Why This Trade Makes Sense For The OKC Thunder

With 19 first-round picks to their name through 2027, the Oklahoma City Thunder do not really need more draft picks, which is why acquiring Josh Green and Trey Burke is even better for them. The Thunder were picked to finish near the bottom of the league standings this season, but once again, they have proved everyone wrong and are currently 4 games back from the Mavericks for the 8-seed in the West. 

There is still plenty of basketball yet to be played and the Thunder could still ultimately miss the playoffs, but quite honestly, their front-office probably does not really care. This season is not important in the grand scheme of things because it is basically a “test” year. 

While every team wants to win games and be competitive, the goal this season for the Oklahoma City Thunder’s management is definitely to get their core guys in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Darius Bazley and Luguentz Dort more playing time and experience, but also use this season as a “trial” year to see who can play alongside them moving forward. 

There is a lot of young talent on this team and some older, more experienced players who are currently playing this season with the Thunder in hopes to land a long-term contract moving forward. This is why OKC has been so competitive this year and honestly, this philosophy has worked for them to this point! 

George Hill is not going to be a part of this organization long-term, so why not try to move him for some draft picks or even better, some young talents like Trey Burke and Josh Green? Not only could Trey Burke be a solid rotational player for the Thunder this season, but moving forward, could be a really solid back-up point guard behind SGA. 

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As for Green, he is a very undeveloped prospect and has plenty of room to still grow before he is ready to consistently play at the NBA level, which is why the Thunder could be highly interested in him. They are in no rush in terms of getting the most out of their players and have some kind of a “long-term plan” which is why they would be willing to be patient with Green and develop him in the G-League. After all, he is a first-round talent that could grow into something special. 

This is a great trade for the Thunder, even though they do not get any draft picks, and they should be more than willing to trade George Hill to the Dallas Mavericks if they can receive this kind of value.