How will Russell Westbrook, Steven Adams, Victor Oladipo and the Oklahoma City Thunder do in 2016-17?
Here are our player scouting reports and analysis.
Projected starters
Russell Westbrook
Position: Guard
Experience: 8 years
Age: 27
Scouting report
+ Elite point guard who is leading MVP contender after Kevin Durant's departure
+ Impossible to contain off the dribble; has developed as distributor
+ Tends to take plays off on defense but is an elite rebounder for a guard
Analysis
With Durant leaving for the Golden State Warriors, the Thunder are Westbrook's team -- particularly after he agreed to renegotiate and extend his contract, keeping him under team control through the summer of 2018. Look out.
During the 39 full games he played with an injured Durant off the court in 2014-15, Westbrook averaged 31.4 points, 9.2 assists and 7.9 rebounds per game. Oklahoma City went 22-17 in those games, a 46-win pace over a full season similar to RPM's projection for this year's Thunder.
Westbrook does have a little more help in terms of shot creation this time around, but Oklahoma City will want the ball in his hands as much as possible because of how he has improved as a decision-maker. Always impossible to keep out of the paint, Westbrook has improved his ability to translate that into open looks for teammates. His 10.9 assists per 36 minutes last season were an improvement by more than 20 percent over his previous career high and ranked third in the league behind Rajon Rondo and Chris Paul.
Yeah, Westbrook takes too many jumpers off the dribble -- he attempted 8.2 pull-ups per game last season, the league's 10th-highest average, while posting a 42.3 percent effective field-goal percentage (eFG) on those shots according to SportVU tracking on NBA.com/Stats. Though critics still point to Westbrook taking 4.3 3-pointers a game at a 29.6 percent clip, he at least slashed his rate of long 2-pointers, of which he made 39.2 percent for a worse eFG per Basketball-Reference.com. As a result, Westbrook both made better than 50 percent of his 2-point attempts and had an above-average true shooting percentage (.554) for the first time in his career. Alas, both will likely fall this season as Westbrook has to take more difficult shots without Durant around. His usage rate in games Durant missed in 2014-15 was greater than 40 percent, which would be the highest on record over a full NBA season.
Alas, Westbrook's defensive effort figures to slip with the increased offensive load. He already has a nasty habit of taking plays off while also compromising the team's defense with his tendency to gamble for steals. On the plus side, Westbrook grabbed a career-high 18.1 percent of available defensive rebounds, not far off the average for power forwards (19.2 percent). That fueled Westbrook's 18 triple-doubles, tying Magic Johnson for the most in a single season since 1966-67. Because of the Thunder's offseason moves, Westbrook should have even less competition for rebounds this year. Look out.
Victor Oladipo
Position: Guard
Experience: 3 years
Age: 24
Scouting report
+ Promising young shooting guard still seeking to maximize his athleticism
+ Improving outside shooter who has nearly reached league average from 3-point range
+ Took major step forward defensively last season; has stopper potential
Analysis
When the Orlando Magic took Victor Oladipo second overall in the 2013 draft, Magic GM Rob Hennigan was trying to get the same kind of high-character, athletic prospect his former organization -- Oklahoma City -- had built around. So it's no surprise Oladipo ended up with the Thunder as the centerpiece of the deal sending Serge Ibaka to Orlando. Oladipo will try to establish himself as a core piece before becoming a restricted free agent next summer, barring an extension by October 31.
Durant's departure opens up a starting spot for Oladipo at shooting guard and makes him Oklahoma City's second-best shot creator. With the Magic, Oladipo used more than a quarter of the team's plays in 2014-15 before assuming a smaller role last season, and proved adept at getting to the basket off the dribble as something of a Westbrook lite. The Thunder will also count on Oladipo helping space the floor. He has steadily improved as a 3-point shooter in the NBA, posting career highs in makes (98) and percentage (34.8 percent) last season.
As useful as Oladipo's athletic gifts are on offense, they give him even greater defensive potential. Playing under defensive-minded Scott Skiles, last season saw him translate those gifts into greater production. Oladipo's individual stats weren't much different, other than blocking more shots -- he has always been good at generating steals and a presence on the defensive glass. But because Orlando improved from 25th in defensive rating as a team to 17th, Oladipo jumped into the league's top 15 shooting guards in the defensive component of ESPN's real plus-minus (RPM), having previously rated below average.
