NBA Odds: Thunder Holds Third-Best Odds to be Joel Embiid's Next Team

Former Oklahoma City Thunder guard James Harden has been in the news for trades plenty over the past few years. This offseason, he seemed primed to be traded away from the Philadelphia 76ers, and now reports say he will be staying.

With this, the 76ers are potentially the next team to have a firesale, as their championship window could rapidly close.

The 76ers star center, Joel Embiid, could want out and be moved to a new team, as he recently changed his social media profile to remove the location "Philadelphia."

With speculation circling the 76ers, odds for Embiid's next team have been released, and Bookies gave the Thunder the third-best (+750) odds to land the reigning MVP.

The Thunder trails the New York Knicks (+600) to be Embiid's next non-76ers team.

Of course, the Thunder will be roped into these conversations anytime a star player might want out of their current team. The team has the most draft capital in the entire NBA stacked on top of one of the best young cores.

A player of the caliber of Embiid could catapult the Thunder into the next tier of contenders in the league. Pairing him alongside young stars in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Josh Giddey, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren could benefit all sides.

However, the Thunder -- and general manager Sam Presti in specific -- has been adamant that the team won't be skipping any steps in their rebuild. This includes accelerating the timeline for the team to become contenders.

Though the Thunder would be roped alongside the best teams in the league if it decided to make a move for another superstar player, it would be at the expense of the team not having a fair shot to display its potential and make a payoff arrival.

A potential trade for Embiid would be shortsighted and go against the Thunder not taking any shortcuts to develop what could become an extended championship window just to compete a few years early.

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