Thunder Don't Need To Make A Panic Trade

The Oklahoma City Thunder are 4-1 and the #3 seed in the Western Conference standings. But you'd never know it based on some of the recent reactions from the NBA social media ecosystem.

And I get it. It's jarring to see the team that blew out the San Antonio Spurs and Denver Nuggets in the first two games of the season all of a sudden lose by 24 points to the Dallas Mavericks. Two way players Brooks Barnhizer, Josh Dix and Micah Peavy were all of a sudden elevated into big minutes and crucial roles. 

The unfortunate reality is that Jalen Williams and Cason Wallace are both out with long term injuries. Williams will be re-evaluated prior to the end of the regular season. Wallace is without a timeline but there is hope he'll be back late in the season. No matter what moves OKC makes between now and the trade deadline, they will not be able to replace an All-NBA player and an All-Defense player. The Thunder that looked like the best team in the NBA on Opening Night is not the team we will see for quite some time.

The most resounding solution, understandably, is for OKC to speed dial the other 29 front offices and strike an emergency deal to keep the team afloat. There have been countless names making the rounds of possible trade targets. Herb Jones, Ty Jerome, Derrick Jones Jr, Kris Dunn, Davion Mitchell and Keon Ellis just to name a few. And, of course, there is the Thunder fan favorite scenario: calling Russell Westbrook out of retirement for one last ride into the Oklahoma City sunset.

But the Thunder that we saw on Wednesday night in Dallas is also not the team we will see for much longer (hopefully). OKC will get back one All-NBA player in Chet Holmgren and one All-Defense player in Alex Caruso. Both players highly impact the game on both sides of the court. The ripple effects of Holmgren and Caruso on the rest of the roster should be massive.

It will get better. The Thunder are still a very talented team despite the devastating injuries.

OKC will likely make a trade (or trades) at some point this season. After all, they have a treasure trove of assets.

But I wouldn't expect any moves to be made soon. The Thunder are a patient organization. It's doubtful OKC will rush to spend assets or burn salary cap before they know which type of player they want to target. They will collect data points on the team as currently constructed. Strengths and weaknesses will present themselves.

And once the time, value and fit are right, Shams Charania will hit us all with a notification that Oklahoma City has traded for a player that none of us were expecting.