JULY 6: Dort’s new deal with the Thunder is now official, the team announced in a press release.
JUNE 30: The Thunder are re-signing restricted free agent Luguentz Dort to a five-year, $87.5MM contract, Dort’s agent Thad Foucher tells ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).
The barrel-chested Dort, who turned 23 in April, has showed continuous improvement after going undrafted out of Arizona State in 2019. He averaged 6.8 PPG and 2.3 RPG on .394/.297/.792 shooting in 36 games (22.8 MPG) as a rookie, with those averages increasing to 14 PPG and 3.6 RPG on .387/.343/.744 shooting in 2020/21 (52 games, 29.7 MPG).
Dort averaged 17.2 PPG and 4.2 RPG on .404/.332/.843 shooting in 51 games (32.6 MPG) last season. His shooting numbers seem fairly mediocre, but the majority of Dort’s shots come from three or at the rim, and he gets to the line a good amount, so his 54.1% true shooting percentage is actually decent.
Dort’s hallmark comes on the defensive end of the court, where his strength, toughness and versatility really shine. He’s an excellent athlete with a strong frame (6’3″, 215 pounds) and is capable of switching across multiple positions.
A report last week indicated that Oklahoma City would pick up Dort’s team option for ’22/23, which would have made him an unrestricted free agent in 2023, but clearly they had a change of heart after examining the amount of salary cap space rival teams will have next summer. Instead the Thunder chose to decline the option, making him a restricted free agent.
The modern NBA is dominated by wings capable of playing both sides of the ball, so his contract aligns with the value teams place on players of his mold. Considering his trajectory and the fact that he’s only entering his fourth season, there’s a good chance that it will be a very reasonable deal for both sides for years to come.
WHAT????????
Little of an over pay but glad he’s staying. Thunder will have an exciting team to watch grow in the upcoming years.
Lol. That’s terrible. He stinks
How? He’s a great defender and can score decently when he needs to.
He stinks. He is a volume shooter who can’t shoot. Career 39% from the floor. U Guys in here love volume shooters who FG% is low
“U guys in here”
Ok.
It’s true. Everyone seems to love high usage and low fg% players. I don’t get it
Yea he stinks. He is a back up G in the nba. High volume, low FG% player. Those guys are everywhere in the nba
Most players in the NBA can “score decently” if given enough volume and a green light. His TS% is bad.
Maybe he gets more efficient and tones down the shot selection in a lesser role, but it remains to be seen if he actually can do that.
Facts
I’m gonna echo Ironman here— on no planet does Dort “stink.”
Somewhere….. Collin Sexton, Darius Garland and Rich Paul are sitting with a communal bowl of truffle oil French fries, a side of mayo and a few bruskies smiling from ear to ear as reports of lesser guards come in north of $17 mil.
Grats. You’re the first person in history to compare dort and sexton.
@Orien
Not comparing the two but they’re both SG’s and he’s helping to set the market.
Totally different market. Dort is a beast on D who can switch on anyone with suspect offensive skills. Sexton the exact opposaite.
Some team will have to bid Sexton up though. Not sure about this “set the market” angle.
Sexton and Dort are different, but Sexton and Simons are similar, albeit Sexton is much more acconplished. And Simon’s making $25m per.
Jeez Tyus is equal to Simons and got $7.5 per for only two years. Cronin’s an idiot.
Ya I would agree it’s the Simon’s deal that looks good for Sexton, but at the same time Simons has more shooting upside, so that’s part of it. They’ve both been bad defensively. I think Sexton has more value right now, but it’s also team dependent. He might be able to get a good deal, with what we’ve seen, but what places are currently his best fits that have space, besides coming off the bench in Cleveland. I think he probably gets something in the 5 year_$68-72 million range, which isnt that far off from what I thought Dort would get, maybe a bit higher
Just mayo? Not some garlic aioli or mayochup? Maybe some Kranch? A little vinegar with some chili oil? Complete the picture for me.
Thought it would be closer to maybe $15-18 million less than this, or $4-5 million less AAV, but for them it probably doesnt matter much b/c they have almost nothing on their books
What about Chet ???????
What about Chet !!!!!!!
He’s killing it in SL. Too soon
Win Win for player and the team. OKL will be so good for yrs to come, better than Memphis..