How Anthony Black Fits with the OKC Thunder
With the Oklahoma City Thunder entering the offseason, it’s officially time to time to switch gears to prospect evaluation mode.
And this year’s impending draft has plenty of players that can help bolster the OKC core.
No matter how unlikely it is Oklahoma City lands certain prospects, the Thunder Fit series will take a look at how they would fit with the current team’s configuration. And with a war chest of assets, you never know how far the front office could move up to acquire a player.
The next prospect up in the series is jumbo guard Anthony Black, who stood out as the best of the Arkansas’ five-star trio in his lone collegiate season.
Here’s how Black could fit alongside the rest of the Thunder core:
Offense
At 6-foot-7, Black is the next in line of jumbo playmakers with a knack for getting others involved, meaning he’s exactly Thunder general manager Sam Presti’s recent MO.
He’s not a one-of-one comparison, but he’s in the mold of Thunder guard Josh Giddey, and has been quoted saying he watches a lot of Giddey and Oklahoma City’s tape.
In 36 games with the Razorbacks, Black scored 12.8 points, grabbed 5.1 rebounds and dished out 3.9 assists per game while shooting 45 percent overall and 30 percent from beyond the arc. Simply put, he's a do-it-all guard-forward hybrid with a knack for making things happen.
Black seamlessly plugs into the Thunder group on paper. But his actual fit on-court could be a bit murkier. There’s only so much ball to go around, and despite being a solid off-ball cutter, he’s going to need the ball in his hands offensively to truly thrive and develop. With Giddey, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the emergence of Jalen Williams, it's going to be hard to come by a prolific amount of on-ball reps.
His 3-point shot is shaky to say the least, and he simply doesn’t offer much in the ways of spacing for the other Thunder starters. Which is fairly needed at this point.
At the end of the day, there just feels like a bit too much overlap and skill redundancy.
Defense
Defensively, Black works much better both on-paper and as an actual on-court fit.
He’s one of, if not the best, perimeter defenders in the class and a strong defensive playmaker, averaging 2.1 steals per contest.
Realistically, he’ll be able to guard one through three effectively. On-ball is likely where he’s at his best, with a sturdy base, active hands, great footwork and the ability to fight hard through screens.
Alongside Luguentz Dort and Chet Holmgren, Black would be a strong third defensive piece to give the opposition nightmares.
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