Donovan Mitchell to OKC Presents Benefits, Challenges to Roster

Donovan Mitchell is on the market, reportedly.

In an article on ESPN, the site listed some possible trades, which included the rising star making his way to Oklahoma City.

The trade sees OKC go all-in on win now mode. In order to do the trade, the Thunder would have to sell off a large swath of their draft capital.

Mitchell is a star, and would obviously put OKC in a position to succeed with him on the roster. However, the trade seems like a lot.

The ESPN trade slots Mitchell as the only piece for the Jazz, and the Thunder sending Tre Mann, Derrick Favors, JaMychal Green, Aleksej Pokusevski, three 2024 first round picks and two 2025 first round picks.

Now, while Mitchell in Oklahoma City is a bright shining piece, the Thunder have put years into building the roster they have now. However, in the trade the Thunder would avoid giving up too much of the young core.

Mann is the biggest loss of the group, but for Mitchell it’s a fair trade. If Mann remained through the trade he’d likely lose minutes as roles shift with the addition of another All-Star caliber guard.

Favors is just another bench depth piece for OKC, and his loss while hurting the center depth it’s not the biggest loss in the book. Sam Presti has said already Green will more than likely not remain on the Thunder’s roster, so his inclusion in the trade is not surprising.

Pokusevski is challenging to analyze. He’s had his ups and he’s had his fair share of downs. It’s not like Presti to end a project this soon, but to add an All-Star it may be needed. Pokusevski is a piece who could turn into a solid piece but OKC could be shifting into win now mode.

However, adding Mitchell presents some challenges. For one it would overload the Thunder lineup with guards. Which presents challenges with the starting five.

Chet Holmgren will play the five that is unchanged. However, the other four spots are where it gets interesting. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has his spot to pair with Mitchell two players of a caliber who can’t be placed on the bench. Lu Dort and Josh Giddey then both have proved to be high level players who could hold down starting spots.

Dort’s new contract could play a part in the minute distribution. It’s hard to play a contract of his size in a major role. Giddey though is entering his second year and already has proven he can play with the best in the league.

However, playing one at the four doesn’t seem doable, at least in the long term.

Someone will have to play off of the bench, which can be done, but will be hard to do long term with the current situation of the OKC roster.

Mitchell is one of the best players in the league without a doubt, but OKC could be in a position now to stay with the current young core and continue pushing forward.

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