: MANN TO THE BLUE Tre Mann has been assigned to the Thunder's G League affiliate, the OKC Blue, the team announced on Friday. This will be great experience for the rookie guard, as he'll have the opportunity to gain confidence and experience.
To this point in the season through five games, he's averaged 4.8 points in 10.6 minutes per game while hitting 33.3% of his 3-point attempts.
OCT 25: PICKING UP OPTIONS The Thunder announced that the team has exercised contract options for the 2022-23 season for forward Darius Bazley, wing Aleksej Pokusevski and guard Ty Jerome.
Bazley has appeared in 119 career games (67 starts) with OKC averaging 9.4 points and 5.6 rebounds per game. Although an inconsistent producer, he's a prospect the Thunder trust and currently have slated as the starting power forward.
Jerome has played in 65 games with the Thunder and the Suns through just over two NBA seasons, averaging 7.0 points, 2.1 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game. Known for being a shooter, the guard has converted on 38.3% of his shots from deep in his career.
Pokusevski was selected with the No. 17 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft and has since spent time with the Thunder both as a starter and off the bench. He has career averages of 7.9 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game. A 7-footer, he's a very raw prospect with a ton of upside as a long-term project.
