Which Bench Play-Makers Could the OKC Thunder Trade For?

Oklahoma City seems to have a play-maker sized hole in its roster, and a few talents around the league could plug it.

Nov 15, 2024; New York, New York, USA; Brooklyn Nets guard Dennis Schroder (17) brings the ball up court against the New York Knicks during the second quarter at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images / Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Through a handful of games, the Oklahoma City Thunder’s offense hasn’t packed the same punch it did last season.

Fifteen games in, they rank No. 11 in offensive rating (113.3), opposed to their No. 3 rating last season at 118.3. The defense — which hasn’t seen the same juice in its last two games — will assuredly right itself. And getting players like Isaiah Hartenstein, Isaiah Joe and, eventually, Chet Holmgren back from injury will certainly help.

But for now, it seems the team has a play-maker sized hole on its bench unit.

Despite its guard-heavy lineups, the Thunder don’t have a player, sans-Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, that’s capable of creating advantages at the drop of a hat. Jalen Williams can do near-everything, but doesn’t have the first step or burst necessary to create leagues of space at any given moment, instead relying on screens, high-flying athleticism or tough shot-making to get his.

Players like Cason Wallace, Alex Caruso, Lu Dort, Ajay Mitchell and more face a similar conundrum, able to find gaps here and there, but largely unable to speed by defenders at will, or pass the ball well enough to create serious advantages in OKC’s favor. 

All this and more has led to some offensive stagnancy whenever Gilgeous-Alexander hits the bench.

In short: the addition of a true play-maker might do wonders for the team’s offense and overall efficiency. Here are a few options the Thunder could consider on the trade market, with its bevy of future picks:

Dennis Schroder, Nets

A reunion between the Thunder and Schroder could be in order, given the German’s success both previously in OKC and this season.

A spindly combo guard capable of running point or moonlighting as an off-ball shooter, Schroder continues to go under the radar as a legitimate guard in this league, this season averaging 17.8 points and 6.5 assists per game for Brooklyn.

In OKC, he could fill out the bench unit as he did before, finishing and runner-up in Sixth Man of the Year voting just before the team's rebuild. He’s also seen success alongside Gilgeous-Alexander already. Perhaps most importantly, he’s on a trade-friendly contract on a team needing to offload talent to land a top draft pick.

TJ McConnell, Pacers

Averaging 4.2 assists in just 18 minutes per game, McConnell is one of the best bang-for-your-buck passers in the entire NBA. He’s averaged over five assists to 1.6 turnovers per game for his career, using his quickness and savviness to set up teammates, and get his own on decent efficiency, too.

The catch: he’s a valuable member of a talented Indiana core.

With their own contention in mind, the Pacers would likely want more physical assets in return for McConnell opposed to future firsts, making this trade a bit murkier. Still, OKC has some of the better trade chips in the league.

Malcolm Brogdon, Wizards

Brogdon has yet to find his footing with Washington yet due to injury, but just a season ago averaged nearly 16 points and 5.5 assists for the down Trail Blazers. At his peak with Indiana, he averaged over 21 points and nearly six assists to just two turnovers.

While he, of course, wouldn’t be able to see those same numbers in a talented Thunder core, he could be a worthy reclamation project for OKC, given they’re in win-now mode, and Washington continues to look for ways to vault higher in the NBA Draft.

---

Want to join the discussion? Like Thunder on SI on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest Thunder news. You can also meet the team behind the coverage.