Andre Roberson
Position: Forward
Experience: 3 years
Age: 24
Scouting report
+ Defensive-minded wing who has struggled to improve 3-point shooting
+ Found new value as undersized 4 during Western Conference finals
+ Strong individual defender who's also good in help situations
Analysis
Through two games of the Western Conference finals, Oklahoma City was playing 4-on-5 offense because the Golden State Warriors weren't even bothering to pretend to defend Roberson. Instead of benching Roberson, Billy Donovan decided to move him to power forward in small lineups and use him as a screener in the pick-and-rolls. A 4-man in college at Colorado, Roberson proved surprisingly adept at beating traps as a passer and played a key role in the Thunder taking a 3-1 lead before losing the series.
The conference finals highlighted that Roberson's hard work into developing a 3-point shot just hasn't translated. He shot 31.1 percent last season, but has a tendency to miss badly. And since Roberson takes so long to shoot, opponents can play off him and still keep him from getting open looks -- unless they want him to shoot. While a full-time move to power forward isn't likely given Oklahoma City's current roster makeup, Roberson may be able to effectively play the 4 on offense as a small forward alongside a good shooter. And the value he showed as a cutter in bigger lineups against the Warriors should translate.
Donovan wants to keep Roberson on the court because even with the addition of Oladipo, he's the Thunder's best wing defender. At 6-foot-7 with a 6-foot-11 wingspan, Roberson can guard all three perimeter spots and stretch 4s. While he wasn't quite as effective a one-on-one stopper last year, Roberson was a huge part of the team's defensive success in the playoffs because he also contributes by getting in the passing lanes and blocking shots from the weak side. A dominant rebounder in college, Roberson was surprisingly ineffective on the glass last year, though he may play a bigger role sliding from shooting guard to small forward.
Ersan Ilyasova
Position: Forward
Experience: 8 years
Age: 29
Scouting report
+ Veteran stretch 4 who has bounced around lately
+ Good, not great 3-point shooter who's a poor finisher
+ Adequate defender who holds his own in the post
Analysis
After playing his first seven NBA seasons entirely with the Milwaukee Bucks, Ilyasova is now on his third team in the past two seasons after splitting last year between the Detroit Pistons and the Magic. Orlando sent him to Oklahoma City as part of the Oladipo deal, and Ilyasova has the inside track on the starting job at power forward thanks to his ability to space the floor.
A stretch 4 since before the term existed, Ilyasova is a career 37 percent 3-point shooter who hit that almost precisely last season (37.1 percent). Possibly in part because he has never played in an offense this talented, Ilyasova has topped out at 3.5 3-point attempts per game and might want to be more aggressive with his shot selection this season. Ilyasova is also capable enough as a ball handler to attack closeouts off the dribble and get all the way to the basket, though he's a poor finisher who has shot just 58 percent in his career inside 3 feet according to Basketball-Reference.com.
Ilaysova's lack of foot speed has become increasingly problematic defensively, but he's in a good situation to cover for his shortcomings with so much athleticism around him on the Thunder. Ilyasova has good size for a power forward of 6-foot-10 and is a physical post defender. However, he's a complete nonfactor as a help defender and has declined on the defensive glass over time. Oklahoma City's team defense and elite rebounding guards should help compensate there as well.
Steven Adams
Position: Center
Experience: 3 years
Age: 23
Scouting report
+ Rising force at center who just turned 23 over the summer
+ Made dramatic strides as pick-and-roll scoring option
+ Moves well for his size but not a great rim protector
Analysis
One of the breakout stars of the 2016 postseason, Adams emerged as the most important interior player on the Thunder, helping make Ibaka expendable. Entering his fourth season at age 23 -- he's younger than four players who were drafted in 2016 -- Adams has shown the potential to become an elite role player and is sure to command the maximum salary in an extension this fall or as a restricted free agent next summer.
Adams' biggest improvement was a roll man in the pick-and-roll. He developed his timing and ability to put the ball on the ground if necessary en route to the basket. As a result, Adams' 63 percent shooting as a roll man ranked third in the NBA among players with at least 100 attempts, per Synergy Sports tracking on NBA./com/Stats. Still, Adams' usage rate dropped slightly from 14.3 percent to 12.6 percent with Durant's return. Adams is unlikely to ever be a featured part of the offense because he rarely creates his own offense besides putbacks -- 76.2 percent of his field goals were assisted, per Basketball-Reference.com -- but he has proven he can be extremely efficient as a finisher. Adams' .621 true shooting percentage ranked eighth among players who saw at least 1,000 minutes of action.
