Former First-Round Pick Shines for OKC Thunder in Limited Preseason Minutes

Zhaire Smith turned in a solid performance in limited minutes against the Indiana Pacers.

Oct 13, 2026; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Zhaire Smith (40) runs down the court against the Indiana Pacers during the second half at Paycom Center. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Oklahoma City Thunder seem to have one of the NBA's best scouting departments.

OKC has managed to find a handful of talented players across multiple NBA Draft classes and make a few key free agent signings. Isaiah Hartenstein is Sam Presti's most notable free agent signing, but the team also inked Isaiah Joe to a contract after Philadelphia waived the former second-round pick in Oct. 2022.

Joe turned out to be an excellent addition for the Thunder before eventually being traded to Detroit.

Four years later, Oklahoma City may have found another former 76ers draft pick who could jump start his career with the Thunder.

OKC added 2018 first-round pick Zhaire Smith to the team's training camp roster after Smith played for the OKC Blue in 2025-26 and the Thunder's 2026 Summer League team.

Smith spent two seasons with Philadelphia, but dealt with injuries and other health issues that caused the Texas Tech product to appear in just 13 NBA games across the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons. In those games, Smith averaged 3.7 points and 1.2 rebounds while shooting 37.8% from the field and 31.6% from 3-point range.

Following the 2019-20 season, Smith wasn't on a roster until the 2023-24 campaign, when he played for the Cleveland Charge, the Cavaliers' G League affiliate.

After a stint with the Texas Legends, Dallas' G League team, Smith joined the OKC Blue, where he averaged 20.9 points, 5.2 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.7 steals while shooting 57.7% from the field and 45.1% from beyond the arc in 33 regular season games.

Smith turned in another encouraging performance during the Thunder's preseason game against the Indiana Pacers on Tuesday, Oct. 13. In five minutes off the bench, Smith tallied seven points, a rebound and an assist while shooting 3-of-3 from the field and 1-of-1 from deep.

The 27-year-old finished as a +2 in the box score of the Thunder's 114-112 win against Indiana.

While Smith played limited minutes, his solid showing is another indicator that the wing could be an intriguing piece for OKC.

Oklahoma City has an open roster spot, and could add Smith to a standard contract. The Thunder could also elect to give Smith a two-way deal if one of the team's current two-way players is awarded a standard contract.

The most likely outcome, though, appears to be Smith starring for the OKC Blue once again if he isn't picked up by another team.