The Oklahoma City Thunder are winning the NBA trade deadline - and they haven’t even made a move yet.
Tuesday may go down as the day the Thunder added not one, but two potential lottery picks in this year’s draft. And they did it without picking up the phone.
Let’s start with the James Harden trade. The Clippers, sitting at the No. 9 seed in the West after clawing their way back from a brutal 6-21 start, just sent Harden to Cleveland in exchange for Darius Garland.
On paper, it’s a swap of stars - but the reality is more complicated. Garland’s been banged up for much of the season and hasn’t looked like himself when he’s been on the floor.
Harden, for all the drama that sometimes follows him, was still the Clippers’ second-best player. Losing him at this point in the season?
That’s a gamble.
Why does this matter to Oklahoma City? Because they own the Clippers’ unprotected 2026 first-round pick.
And if L.A. slides - which is a real possibility now - that pick could land in the lottery. Right now, the Clippers have the 12th-worst record in the league.
That comes with a 7.1% chance at a top-four pick. Not exactly a coin flip, but we’ve seen crazier things.
Just last year, Dallas jumped from No. 11 to win the Cooper Flagg sweepstakes. Meanwhile, Utah - the team with the worst record - got bumped all the way down to No.
- The lottery isn’t just unpredictable; it’s downright chaotic.
Speaking of Utah, the Jazz just made a bold move of their own, sending three first-round picks (plus more) to Memphis for Jaren Jackson Jr. That’s a win-now move for a team that’s 16-35 and currently holds the sixth-worst record in the league.
And guess what? The Thunder also own Utah’s first-rounder - if it lands outside the top eight.
So here’s where things get interesting. If Jackson helps Utah win just enough games to slide out of the bottom eight, that pick conveys to Oklahoma City.
And the Jazz are only 3.5 games behind Dallas, with Memphis and Milwaukee just a game further ahead. That’s not an impossible gap to close, especially with Jackson - a former All-Star and Defensive Player of the Year - now in the fold.
Of course, Utah has every incentive to stay in the bottom eight and keep that pick. Around the league, execs are already wondering how the Jazz might manage their roster the rest of the way.
Let’s just say this franchise has been… strategic in the past when it comes to protecting lottery position. But adding a player like Jackson makes it harder to tank.
That’s the risk when you trade for a guy who actually helps you win.
Meanwhile, the Thunder are sitting pretty. If Utah starts winning, Oklahoma City benefits.
If the Clippers stumble, same deal. And that’s before we even mention the Sixers pick - another first-rounder OKC owns this spring, currently projected to land in the top 20.
That’s three potential first-round picks in a single draft, for a team that already has the best record in the NBA and just won a championship with one of the youngest cores in the league. There’s a point where you almost run out of room for rookies - and the Thunder are getting close. But that’s a good problem to have.
So as the trade deadline approaches, Oklahoma City doesn’t need to chase anything. They’ve got the assets.
They’ve got the roster. They’ve got the flexibility to make a move if the right opportunity presents itself - and a front office that’s proven it knows how to strike when the time is right.
Or they can just sit back and let the rest of the league do the work for them. Either way, they’re in control.
The rich keep getting richer - and the Thunder haven’t even broken a sweat.