The rare quality defensive center who isn't much of a rim protector, Adams saw his block rate fall to below average for his position. That might tick up this season without Ibaka around as a shot blocker; Adams did average 20 percent more blocks per minute when playing without Ibaka last season, per NBA.com/Stats. Still, Adams' greater defensive attribute is his mobility for his size. He has become an adept pick-and-roll defender, and his versatility enabled Adams to defend power forwards when playing alongside Enes Kanter. As a result, Adams ranked among the top-15 centers in defensive RPM.
Reserves
Enes Kanter
Position: Center
Experience: 5 years
Age: 24
Scouting report
+ Skilled offensive center who gives up much of his value on defense
+ Good finisher and elite offensive rebounder who can also play on perimeter
+ Immobile defender lacking the instincts necessary as a help defender
Analysis
During his first full season in Oklahoma City, Kanter both lived up to the max contract offer (albeit before the cap jump) from the Portland Trail Blazers matched by the Thunder and down to the criticism of that deal. We saw the best and worst of Kanter in the playoffs as his production was key to Oklahoma City upsetting the San Antonio Spurs in the conference semifinals, before he had a hard time staying on the court in the conference finals against Golden State.
On a per-play basis, Kanter was one of the league's most productive offensive players. He led all players in the regular season by grabbing 16.7 percent of available offensive rebounds, not far off what the Atlanta Hawks rebounded as a team on the offensive glass (19.1 percent). Those easy putbacks and Kanter's effective play in the pick-and-roll allowed him to make 57.9 percent of his 2-point attempts while using a robust 23.4 percent of the team's plays. Just two players with superior true shooting percentages to Kanter's .621 mark -- Durant and Stephen Curry -- also had higher usage rates. And Kanter even made 10 3-pointers in 21 attempts, showing enough range to play power forward next to Adams in the lineups that destroyed the Spurs with second-chance points.
Still, Kanter wasn't quite as valuable offensively as his scoring numbers would suggest because he handed out 0.7 assists per 36 minutes, the lowest rate of any player who used more than 21 percent of his team's plays. And his defense remains problematic. Kanter rarely blocks shots and can be exploited as a pick-and-roll defender, so the Thunder allowed 6.1 more points per 100 possessions with him on the floor, per NBA.com/Stats. RPM rated Kanter one of the league's five best offensive centers and the second-worst on defense (although not nearly as bad as in 2014-15). The ultimate result was a slight net negative.
Cameron Payne
Position: Guard
Experience: 1 year
Age: 22
Scouting report
+ Pick-and-roll point guard who saw intermittent action as a rookie
+ Left-hand dominant; struggled with decision-making in playoff crucible
+ Undersized defensively and must improve his ability to contain the ball
Analysis
Payne's rookie campaign saw him replace D.J. Augustin as Westbrook's backup in late December only to lose the job when Oklahoma City swapped Augustin for veteran Randy Foye at the trade deadline. Donovan tried to go back to Payne in the playoffs, but he lacked the experience necessary to succeed in that setting. Entering Year 2, Payne is likely to win the backup job assuming he has recovered from July surgery to repair a Jones fracture in his right foot, but the Thunder signed Ronnie Price as a veteran caddy just in case.
A southpaw, Payne relies heavily on his left hand. One of his favorite moves is to come off a pick-and-roll going left and whip a hard pass across his body to the roll man or a shooter in the opposite corner. He also tends to finish exclusively with his left hand, one reason Payne shot an inadequate 47.3 percent inside 3 feet, per Basketball-Reference.com. On the plus side, Payne has good feel for how to run a pick-and-roll to score or set up teammates. Though he shot just 32.4 percent from 3-point range, a figure that will likely improve in Year 2, Payne kept defenders from going under the pick-and-roll by making half his 2-point attempts from beyond 16 feet. And, at least during the regular season, he was relatively sure-handed.
A lithe 6-foot-3, Payne is unlikely to ever play with much force defensively. Where he can improve is not overplaying ball handlers too far to one side or the other, allowing them to get by him with a quick first step. To his credit, Payne didn't quit on plays when he was beaten and did a nice job of denying the basketball. His steal rate was very good.
