Trade No. 4: Oklahoma City Thunder
What if the Oklahoma City Thunder decided to shoot for the moon?
They were the youngest 1-seed in an extremely long time last year, and they only got better this summer by adding Alex Caruso and Isaiah Hartenstein. Without making another trade, they may have both the top-end talent and the depth to win multiple titles.
What if the Thunder decided to build on an incredible foundation and add the greatest shooter of all time to the team? It seems somewhat unlike that front office, but Curry is a special player and would make them the clear title favorites.
To do so, the Thunder would need to get together a large amount of matching salary. If they want to keep their core in place, they could just barely get there if they aggregate all of their other money together. He is what such a deal could look like:
The Warriors would be taking on a lot of players, so this likely would need to be a three-team trade with another team taking on a player or two; these are all valuable players, however, so that would be simple enough to work out. There will be a short window in October where Joe and Wiggins will be eligible to be traded and the Warriors can have up to 18 players on their roster.
This deal would certainly strip away a lot of the Thunder's depth. What's fascinating, however, is that they would still have a functional rotation and could add a few veterans around that group.
The starting lineup would feature something like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Stephen Curry, Luguentz Dort, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren, with Alex Caruso, Isaiah Hartenstein and Jaylin Williams coming off the bench. They would also still have their room exception to add another player, in addition to multiple roster spots to give minimums to any remaining players of note in free agency, or to pick up players on the buyout market.
Who Says No? Despite the preponderance of elite talent this trade would bring the Thunder, it is very much outside of their M.O. and doesn't feel like something Sam Presti would say yes to. He wants to win with his roster.
The Warriors likewise may shy away from this deal. It's a whole lot of valuable pieces, but no home run asset and it would be a nightmare logistically working out where each player would end up and for what.
If Stephen Curry wants to win, however, this would be a phenomenal landing spot. At the same time, he may look at the youth of the team and not trust them yet. This one looks a bit too shaky to get off the ground.