Thunder Draft: History of the No. 50 Overall Pick

With its final pick of the 2023 NBA Draft, Oklahoma City will select at No. 50 overall. Who has landed in this spot in years past?

The Oklahoma City Thunder currently has three selections in the 2023 NBA Draft. One is in the lottery at No. 12 overall, while the other two will fall in the second round.

With the second Thunder selection of round two, the team will pick at No. 50 overall. Even in the deepest of drafts, this isn’t often a range that produces long-term NBA talents. While it can happen late in the second round, these selections are generally more upside swings or draft-and-stash picks.

To further validate how difficult it is to find contributors late in the second round, let’s take a look at the players picked at No. 50 overall during the past decade.

• 2022: Matteo Spagnolo
• 2021: Filip Petrusev
• 2020: Skylar Mays
• 2019: Jarrell Brantley
• 2018: Alize Johnson
• 2017: Mathias Lessort
• 2016: Georges Niang
• 2015: Marcus Eriksson
• 2014: Alec Brown
• 2013: James Ennis

While several of these players did play at least one year at the NBA level, it’s mostly been a selection that hasn’t produced long-term talent. As of last season, only three of these players were true NBA talents. If anyone would be able to find value at this pick, it’s Thunder GM Sam Presti. It wouldn’t be the first time he lands a contributor late in the second round.

Given there’s a roster crunch currently in Oklahoma City, it also wouldn’t be all that surprising if the Thunder traded this pick away for a future second rounder. It’s all about extracting value from every asset.

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