Under the microscope this season with their offseason additions of Paul George and Carmelo Anthony, the Oklahoma City Thunder have won 22 of 31 after getting off to a slow start.
Now with the trade deadline a week away, Oklahoma City will be busy on the phones looking to add pieces for a playoff push.
What kind of moves can the Thunder make?
The untouchables
The questions regarding the future of Paul George will not be answered until the offseason. In the meantime, the All-Star is not going anywhere as the deadline approaches, according to league sources. When the Thunder traded for George last summer, it was with the understanding that he was going to be part of their future.
Besides George, the core of the OKC roster -- Russell Westbrook, Steven Adams and Carmelo Anthony -- is off-limits when it comes to trade discussions. Westbrook, signed to a $205 million extension, cannot be traded until after Sept. 29. Even with the one-year restriction, Westbrook is deemed untouchable by the Thunder organization. Adams, still only 24 years old and in the first year of his $100 million rookie extension, is having a career season. Anthony still has a no-trade clause that carried over from his trade from New York.
The value of the roster
Outside of the $95 million committed to the core four, the Thunder have three players -- Terrance Ferguson, Alex Abrines and Jerami Grant -- who present the most value on their roster. Based on their age (Ferguson 19, Abrines 24 and Grant 23), combined salary of $9.0 million, and position (wing), all three are on opposing teams' radars. While Grant will be an unrestricted free agent in the offseason, Ferguson's $2.1 million and Abrines' $5.4 million salary next season are assets based on OKC's roster restrictions in 2018-19.
The salary-cap restrictions this past summer didn't hinder management from building the bench. The Thunder have $6.5 million combined in Raymond Felton and Patrick Patterson, a great value. Both players continue to be key contributors off the bench.
Turning draft picks into players
Because of the seven-year rule (2018-2024), Oklahoma City is restricted from trading a first-round pick until 2024 at the earliest. (There are three years of protection starting in 2020 for the pick owed to the Orlando Magic.) OKC can trade only a 2024 unprotected first-round pick, something that is not going to happen based on the roster uncertainty in the future. Even if the Thunder were eligible to trade their pick this season, roster restrictions this summer would likely have prevented that.
The Thunder are not alone when it comes to restrictions for trading first-round picks. Toronto and Houston, two of the top five teams in the NBA, have traded 2018 first-round picks.
OKC does have its own second-round pick this season, along with Boston's. Both picks are currently projected to be in the 50s.
Because first-round picks to Minnesota and Orlando would turn into second-rounders if not conveyed, Oklahoma City is not permitted to trade a second-round pick in 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023.
Toughest contract to trade
As mentioned earlier, the roster for Oklahoma City has value from top to bottom.
That said, the one contract that is unmovable without attaching at least a second-round pick is that of reserve Kyle Singler. Signed to a five-year, $25 million contract in 2015, Singler has annual cap hits of $4.6 million, $4.9 million and $5.3 million. The third season has no salary protection and becomes guaranteed on Aug. 15, 2019. While not an albatross contract, Singler's deal presents a challenge not only because of his salary for next season, but because he is more of an end-of-the-bench rotation player.
While not in the category of Singler, the contract of Josh Huestis presents an issue as well. Because Oklahoma City declined his fourth-year option, a team acquiring him in a trade is restricted to offering him a contract that cannot exceed $2.2 million this summer.
What to target at the deadline
Two names to keep an eye on: the Hawks' Marco Belinelli and Suns' Alex Len.
Had Andre Roberson not gotten hurt, Belinelli still would have been on Oklahoma City's wish list. The veteran on an expiring contract continues to play at a high level and has been a steady presence in a rebuilding season for Atlanta.
With a lack of depth among the frontcourt, Oklahoma City is in need of insurance in case Adams suffers an injury (he can also be prone to foul trouble). Len would need to greenlight a trade, something he would likely do for a chance to play on a Thunder team headed toward the playoffs.
However, acquiring either player will not be easy.
The Hawks would have to take on the extra year of salary for Singler or Abrines, and would likely want draft compensation in return. For Len, only the Abrines salary would fit.
One spot the Thunder will not be targeting is a defensive stopper to replace the injured Roberson. That job will be done by a committee of Ferguson, Huestis and Grant.
Post-deadline roster movement
The Thunder have an open roster spot and will be active close to the March 1 waiver buyout deadline if they do not make a trade.
Adding a player would cost Oklahoma City close to $1 million in additional luxury tax. The Thunder already have a luxury tax bill of $24.5 million.