Anthony Morrow
Position: Guard
Experience: 8 years
Age: 30
Scouting report
+ Outside shooting specialist with limited all-around game
+ One of the league's better spot-up shooters; rarely creates shots
+ Poor individual defender who tends to be targeted by opponents
Analysis
In his eighth NBA season, Morrow reached the playoffs for the first time in 2015-16. Alas, he didn't contribute much there, playing 76 minutes total despite Oklahoma City's constant need for additional shooting. Such are Morrow's limitations, particularly at the defensive end. Nonetheless, with the departure of Dion Waiters, Morrow could be in line for a larger role this season.
Here's what a good shooter Morrow is: He made 38.7 percent of his 3-pointers last season, tied for best on the Thunder with Durant, and his career 3-point percentage dropped slightly from 42.9 percent to 42.5 percent. Morrow took 3s on a career-high 61.3 percent of his shot attempts, which makes sense because he's not much of a threat off the dribble. Inside the arc, Morrow shot 44.2 percent, including just half his rare shots inside 3 feet according to Basketball-Reference.com. And Morrow handed out just 24 assists in 926 minutes, the fewest of any guard in the league.
Still, defense is the bigger issue with keeping Morrow on the court. He has decent size for a shooting guard at 6-foot-5, 210, but has a poor stance when defending one-on-one. Opponents shot a 65.9 percent eFG in isolations against Morrow, third-worst among players who defended at least 20 shots according to Synergy Sports tracking on NBA.com/Stats. Morrow also contributes little as a help defender; he rarely generates steals and was one of the league's worst defensive rebounders last season.
Alex Abrines
Position: Guard
Experience: Rookie
Age: 23
Scouting report
+ Stash prospect headed to NBA after developing in Spain
+ Good outside shooter who rarely creates own shot
+ Solid athlete who could still stand to add strength
Analysis
Originally drafted by Oklahoma City with the No. 32 pick of the 2013 draft, Abrines has spent the last three seasons developing into a key contributor for Spanish power FC Barcelona. At 23, he'll make the leap to the NBA on a three-year, $17 million contract that allowed the Thunder to cut ties with Waiters.
When he was drafted by the Thunder, Abrines had made less than 30 percent of his 3-point attempts the previous two seasons, but he almost immediately developed into a dangerous shooter from the shorter FIBA line. Over the last three years, he has shot better than 42 percent, and while there may be an adjustment period to the NBA line, Abrines should ultimately become a respected 3-point threat.
The question is whether Abrines can become more than that. Per Synergy Sports tracking, 142 of Abrines' 199 shot attempts in ACB play were either spot-ups or coming off screens, leaving few self-created situations off the dribble in the Barcelona offense.
Abrines may struggle initially with defending bigger, faster opponents. At 6-foot-5, he's probably limited to defending shooting guards even when he gets comfortable with the NBA style of play, but he's a credible athlete who should eventually be able to hold his own one-on-one.
Joffrey Lauvergne
Position: Forward
Experience: 2 years
Age: 24
Scouting report
+ Combo big man with power forward skills but enough size to play center
+ Accurate midrange shooter still working to extend range beyond NBA line
+ Poor shot blocker who tends to struggle defending bigger opponents
Analysis
Jusuf Nurkic's slow return from patella surgery made Lauvergne the Denver Nuggets' backup center most of last season, but Nurkic's return and drafting Juan Hernangomez made him expendable this summer. The Nuggets dealt him to the Thunder for a pair of 2017 second-round picks and Lauvergne will offer Oklahoma City depth at both frontcourt spots.
Originally advertised more as a power forward than a center, Lauvergne has the size to man the middle at 6-foot-11 but not really the strength or the instincts as a help defender. Lauvergne's block rate is below average for a power forward, let alone a center. On the plus side, he more than held his own against centers on the defensive glass, and his mobility is a plus at the position.
Offensively, Lauvergne is better in the high post than the low post. Though he shot just 24.5 percent from 3-point range, Lauvergne made better than half of his limited 2-point attempts from beyond 16 feet, according to Basketball-Reference.com, and is a good passer facing the basket. Lauvergne will also drive from the perimeter, usually going left, and catches the ball well on the move in the pick-and-roll.
Against smaller defenders, Lauvergne can play in the low post, where he tends to sling in hook shots, more often with his left hand than his right. Remarkably, his 55.8 percent shooting on post-ups as tracked by Synergy Sports on NBA.com/Stats ranked third among players with at least 50 shot attempts. (Boris Diaw was first, so maybe it's a French thing.)
