Potential Options for Oklahoma City in the Second Round

In recent mock drafts, both Jalen Pickett and Amari Bailey have been Thunder targets in the second round.

With each player being a guard, it seems as though many people believe Oklahoma City is looking to select a player that could handle the ball and create offense in the team’s second unit.

Hailing from Penn State, the 6-foot-4 Pickett has a back-to-the-basket style game that is very different from that of most modern guards. At 200 pounds, the New York native has plenty of strength to back down lighter defenders.

This season with the Nittany Lions, Pickett averaged a career-high 17.7 points, 7.4 rebounds and 6.6 assists. The all-around ability of the unconventional guard’s play style lends itself to OKC, who seems to covet players with a versatile skill set.

Pickett played five seasons in college, spending three with Siena before transferring to Penn State for his final two seasons. In 2023, the Aquinas Institute (NY) product led the Nittany Lions to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in over a decade.

Coming out of high school, Pickett was unranked on recruiting websites and held only one offer.

Bailey, on the other hand, was a 5-star prospect and one of the top 10 players in the 2022 high school class, according to 247Sports. The UCLA guard showed flashes of brilliance as a freshman with the Bruins, but got off to a slow start that left many wondering if the Chicago native would even enter the 2023 Draft.

Bailey and his family assured everyone that the highly touted prospect is committed to his decision to enter the NBA after a stellar performance in March Madness that helped lead UCLA to the Sweet 16. On the season, Bailey averaged 11.2 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.2 assists amd 1.1 steals.

At 6-foot-5 and 185 pounds, the former Bruin possesses a wealth of athleticism and is always a threat to throw down a monster dunk. When Bailey was playing at Sierra Canyon (CA) in high school, 247Sports’ Jerry Meyer compared the former McDonald’s All-American to talented NBA scorer Jordan Clarkson.

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