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Heading into the 2019-20 season, the Oklahoma City Thunder are clearly in win-now mode. With the No. 21 overall pick, they had several options heading into the 2019 NBA Draft.
The Thunder's goal coming into the draft was to shed salary to reduce their luxury tax bill without taking a step back. To do this, they would look to add their No. 21 pick as a sweetener in a trade involving one of their players with large contracts, such as Steven Adams, Dennis Schroder, and Andre Roberson.
Midway through the draft, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Oklahoma City was making increased efforts in trading back in the draft and dumping their first round pick.
When the Oklahoma City Thunder were on the clock to select at No. 21, Shams Charania of The Athletic announced that they were trading back in the draft, swapping No. 21 with the Memphis Grizzlies for their No. 23 pick. The Grizzlies would also include a 2024 second round pick in order to move up two spots in the draft.
At pick No. 23, the Thunder selected Darius Bazley. Bazley, a 6'9" wing, has a 7'0 wingspan, meeting the prototypical Thunder draft mold. He decided against playing college basketball, going straight to the NBA. Bazley played at Princeton High School in Cincinnati, OH.
Formerly a Syracuse commit, he did not play basketball in the 2018-19 season, but rather decided to work out in preparation for the 2019 NBA Draft. This made him eligible to forego college altogether. He appeared in many elite-level high school events such as the McDonald’s All-American Game, Jordan Brand Classic, and Nike Hoop Summit.
Although he has limited experience, Bazley has the tools to be an elite player on both ends of the floor. He is extremely versatile and should be able to play multiple positions. A left-handed shooter, he has somewhat of an awkward shot, but with some minor tweaking doesn't project to have an issue shooting the ball at the NBA level.
Bazley is represented by Rich Paul of Klutch Sports, who also represents NBA superstars like LeBron James and Anthony Davis. He already has a shoe sponsorship with New Balance which will pay him at least $1 million and could reach $14 million if he hits performance incentives, according to Marc Stein of the New York Times.
When it came down to it, Oklahoma City decided not to use their first round pick to add to a package in order to dump salary. Although it is possible that Bazley could be traded later on, for now he is a member of the Oklahoma City Thunder roster.
One of the most raw talents in the 2019 Draft Class, Darius Bazley should not be a shocking pick by General Manager Sam Presti and the rest of the Thunder front office. This is the second consecutive first-round pick Oklahoma City has selected that did not play at the college level, after drafting Terrance Ferguson in the 2017 NBA Draft.