Domantas Sabonis
Position: Forward
Experience: Rookie
Age: 20
Scouting report
+ Son of legendary former NBA center with polished post game
+ Energetic presence on offensive glass with developing jumper
+ Not really a shot blocker and may be challenged defending stretch 4s
Analysis
As part of the Oladipo trade, Oklahoma City got the No. 11 pick from Orlando after entering the draft with no picks. The Thunder used it on Gonzaga product Sabonis, son of Hall of Famer Arvydas Sabonis. Sabonis could contribute right away as a backup big man despite skipping summer league to prepare for playing in the Olympics with Lithuania.
As a freshman, Sabonis split time between both frontcourt positions. An injury to center Przemek Karnowski made him the starting center as a sophomore alongside stretch 4 Kyle Wiltjer. In that role, Sabonis made his living in the post. Though he relies heavily on his left hand, Sabonis has good enough footwork that (albeit much against West Coast Conference competition) he shot 66.5 percent on post-ups, second among Division I players with at least 100 shot attempts, according to Synergy Sports tracking.
In the NBA, Sabonis is likely to spend more time on the perimeter. While he made just five 3-pointers in two years at Gonzaga, Sabonis is a good foul shooter for a big man (76.9 percent last season) and reportedly showed NBA 3-point range in pre-draft workouts. He also has good court vision and could become a playmaker from the high post.
Defensively, the 6-foot-10 Sabonis probably isn't enough of a shot blocker to play center for anything more than brief stretches in the NBA. He blocked just 2.7 percent of opponents' 2-point attempts in college, barely better than the average for NBA power forwards, and that tends to decline dramatically in the NBA. Sabonis is good against the pick-and-roll but will have to guard stretch 4s deeper on the perimeter than he's accustomed to playing.
Ronnie Price
Position: Guard
Experience: 11 years
Age: 33
Scouting report
+ Veteran backup point guard regarded as strong leader
+ Poor shooter who enjoyed career year beyond the arc
+ Solid defensive presence despite being undersized
Analysis
Price has a reputation as being a good player to have around, and now he has the award to prove it after being voted best teammate on the Suns in the NBPA's Players Choice awards. But during his one season in Phoenix, Price also played a career-high 1,211 minutes and posted the best true shooting percentage of his career, showing he can still contribute on the court at age 33. In need of a veteran third point guard, Oklahoma City signed Price to a two-year, $5 million deal as a free agent.
Entering last season, Price was a career 29.1 percent 3-point shooter who had never made more than 31 in a season. Remarkably, he made six 3s in a game in December and finished with 68 on 34.7 percent shooting that was almost league average. Responding to the success, Price took more 3s than 2s for the first time in his career. Since Price frequently played with another point guard, he averaged just 4.4 assists per 36 minutes, down from an average of 6 the previous season with the Lakers. When needed, he can still run an offense.
The 6-foot-2 Price is a pesky defensive presence who likes to get up into opponents. Eventually, he may not have the quickness to pull that off without getting beaten off the dribble, but that hasn't been the case as yet. Price has consistently been one of the league's top thieves, averaging 3 steals per 100 plays last year.
Kyle Singler
Position: Forward
Experience: 4 years
Age: 28
Scouting report
+ Role-playing wing whose efficiency declined badly
+ Struggled to make open 3-pointers or set up teammates
+ Decent defender who's stretched against elite athletes
Analysis
Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak. A.C. Green's 1,192 consecutive games. Singler's 19 games without an assist. OK, that might not qualify as a historic streak, but the month and a half and 200-plus minutes it took Singler to set up a teammate was emblematic of a lost season on the heels of signing a new five-year, $25 million (with the final year non-guaranteed) that now looks like a rare pre-cap jump overpay.
While Singler's assist rate did drop by half last season from 1.8 per 36 minutes to 0.9, the bigger problem was his inability to make a 3-point shot. Singler shot just 30.9 percent beyond the arc, down from 37.8 percent his first three years in the NBA. While his 2-point percentage bounced back to 45.2 percent after Singler made just 37.1 percent of his 2s in 2014-15, he still posted a career-low .481 true shooting percentage that's inadequate for a role player using 11.9 percent of the team's plays.
At 6-foot-8, Singler is big enough to defend either wing spot so long as he's not forced to match up with go-to scorers who can overwhelm him with athleticism. His defense was enough to get Singler into 68 games during the regular season, but he played just 51 minutes total during the playoffs, almost exclusively in lopsided games. If Singler doesn't shoot better this year, Josh Huestis could push him for playing time.
