As the calendar flips to 2024, the NBA draft is roughly six months away. This also means college basketball is roughly two months away from starting March Madness.
2024 NBA mock drafts have seldom been posted since it’s still incredibly early to project where teams land and which prospects rise and fall on boards. That said, though, a handful of mocks have been posted over the last month.
The Oklahoma City Thunder — who have a 23-11 record and are second in the Western Conference standings — are rich with draft assets for this upcoming class.
The Thunder owns their first-round pick, a top-four protected pick from the Houston Rockets, a top-10 protected pick from the Utah Jazz and a first-round pick from the LA Clippers.
The Thunder also own the Rockets’ second-round pick. It’s important to note that the worst of the four first-round picks OKC owns will be conveyed to the Indiana Pacers.
With all that said, chances are the Thunder won’t enter the 2024 NBA draft with this many draft picks — they can’t afford the luxury of adding several rookies to their roster.
This means a consolidation trade is likely in the pipeline in the future — whether it’s to improve their roster by the trade deadline or package picks for a future/better pick.
All these elements lead to a murky picture as to how exactly this year’s draft might go for the Thunder. Nonetheless, let’s look at the latest versions of mock drafts to see who could be added to OKC’s youthful roster.
For transparency, all three of these mocks were published at various times — Bleacher Report was published on Jan. 5, Tankathon was published on Dec. 28 and NBADraft.net was published on Jan. 5.
No. 11 pick (via Jazz): Tidjane Salaun, France
Jonathan Wasserman, Bleacher Report: Tidjane Salaun, France (6-foot-8 forward, 212 pounds, 18 years old)
“While some teams may prefer to settle on high-floor role players, others may want to roll the dice on upside. And Tidjane Salaun’s ceiling is starting to look more tempting by the week, with the 18-year-old forward now 17-of-25 from three over his last six games.
Right now, the draw to Salaun revolves exclusively around athleticism and shotmaking. He hasn’t shown much off the dribble, and he has just 19 assists and five blocks through 26 games.
But he’s also one of the draft’s youngest prospects producing in France’s top league. And his positional size, movement and three-ball create a relatively translatable catch-and-score/finish package.”
No. 15 (via Rockets): Donovan Clingan, Connecticut
Jonathan Wasserman, Bleacher Report: Donovan Clingan, Connecticut (7-foot-2 center, 280 pounds, 19 years old)
“A foot strain cost Donovan Clingan a month back in September, and now he’s out another three to four weeks with a foot injury suffered against Seton Hall. It’s going to generate some discussion on durability, particularly given the amount of weight (280 lbs) he carries around.
No. 24 (via Clippers): Melvin Ajinca, France
Jonathan Wasserman, Bleacher Report: Melvin Ajinca, France (6-foot-7 forward, 19 years old)
“Teams in the 20s and 30s will target Melvin Ajinca’s shotmaking and shooting versatility, as it’s carried over from the U19 World Cup to LNB Pro A in France.
At 19 years old, he’s hit 34 threes in 18 games playing 23 minutes. And at 6’7″, he has a strong frame for either wing position.
He just hasn’t showcased much else, and analytics departments may see red flags with his scary-low assist and steal rates.”
No. 45 (via Rockets): Dillon Jones, Weber State
Jonathan Wasserman, Bleacher Report: Dillo Jones, Weber State (6-foot-6 forward, 235 pounds, 22 years old)
“Scouts sound conflicted by Dillon Jones’ out-of-the-box fit and versatility. Questions about whether he’s dangerous enough on the ball or a good-enough shooter to play off it are valid.
However, some team in the second round figures to be enticed by the Swiss Army knife potential that his ball-handling, passing, rebounding and shot-making flashes create.”
No. 11 (via Jazz): Stephon Castle, UConn
Tankathon: Stephon Castle (6-foot-6 guard, 190 pounds, 19 years old)
No. 14 (via Rockets): Tidjane Salaun, France
Tankathon: Tidjane Salaun, France (6-foot-8 forward, 212 pounds, 18 years old)
No. 24 (via Clippers): Zach Edey, Purdue
Tankathon: Zach Edey, Purdue (7-foot-4 center, 300 pounds, 21 years old)
No. 44: Adem Bona, UCLA
Tankathon: Adem Bona, UCLA (6-foot-9 center, 243 pounds, 20 years old)
No. 15: Bobi Klintman, Sweden
NBADraft.net: Bobi Klintman, Sweden (6-foot-10 forward, 225 pounds, 20 years old)
No. 24: Rob Dillingham, Kentucky
NBADraft.net: Rob Dillingham (6-foot-3 guard, 175 pounds, 19 years old)
No. 27: Melvin Ajinca, France
NBADraft.net: Melvin Ajinca, France (6-foot-7 forward, 19 years old)
No. 45: Zach Edey, Purdue
NBADraft.net: Zach Edey, Purdue (7-foot-4 center, 300 pounds, 21 years old
No. 59: Matthew Murrell, Mississippi
NBADraft.net: Matthew Murrell, Mississippi (6-foot-4 guard, 200 pounds, 22 years old)
