How top big men could fit Thunder in the NBA Draft
The Thunder’s roster is center-less. Al Horford and Moses Brown were traded to Boston, Mike Muscala is an unrestricted free agent and Tony Bradley is a restricted free agent. Isaiah Roby is a pseudo center in small-ball lineups, but Roby is naturally a power forward.
Horford and Muscala — who might very well re-sign with the Thunder — were ideal pick-and-pop partners alongside star point guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who feasts when driving to the basket.
Don’t be surprised if the Thunder adds a big man Thursday in the NBA Draft. Here are some options, based on where the Thunder is slated to pick.
No. 6 pick Alperen Sengun
Height/weight: 6-foot-9, 235 pounds Position: Center | Age: 18 Hometown: Giresun, Turkey Previous team: Besiktas (Turkey) Sengun is a traditional center who likes to play close to the basket. The MVP of the Turkish Super League averaged 18.6 points on 63% shooting as an 18-year-old. Sengun is a nonthreat from behind the arc, having shot 7-of-43 (16%) in two professional seasons. While his low-post offense is elite, his defense is questionable.
No. 16/18 picks Usman Garuba
Height/weight: 6-foot-8, 220 pounds Position: Forward/center | Age: 19 Hometown: Azuqueca de Henares, Spain
Previous team: Real Madrid (Spain) He’s a little undersized, but Garuba is versatile enough to play power forward or center. Garuba’s offensive game is a work in progress, but his defense is elite. He won the 2020-21 EuroLeague Rising Star award.
Isaiah Jackson
Height/weight: 6-foot-10, 206 pounds
Position: Forward/center | Age: 19 Hometown: Pontiac, Michigan College: Kentucky
Jackson led the SEC and ranked 15th nationally with 2.6 blocks per game. That was good enough to land him on the SEC All-Defensive team. On offense, Jackson is most dangerous as a lob threat. He’s one of the best dunkers in the draft.
Kai Jones
Height/weight: 6-foot-11, 218 pounds
Position: Forward/center | