NBA Draft: Would Magic, Thunder Trade Top Picks?

Some movement at the top of the NBA Draft?

Jeremy Brener | May 26, 2022

NBA Draft: Would Magic, Thunder Trade Top Picks? /

The Orlando Magic and Oklahoma City Thunder find themselves at the top of the 2022 NBA Draft, but they might not stay at Nos. 1 and 2 respectively.

Jabari Smith Paolo Banchero Chet Holmgren

Top 3

John Hammond

Chet Holmgren, Jabari Smith

While it's hard to see the Magic trade down from No. 1, a trade scenario from Bleacher Report could be exactly the right deal to make.

In the deal, the Thunder feel strongly enough about Chet Holmgren or Jabari Smith that it doesn't want to risk the Magic taking him, so Oklahoma City trades Nos. 2 & 12 to Orlando for Nos. 1 & 32.

It seems funny, but there's a strategy Orlando's front office can play here. If the Magic can get a good read on general manager Sam Presti and the Oklahoma City front office and threaten to take its top choice, this deal makes sense. It has shades of the 2017 NFL Draft, when the San Francisco 49ers tricked the Chicago Bears to trade up one spot to take Mitchell Trubisky despite not showing interest in any quarterback.

Jamahl Mosley

However, in this scenario, the Magic and Thunder are looking at the same guy. If the Magic don't have a particular preference between Holmgren and Smith, this deal is worth it for Orlando. The Magic still get a Top 2 guy while also adding another lottery pick.

The deal is worth it for OKC if it significantly favors one player over another and if they are willing to move down 20 spots in the draft for it. However, with the two players really close to one another, it's hard to see a deal like this materialize.

Published May 26, 2022

JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.