- Thunder rookie guard Theo Maledon had a sparkling preseason debut for Oklahoma City, per Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman. The 6’5″ guard, drafted with the No. 34 pick this year, scored 20 points on 7-of-14 shooting and pulled down five rebounds in a 121-108 victory over the Spurs.
- Thunder second-round rookie selection Théo Maledon has signed a four-year, $7.8MM contract, Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets. Maledon will earn a $2MM guaranteed salary in each of the first two years of his new deal, according to Keith Smith of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). Smith goes on to note that each of the final two seasons of Maledon’s deal – which comes out of OKC’s mid-level exception – are non-guaranteed, and that the Thunder will have a team option for the fourth year.
- Bobby Marks of ESPN (Twitter link) provides some additional details on the Al Horford/Danny Green trade, reporting that the $2MM sent from the Sixers to the Thunder in the deal will actually convey in 2027, and only if Philadelphia’s first-round pick has been protected in 2025, 2026, and 2027. That money still counts toward the 76ers’ traded cash limit for this season, however.
The Lakers are monitoring Trevor Ariza‘s situation and would have interest in signing him if he becomes a free agent, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic.
For now, Ariza – who is on an expiring contract – remains under contract with the Thunder, though he’s reportedly away from the team for family reasons. According to Charania, Ariza and veteran point guard George Hill, who is also drawing some interest around the league, are expected to open the regular season as members of the Thunder.
Oklahoma City entered full rebuilding mode this offseason and Ariza and Hill landed with the team in bigger trades that were more about other assets (draft picks). However, it makes sense for the Thunder to retain Ariza and Hill – along with fellow veteran Al Horford – rather than simply cutting them, since the club may be able to move them for an asset or two later in 2020/21.
While Horford’s contract has negative value, Ariza and Hill are earning mid-level type money and neither has a fully guaranteed salary beyond this season, so they could make good trade candidates.
Adding another veteran three-and-D wing would help fortify the Lakers’ depth chart, but they aren’t in position to trade for Ariza’s $12.8MM expiring salary. The defending champions will only be in position to add Ariza if the Thunder can’t find a taker for the 35-year-old forward and decide to release him, perhaps with a buyout agreement.
The Lakers are right up against a hard cap and figure to start the season with just 14 players, but Quinn Cook‘s contract isn’t fully guaranteed and the team should be able to add a 15th man later in the season on a prorated veteran’s minimum contract.
- New Thunder point guard George Hill is looking forward to serving as a veteran presence for his young teammates on a rebuilding squad in Oklahoma City, Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman reports. “To be that leader out here is much needed with the young locker room that we have,” Hill said.
The Thunder have signed rookie guard Theo Maledon to his first NBA contract, the team announced today in a press release. Oklahoma City now has a full 20-man roster, at least for the time being.
Maledon, 19, was the 34th overall pick in November, having technically been selected by Philadelphia. The Sixers traded his rights to Oklahoma City as part of the Al Horford/Danny Green swap that was finally completed on Tuesday.
The French point guard spent last season with ASVEL Lyon-Villeurbanne, playing in France’s Pro A league as well as the EuroLeague. In 46 total games, Maledon averaged 7.3 PPG, 2.7 APG, and 1.9 RPG in 17.3 minutes per contest.
The details of Maledon’s contract aren’t yet known. The Thunder are still technically operating as an over-the-cap club, with their various trade exceptions pushing them over the cap despite a relatively inexpensive roster. As a result, they’ll be able to use their mid-level exception to give Maledon a contract longer than two years and worth more than just the minimum in year one.
Maledon was one of three international draft picks by the Thunder in 2020. First-rounder Aleksej Pokusevski signed his rookie contract last week, while No. 37 pick Vit Krejci appears likely to remain overseas as he recovers from an ACL injury — he’s still under contract with Zaragoza in Spain.
Assuming Krejci is a draft-and-stash prospect, Maledon figures to be the last 2020 draftee to sign a contract for the coming season.
DECEMBER 9: Brown’s deal with the Thunder is now official, the team announced in a press release.
Oklahoma City is currently carrying 17 players on standard contracts and a pair (Brown and Josh Hall) on two-way deals.
NOVEMBER 22: Former Trail Blazers center Moses Brown will sign a two-way contract with the Thunder, according to Adam Zagoria of Forbes. The deal was confirmed by his agent, Gary Mo Moore.
Brown spent one year with Portland on a two-way deal and appeared in nine NBA games, playing 33 total minutes. He averaged 14.4 points and 7.7 rebounds per game with the Texas Legends in the G League. Brown didn’t rejoin the Blazers for the NBA’s restart in Orlando.
“I think that Moses in the last nine weeks has grown in leaps and bounds,” Moore said. “He’s gotten so much better in all phases of his game and in his life, and I think he’s going to be a tremendously surprise great addition to the league. I think the Oklahoma City Thunder have gotten a real quality player and he’s more ready now than (before).”
DECEMBER 9: After signing him on Monday, the Thunder waived Yurtseven on Tuesday, according to the NBA’s official transactions log.
Oklahoma City now has 18 players on its roster, with deals for Chasson Randle (training camp contract), Moses Brown (two-way contract), and Theo Maledon (standard contract) expected to be completed soon.
DECEMBER 8: The Thunder have filled the open spot on their 20-man training camp roster by officially signing undrafted rookie Omer Yurtseven to a one-year contract, per RealGM’s transactions log.
Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports reported shortly after last month’s draft that the Thunder and Yurtseven had reached an agreement on an Exhibit 10 deal. The former Georgetown big man looks like a good bet to join the Thunder’s G League affiliate, the Oklahoma City Blue.
Yurtseven, 22, began his college career at North Carolina State before transferring to Georgetown. He was the Hoyas’ starting center in 2019/20, averaging 15.5 PPG, 9.8 RPG, and 1.5 BPG in 26 games (27.3 MPG). He decided to go pro this spring following his junior season.
- Al Horford and rookie Theo Maledon will join the Thunder once they complete coronavirus protocols, Brandon Rahbar of the Daily Thunder tweets. Horford and Maledon were officially acquired from the Sixers on Monday. “Theo, for a young player, he has a lot of experience and has a certain maturity about him,” new head coach Mark Daigneault said. “Al, we’re very fortunate that he’s here and to have a player of his caliber.”
The Thunder have officially signed undrafted rookie Josh Hall to his two-way contract, agent Nathan Conley tells JD Shaw of Hoops Rumors (Twitter link). Hall’s agreement with the club was reported shortly after the draft last month.
Ranked by ESPN as the No. 5 prospect among those who went undrafted, Hall has “considerable potential” as both a shooter and ball-handler, according to Mike Schmitz’s scouting report. A 6’9″ forward, Hall had been on track to play college ball at North Carolina State after a year at Moravian Prep, but opted to go pro and enter the draft instead.
The Thunder opened up a pair of spots on their 20-man training camp roster by completing their Al Horford trade earlier today, so it appears that Hall slid into one of those openings.
The signing increases Oklahoma City’s roster count to 19 players, with reported deals for Theo Maledon, Chasson Randle and Moses Brown (two-way contract) still to come. The club will have to make at least two cuts to finalize those moves.