Three Potential Offseason Trade Targets for the OKC Thunder

After falling in the Western Conference Semifinals to the Dallas Mavericks, Oklahoma City has the assets to fill some of the gaps on its roster over the offseason.

Apr 9, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Washington Wizards forward Deni Avdija (8) shoots / Matt Blewett-USA TODAY Sports

This season, Sam Presti and the Oklahoma City Thunder elected not to make a splash move at the trade deadline.

Instead, OKC traded for veteran role player Gordon Hayward, who averaged just 5.3 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 26 games with the Thunder.

With Hayward failing to make an impact for the Thunder and eventually getting benched in the playoffs, many observers began to scrutinize Presti for not making a bigger move at the trade deadline to fill some of the holes in the team's roster.

While this may seem like a misstep by Oklahoma City's front office, especially coming off of a loss to the Dallas Mavericks who added PJ Washington and Daniel Gafford at the trade deadline, OKC had always planned to take its current core into the postseason before making changes to the roster.

Now that the Thunder have made a playoff arrival, the team's front office will likely be more aggressive over the offseason to try and fix some of the roster's deficiencies.

Here are three players OKC could target in a trade this summer.

Deni Avdija

Listed at 6-foot-9 and 210 pounds, Washington Wizards forward Deni Avdija has a skill set that would seemingly work well in Mark Daigneault's system.

Last season, the Beit Zera, Israel, product averaged 14.7 points, 7.2 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game while shooting 50.6% from the field and 37.4% from beyond the arc. Avdija's size and rebounding ability makes him the perfect fit at forward next to Thunder center Chet Holmgren.

If Avdija can continue to shoot well from 3-point range, he would be a more reliable option for the Oklahoma City's offense than a player like Josh Giddey, who struggles from deep. While Avdija isn't as good of a playmaker as Giddey, he provides better spacing and rebounding ability for OKC's offense.

Still just 23-years-old after four seasons in the NBA, Avdija has enough professional experience to help the Thunder in the postseason but is still young enough to fit in the team's current timeline.

Cam Johnson

If the Thunder are looking to acquire a solid wing scorer over the offseason, Brooklyn Nets forward Cam Johnson may be Presti's target.

Listed at 6-foot-8, Johnson averaged 13.4 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game during the 2023-24 season. The North Carolina product is a 39.2% career 3-point shooter and knocked down 39.1% of his triples last year.

With good positional size, solid perimeter shot making ability and decent defensive acuman, Johnson would be a helpful addition to Daigneault's squad, which needed more consistent shooting from its role players in the postseason.

In 2021, Johnson was a key piece of the Phoenix Suns' rotation when the team made the NBA Finals, ultimately falling to the Milwaukee Bucks.

Isaiah Stewart

If the Thunder's front office is looking to add toughness and physicality to the roster, Detroit Pistons forward Isaiah Stewart is a solid option.

Listed at 6-foot-8 and 250 pounds, Stewart averaged 10.9 points, 6.6 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game last season while shooting 48.7% from the field and 38.3% from beyond the arc.

Stewart's style of play is very physical as the four-year veteran uses his strength on the interior but still has the touch to be a solid shooter from 3-point range. Even though the Thunder play with great energy, they don't have a tough, imposing player like Stewart on the roster.

With the ability to stretch the floor and grab rebounds, Stewart would fill one of OKC's glaring holes while fitting well within Daigneault's system.

---

Want to join the discussion? Like Inside the Thunder on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest Thunder news. You can also meet the team behind the coverage.