The Oklahoma City Thunder’s offseason is already off and running.
After being eliminated by the Spurs in seven games in the Western Conference finals, Thunder general manager Sam Presti wasted no time getting his team in order and began retooling the roster when he traded bench player Aaron Wiggins to the Hawks for two second-round picks on Sunday, per multiple reports.
The second-round picks will be executed in 2030 with the Hawks’ pick, and the least favorable of the two will be executed in 2032.
Wiggins is currently playing on a very team-friendly contract where he will be paid $9.2 million this season, $8.3 million in 2027-2028, and has an $8.3 million team option for the following year.
The compensation, while small for a young guard under that team-friendly deal, saves the Thunder $61 million as their luxury tax penalty drops from $213 million to $152 million.
It is certainly possible that the Thunder are accumulating assets to make a bigger splash in Tuesday’s NBA Draft.
Wiggins was mostly buried on the Thunder bench, playing in just 5.8 minutes per game during the Thunder’s playoff run this year, the lowest of his career after being a steady contributor in years prior.
He averaged 21.8 minutes per game during the regular season, averaging 9.4 points, and was a defensive menace on the ball, forcing nearly a steal per game.
Wiggins’ .9 steals per game and .4 bolocks per game were both career highs during the regular season.
The Thunder surely had no problem arming a team in the Eastern Conference with some more firepower to compete with the Knicks after their NBA Finals run.
The Hawks were the only team to beat the Knicks more than once during the postseason and appeared to give Mike Brown’s group the biggest challenge since the playoffs began.
Atlanta also re-signed scoring guard CJ McCollum to a one-year $21 million contract for the upcoming season, which includes a trade kicker if he’s moved.
The Hawks went 46-36 last season in an impressive rebuild after they moved off of Trae Young last offseason.
