Stiles Points: OKC Thunder Have Earned Right Of Trade Deadline Flexibility

The Oklahoma City Thunder have earned the right to a flexible Trade Deadline, with plenty of options - both staying pat and making a move present viable options for OKC.

Thunder general manager Sam Presti speaks during an introductory press conference for the 2024 Thunder draft picks at Oklahoma Contemporary Arts Center in Oklahoma City, Saturday, June, 29, 2024. / SARAH PHIPPS/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK

Decisions are toughest to make when both options seem appealing. That is what the Oklahoma City Thunder face with the 2025 NBA Trade Deadline. The temptation of making a move in an attempt to bolster this championship-contending roster is inviting. However, the willpower to give this roster - which has not played a single game anywhere close to healthy yet despite its success - the ability to ride it out looks better by the game.

As the deadline looms in less than a week, this scribe doesn't envy the position that Thunder executive Sam Presti finds himself in. Sure, his ability to grow a beard and bank account is alluring but the decision to pounce on a trade offer and work the phones is not.

Ultimately, mark me in the camp of letting this team play out. The Trade Deadline this season for the Thunder is chasing the unobtainable.

There has never been a perfect NBA roster. There will never be a perfect collection of talent in the league's history. The game is not built around ironing out the best 15-man roster with no potholes in the road to a title. The game is built around paving a path with as few potholes as possible with the understanding that you may have to swerve every now and again.

For all the historical data points and the rare losses, are there aspects missing from this Thunder roster? Of course. Can Oklahoma City get better at the deadline? You betcha. The question of how though, is what leaves the more conservative approach seeming like the right one.

The Oklahoma City Thunder are at the start of its championship window, not the middle or end. For as many positive indicators as there have been, for a team at this stage to hoist the Larry O'Brien trophy would still be an anomaly in the history of the sport.

Perhaps the largest feather in the cap of standing pat is the inability to clearly idenify a need for this OKC Thunder team. Needs which will become obvious after a second playoff run, at said team the Thunder will still have the assets and motivation to make the change equipped with more information.

For all the clamoring about the Thunder needing more shooting and size, they will soon add a seven-footer that converts from 3-point land at a 37 percent clip. The longing for a more traditional power forward can be cured with Holmgren as well, deploying him next to Isaiah Hartenstein to close out games in the postseason could make for a matchup nightmare for the opposition.

Well, what about the lack of offense not driven by superstar Shai Gilgeous-Alexander? You guessed it, insert Holmgren. Not only has the Gonzaga product flashed a much-improved ability to get to the rim off the dribble this season (on a small sample size) but what he unlocks alongside Jalen Williams makes the Santa Clara's life easier being staggered with the second unit as well.

As maligned as Oklahoma City's offense has been, it still sits in the top ten, with the seventh most points per game and the sixth-best offensive rating in the league. To act as though Holmgren can not move the needle enough to push the Thunder's offense to a point where it can reliably lean on its historic defense to navigate the postseason is silly.

Then, it comes down to shooting. Sure, Aaron Wiggins, Cason Wallace, Isaiah Joe and company have not earned the right to mark them down as big-shot makers in the playoffs. In fact, their inability to splash in triples last summer got the Thunder ousted from the postseason entirely. However, is it out of the question that in this group's second-ever playoff run things will look better? Certainly not.

Enter the biggest name on the trade market as it relates to the Thunder: Brooklyn Nets forward Cam Johnson.

On paper, Johnson is a slam-dunk get for Oklahoma City. A player that is tried and true from beyond the arc in the playoffs, fits this team's identity on both ends and would not cost a King's ransom to get.

While if for some reason Presti called this scribe up for input, it would be a quick conversation advocating for the UNC product, it has to be mentioned that this is not as seamless of a move as it may appear.

For starters, Mark Daigneault's style of play on both ends has a growing track record of players needing time to adjust to before feeling comfortable in. It is hard to add in anyone to a moving train but especially with such stark differences in play style. Once again, this is where Holmgren comes in. Oklahoma City will already have to explore its rotation the entire back half of the season to see how to best maximize the second-year big man. Do they really want to add even more homework before the final exam?

Then, you get to the chemistry part of things. Johnson is frankly, a much better fit than Aaron Wiggins. A better shooter, defender and creator than the Maryland product while having a longer tracker record in big games. But Wiggins - the most common name in this trade package - has the system nailed to a tee and is beloved within the organization.

The same team that mourned the departure of Tre Mann all last season, sporting his practice jersey as if he left for the great beyond - which Charlotte might be the farm my childhood dog ran off to when she turned 16 of the NBA (RIP Mia) - the shockwaves of potentially losing Wiggins mid-season should not be minimized even though we look at professional sports through a business lens.

The NBA Trade Deadline is a game of whack-a-mole. Every time has a gopher or two peering out and are furiously attempting to harmer him back into the hole. Though, with each swing, new gophers sprout.

As you use the deadline to fix one issue, it leads to another and the difficult decision is weighing the cost-benefit of those potential problems from the quick-fix solution.

The Thunder are not the Suns, or any other team hankering for a move. Its first half of the season earns the right to flexibility. With either outcome being explainable and logical. So before the outcry begins over what Oklahoma City does - or doesn't do - remember that on Feb. 7 the Thunder will still be the favorites in the Western Conference.

Stiles Points

• Jalen Williams was pegged as an NBA All-Star for the first time in his career. He joins plenty of OKC Thunder representation.
• Thunder on SI went on Local Radio to discuss the NBA Trade Deadline and the Thunder's recent stretch.
• How the OKC Thunder can improve internally from an already great start.
• Mark Daigneault broke down what it is like for the OKC Thunder to face a zone defense.

Song of the Day: Movin' Out by Billy Joel

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