5 Most Realistic Options for Oklahoma City Thunder in the 2015 NBA Draft
Assuming the Oklahoma City Thunder keep the No. 14 overall pick in the NBA draft, whose name has a realistic chance of being called when the team goes on the clock?
After missing the playoffs for the first time in six years, and with Kevin Durant an unrestricted free agent next summer, there will be an expectation for immediate improvement that could lead to the club going in a number of different directions with this pick.
They could package other assets to move up for a stud like Duke's Justise Winslow or Arizona's Stanley Johnson. They might move down, picking up other pieces in the process, and still add depth at the bottom of the round. There is also the chance general manager Sam Presti trades the pick for veteran help.
Nevertheless, this year's draft is deep enough that Presti can stay put and still leave the Barclays Center with a solid contributor.
The Thunder's biggest need going into June 25 will be at small forward, where the team has ignored finding a suitable backup for Durant since his arrival in 2007. With KD recovering from bone graft surgery, finding someone who can spell the four-time scoring champion will have increased importance this summer.
However, according to Presti, the team will not be pigeon-holed into drafting a particular position, per DailyThunder's Royce Young.
"I think we’ll probably have to look at how to add the most value to the organization with the draft pick. And that could come a lot of different ways and I wouldn’t limit ourselves from a positional standpoint. We not only look at the positions, but we look at skillsets, we look at complementary attributes with regard to out entire team and combinations of lineups that might be able to used together. I think it’ll be an exercise for us to determine what those attributes are, but I certainly wouldn’t limit us to any specific position.
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Fortunately for Presti, he will have plenty of intriguing options to choose from.
Sam Dekker, SF, Wisconsin
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Wisconsin's Sam Dekker would fill the Thunder's need for both a backup small forward as well as a scoring option off the bench. As a junior, he averaged 13.9 points and 5.5 boards, while shooting 52.5 percent from the field.
Dekker's impressive physical tools were held back a bit by the Badgers' slow-paced offense, which ranked 346th in the country with an average of 61.1 possessions per game, according to TeamRankings.com. However, at 6'9", 219 pounds, he has elite size and was recently described by ESPN draft expert Chad Ford as "an elite athlete."
Another neat fact about Dekker is he didn't turn the ball over much in college. He averaged 0.9 turnovers per game and posted a turnover percentage of 7.3 percent this past season, both of which were the best efforts of his collegiate career, per Sports-Reference.com.
The key for Dekker will be finding consistency in his outside jumper. After knocking down 39.1 percent of his treys as a freshman, that number dipped to 32.6 and 33.1 percent respectively in the following seasons.
In a conversation with Jesse Temple of Fox Sports Wisconsin, Dekker admitted there are things he needs to work on, but believes his game will still transition well at the next level: "My ballhandling has got to get a little better. I've got to shoot it a little more consistently. I think steady work with the right people and I'll be able to improve that. I'm confident that my game will go over well in the NBA."
If Dekker could manage to thrive in Wisconsin's methodical scheme, it will be interesting to see how much he shines running alongside a human freight train in Russell Westbrook. With his size and improvement in his shooting touch, Dekker could become a real weapon at either forward spot.
Devin Booker, SG, Kentucky
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The obsession with the three-ball in today's NBA should bode well for Devin Booker's draft stock. This year's NBA Finals teams, Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors, both finished in the top four in three-point attempts per game during the regular season.
Meanwhile, the 6'6" Booker is coming off a freshman season at Kentucky that saw him drain 41.1 percent of his takes from behind the arc. Additionally, new Thunder coach Billy Donovan should be very familiar with Booker, as Donovan's Gators faced Booker's Wildcats three times this past season.
With the Thunder shooting 33.9 percent as a collective unit, 22nd in the league, the team could use another marksman on the roster.
The problem with adding Booker to the mix is OKC already has four shooting guards in Andre Roberson, Dion Waiters, Anthony Morrow and Jeremy Lamb. Also, Booker doesn't have adequate size to move to small forward. Thus, he would further complicate an already-crowded backcourt.
Still, Booker's pro comparisons make him hard to pass up. In October, ESPN.com's Myron Medcalf likened the 18-year-old to San Antonio Spurs marksman Danny Green. In March, CBSSports' Doug Gottlieb equated Booker to the Warriors' Klay Thompson. NBADraft.net went with Thompson and the Utah Jazz's Gordon Hayward as potential models.
If Oklahoma City can alleviate the cluster and carve out some time for Booker, he'd be a nice floor-spacing option for Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and Serge Ibaka.
