Will Flawed OKC Thunder Be Buyers at the NBA Trade Deadline?

After an 8-12 stumble to start the season, the Oklahoma City Thunder had finally found their groove. The team had bounced back to win 20 of 28 games heading into a Jan. 27 matchup against the Detroit Pistons.

Midway through the third quarter, Andre Roberson tore a patellar tendon on a backdoor lob attempt, and all the progress Oklahoma City had made came undone.

From Dec. 1 until that moment, the Thunder were 14-0 when their starting five of Roberson, Russell Westbrook, Paul George, Carmelo Anthony and Steven Adams played. The defense, which had been a strength of the team all season, was suffocating at times. Many of the knots in the offense had come untangled. They even dropped 148 points in Cleveland.

Since losing its defensive ace for the rest of the season, OKC has regressed. The injury occurred in the first contest of a grueling stretch—five games in seven nights and scattered across three different time zones. The team is now in the midst of a four-game losing streak heading into a Tuesday night showdown in Oakland against the Golden State Warriors.

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Thunder general manager Sam Presti engineered bold offseason moves in the hopes of competing with Golden State. Ownership unlocked the bank vault to make it happen by agreeing to a payroll that could include nearly $25 million in luxury tax this season.

As noted by Bleacher Report's Eric Pincus, there is already skepticism about Thunder ownership's willingness to pay the price of keeping this team together. Oklahoma City is looking at a total cost of up to $300 million to run this team back next season. The 30-24 Thunder enter Tuesday 3.5 games out of the No. 3 seed in the West but also two games out of ninth.

Team sources have long pushed back against the narrative that the team is unwilling to spend. Trading for Anthony, who is likely under contract for $27.9 million next season, was an indication that management is ready to pay a premium while Westbrook is in his prime. The plan all along was to save its highest-spending years, which will include punitive repeater taxes, for now. It was originally envisioned to pay that cost with Kevin Durant on the team, but OKC seems prepared to do it with Anthony and George instead.

The Thunder may have to spend even more than originally planned, though. They were already in need of bench reinforcements, but suddenly they need to come up with a solution to replace Roberson as well.

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Coach Billy Donovan has turned to 19-year-old rookie Terrance Ferguson for now, and the results have been dreadful. His 2.8 points per game are buoyed largely by a 24-point outburst against the Lakers in early January. In five games since replacing Roberson, he has scored only two points and has missed all four of his field-goal attempts. The Thunder have been a stunning 37.9 points worse per 100 possessions with him on the floor over the last five games.

A midseason shake-up is needed. The challenge Presti faces is to cobble together a package that actually moves the needle.

Offseason swaps to acquire George and Anthony depleted the Thunder's treasure chest. Oklahoma City traded future first-round picks in previous deals for Enes Kanter and Jerami Grant. It can't trade another first-rounder until at least 2022. The Thunder have all their own second-round picks available to deal, including a conditional 2018 second-rounder from Boston. Oklahoma City gets that pick if Boston finishes with one of the five best records in the league.

Second-year guard Alex Abrines ($5.7 million) and veteran Patrick Patterson ($5.2 million) own the largest salaries among players likely available. Kyle Singler's $4.7 million salary could be useful stuffing to make trade math work, but another team would also have to absorb his $5 million salary next season. Several sub-$2 million prospects are also available, including Ferguson, Grant, Josh Huestis and Dakari Johnson.

The Thunder have already been linked to Memphis' Tyreke Evans. Tim Bontemps of the Washington Post reported their interest in Avery Bradley of the L.A. Clippers. Both wing players could fill immediate needs while carrying no salary commitment after this season.

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There are other options as well, which the Thunder have likely investigated. It's possible to formulate working trades using some combination of the players mentioned above and draft picks. A few of the more interesting possibilities:

Jonathon Simmons, Orlando Magic: The former San Antonio Spurs swingman checks a few boxes for the Thunder. He's under contract for next season, but he's at a relatively low cost of $6 million. He averaged 15.3 points per game versus Golden State in the Western Conference Finals last season. The Magic could be open to moving him as part of their ongoing renovation.

Norman Powell, Toronto Raptors: The Thunder reportedly sought Powell as part of a package for Serge Ibaka at one point. Despite signing a four-year, $42 million extension with Toronto in October, Powell has fallen out of Dwane Casey's rotation at times. Because of arcane salary-cap rules, any trade for Powell would be difficult without enlisting another team as a salary repository.

Courtney Lee, New York Knicks: The Knicks guard has hit nearly 42 percent of his three-point attempts this season and has played in 50 career playoff games. However, Lee is owed nearly $25 million over the next two seasons. Unless the Thunder feel Lee is the perfect fit, they may go another route instead.

Marcus Smart, Boston Celtics: The Celtics are reportedly shopping Smart, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski. The former Oklahoma State star will be a restricted free agent this summer, and the Celtics may be concerned about the cost of re-signing him. Oklahoma City doesn't have a first-round pick available and would likely have to inject itself into a multiteam trade to get him. Like Lee, the long-term cost could turn the Thunder off.

Rodney Hood, Utah Jazz: The Thunder have shown interest in the soon-to-be restricted free agent, according to Tony Jones of the Salt Lake Tribune. The 6'8" wing has hit nearly 39 percent of his three-point attempts this season, but defense has never been his strong suit. Still, he could be serviceable for the rest of the season, and the team can worry about his offseason market later.

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Patching up the wing position could cost the Thunder frontcourt assets and open up a need there. Sean Deveney of Sporting News reported that Oklahoma City has interest in Hawks center Dewayne Dedmon. Other potential targets include Suns center Alex Len and Jazz big man Ekpe Udoh, who played high school basketball in the Oklahoma City suburb of Edmond.

Once the deadline dust settles, Oklahoma City can evaluate the buyout market for other reinforcements. The Thunder have an open roster spot and can sign released players to prorated veteran minimum deals to add depth.

Oklahoma City suffered a setback in losing Roberson, but it doesn't have to be a fatal one. The team also needs to continue to impress soon-to-be free agent George. The All-Star forward has spoken positively about his future in The Big Friendly on more than one occasion. But as the Thunder learned from Durant's departure, free-agency decisions aren't made in February.

If Presti can add proven wing talent, the team may be able to stay on track. Sitting idly could be much more costly in the long run and send George the wrong message.