Nick Collison
Position: Forward
Experience: 12 years
Age: 35
Scouting report
+ Longtime Thunder role player who's a good teammate
+ Saw his ability to finish decline severely last season
+ Good positional defender now lacking athleticism
Analysis
With Durant's departure, Collison is the last Thunder player left who played for the team in Seattle. In fact, just two players in the league (future Hall of Famers Manu Ginobili and Dirk Nowitzki) have been with the same organization longer than Collison, who was drafted by the Sonics in 2003. Yet entering the final season of his contract and due to turn 36 in October, Collison's time in Oklahoma City may be winding down after he played a career-low 699 minutes in 2015-16.
As recently as 2014-15, Collison was still a reliable finisher who made 64.6 percent of his shots inside 3 feet, according to Basketball-Reference.com. Last year, that dropped to 50.9 percent, far and away the worst mark of Collison's career. So even though he remained a presence on the offensive glass, Collison was no longer creating the same value inside. He is still a threat from midrange, having shot a respectable 47.1 percent on 2-point jumpers outside the paint, per NBA.com/Stats.
Collison has long excelled at reading plays before they happen, so he remains an effective positional defender even though he no longer has the athleticism to block shots or defend elite scorers one-on-one. The Thunder allowed just 100.4 points per 100 possessions with Collison on the court, the second-best mark on the team behind Adams according to NBA.com/Stats.
Josh Huestis
Position: Forward
Experience: 1 year
Age: 24
Scouting report
+ Drafted as a 3-and-D wing, showed promise as undersized 4
+ Hasn't yet shown the ability to make NBA 3-pointer in D-League
+ Versatile defender who can block shots from the weak side
Analysis
After spending a year in the D-League, 2014 Thunder first-round pick Huestis signed his rookie contract last summer ... only to spend most of his year in the D-League. Huestis did get into five games, and perhaps most notably, played primarily as a power forward instead of on the wing.
Much like Roberson, Huestis' deficiencies as a shooter are less pronounced at the 4. While he made four of the six 3s he tried in the NBA, Huestis shot just 31.3 percent from downtown in the D-League, nearly identical to the previous season (31.6 percent). His 47.4 percent foul shooting doesn't offer much hope of improvement. Instead, Huestis may be better used lurking around the dunker spot on the baseline to finish at the rim or hit the offensive glass.
At 6-foot-7, Huestis is tiny for a power forward, but he has been a remarkably good shot blocker for his size dating back to college. Rebounding might be more of an issue at power forward, since Huestis has been a below-average defensive rebounder for a small forward in the D-League. As a 4, he can switch screens and comfortably defend guards on the perimeter.
Mitch McGary
Position: Center
Experience: 2 years
Age: 24
Scouting report
+ Skilled, physical big man who can't get out of his own way
+ In danger of not making team with too many guaranteed contracts
Analysis
After averaging 14.9 points and 12.2 rebounds per 36 minutes in limited action as a rookie, McGary fell behind Adams and Kanter on Oklahoma City's center depth chart and played just 72 minutes all year in 2015-16. Just as he seemed to be making the case for playing time with a solid performance at the Orlando Pro Summer League, McGary was hit with a five-game suspension for violating the NBA's anti-drug program. An additional 10 games were later added to the suspension. The Thunder have 16 guaranteed contracts after dealing for Lauvergne, and if no additional trade materializes during training camp, McGary looks like the most likely cut.
Between the lines, McGary's biggest problem is how similar his game is to Kanter's. There's no way the two players could work together defensively, leaving McGary to wait for an injury to crack the Oklahoma City rotation. If he does get a chance, McGary has proven he can be a problem on the offensive glass and a good pick-and-roll finisher, albeit not much of a shot blocker.
Semaj Christon
Position: Guard
Experience: Rookie
Age: 23
Scouting report
+ Former second-round pick coming to training camp
+ High-scoring point guard who's not an outside threat
Analysis
Drafted by the Thunder in the 2014 second round, Christon played alongside Huestis in the D-League for a year before making more money last season in Italy. Oklahoma City will bring him to training camp this season, but with 16 guaranteed contracts on the roster, Christon is almost certain to be cut. That will make him a free agent going forward, giving Christon more NBA options, while the Thunder will get to assign Christon to the D-League with the $200,000 guaranteed portion of his contract (per Eric Pincus of BasketballInsiders.com) as a supplement to his meager salary. Alas, since Christon is only a marginal playmaker as a point guard and has yet to show the ability to hit the NBA 3-pointer (23.4 percent in the D-League), his future is more likely overseas than in the big leagues.