Kevon Looney, SF/PF, UCLA
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When you combine Kevon Looney's measurables and freshman production, you get a potential lottery pick with a ton of upside. He's 6'9", 222 pounds with an incredible 7'3.5" wingspan and a 9'2" standing reach. In his lone season at UCLA, he averaged 11.6 points and 9.2 rebounds per game.
However, as Bleacher Report's own Jonathan Wasserman points out, Looney comes with some question marks that would make him a gamble in the top half of the draft: "At 222 pounds, he lacks the strength and post game of your traditional NBA power forward. But he isn't quick or athletic enough to play the wing."
With Serge Ibaka, Nick Collison and Mitch McGary all vying for minutes at the 4, it's unlikely Looney would see playing time at power forward anyway. While his 'tweener status makes him a risky play at small forward, there is a lot to like about the 19-year-old.
First, Looney puts in work on the glass, posting rebounding percentages of 12.2 (offensive), 21 (defensive) and 16.6 (total) this season. By comparison, potential No. 1 overall pick Jahlil Okafor went 14.8/18.2/16.6 in those particular categories, per Sports-Reference.
While he only attempted 53 shots from behind the arc, he managed to to convert 22 of them (41.5 percent), leaving open the possibility he could be a threat on the perimeter.
Looney might be a slight reach at No. 14 overall, but his high upside could eventually justify the pick.
Kelly Oubre, SF, Kansas
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Kansas freshman Kelly Oubre is still scratching the surface on his potential, but he has the tools to become a solid two-way player. He isn't as pro-ready as Sam Dekker, nor does he possess a premium solitary skill like Devin Booker's sweet shooting stroke, but he should be able to contribute in a reserve role.
Physically, he stands 6'7" with a freakish 7'2" wingspan and a solid 37" vertical. He also flashed some offense with the Jayhawks, contributing 9.3 points per game while shooting 44.4 percent from the field and 35.8 percent from downtown.
Oubre's college numbers may not look like much, but you have to take his lack of playing time into consideration. Oubre logged 10.1 minutes in his first nine games and finished the season averaging 21 minutes per night. When you extrapolate Oubre's numbers on a per-40 minute basis, you get a nightly clip of 17.6 points and 9.5 rebounds, per Sports-Reference.
Oubre will also need to add weight to his 203-pound frame. Additionally, he's determined to dispel any concerns about his level of effort, per Eric Pincus of BasketballInsiders.com.
"The knock on me was that I didn't really compete, which was wrong because I'm one of the most competitive people that's ever come on this planet. I want to show them that I'm a competitor, that I have a drive to win and a drive to be great.
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There are very few safe bets in the entire NBA draft— let alone late in the lottery — but Oubre's immense upside makes him worth the gamble. If Presti is determined to take the best player available when he's on the clock, there's a good chance Oubre turns out to be that guy.
Cameron Payne, PG, Murray State
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Unless you have a ton of Murray State games on your DVR, there's a good chance you haven't seen much of point guard Cameron Payne. Fortunately, you can find the 6'2", 183-pound Payne's name on plenty of mock drafts right next to the Oklahoma City Thunder logo.
Sports Illustrated's Chris Mannix, DraftExpress, NBADraft.net as well as three members of Basketball Insiders all have Payne hoisting up a Thunder hat on draft night.
One big reason experts might feel safe projecting Payne to OKC is this little tidbit from ESPN.com's Chad Ford:
"As for the Thunder, since late last week there's been a lot of buzz among rival GMs that the Thunder promised Cameron Payne they'd take him at 14. I don't know how much of that is smoke, but he is a great fit at 14 and talent wise he may be the best pure point guard in the draft.
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Another reason OKC might be interested in the House of Payne? He's really, really good.
In his sophomore season with the Racers, Payne averaged 20.2 points (14th in the country), six assists (15th) and 1.9 steals per game. He also shot 45.6 percent from the field and 37.7 percent from three-point range. His player efficiency rating (PER) of 30.1 was 12th-best in the nation, while no player produced more points than Payne's 716, per Sports-Reference.
Granted, Murray State's lack of elite competition played a role in Payne's gaudy numbers, but the same could be said about Damian Lillard's dominance at Weber State.
The Thunder already have an elite floor general in Russell Westbrook, but with backup D.J. Augustin a free agent next summer and Payne potentially being the best point guard in this draft, it might be hard for OKC to look elsewhere if Payne's still on the board.
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