Ron Holland Could Be the Perfect Swing For OKC Thunder

The young forward feels like the perfect mix of a sky high ceiling and a solid floor.

Mar 28, 2023; Houston, TX, USA; West forward Ron Holland (1) during the McDonald's All American Boy's high school basketball game at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports / Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Oklahoma City doesn’t have many holes heading into the offseason, as is the case for a handful of top teams throughout both conferences. The Thunder didn’t luck into the No. 1 seed in the NBA playoffs. This is a really good basketball team and looks to be even better with another offseason of growth and development. Now comes the fun part for Sam Presti and company. Fill in the holes and watch the team continue to rise to the top.

The Thunder have already improved tremendously in the first few weeks of the official offseason by adding two-time All-Defensive team member in Alex Caruso. From top to bottom, Oklahoma City has one of the deepest teams in the NBA and the entire group is still improving.

All eyes are now on the NBA Draft, which will take place this Thursday. This is the Thunder’s next chance to improve an already great team and continue to put the pieces together in building a championship roster. Of course, Oklahoma City could trade the pick for known talent, but there’s an underrated prospect that offers a high ceiling and a solid floor, too. Ron Holland reaching his full potential is a scary thought, but even if he never gets there, he still has extremely useful NBA traits that could help the Thunder immediately next season. Holland could be a perfect fit on this young team and would be a home run selection.

At 6-foot-8, he fits in perfectly with Oklahoma City’s core and can both play and guard up and down the lineup. His height would allow him to provide front court depth and his stout defense would help Chet Holmgren down low. Holland has so much promise and upside on the defensive end.

For the G League Ignite, he averaged 18.5 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 2.8 assists. Holland shot 47.4% from the floor. The only real red flag in his game is his outside jumper, where he shot just 23.9% from the 3-point line. His defense overrides any offensive concerns, though, as he averaged 2.1 steals and 1.1 blocks per game.

Holland could be an All-Star level talent someday. His mix of size, scoring and defense is impossible to teach and rare to have. But even if he’s not, his current traits can help the Thunder right away. He doesn’t have to score 20 points per game or carry the load on offense. All he has to do is play good defense and rebound the basketball. Playing with Oklahoma City’s impressive young core would assuredly make the game easier for him. He’d be able to focus on being a slasher and a play finisher until he’s ready to take on more offensively.

Who knows if Holland will slide to pick No. 12. The former five-star was once viewed as a Top 5 lock. But if he starts to slip, he shouldn’t fall past Oklahoma City. He would be the perfect player to walk away from the draft with.

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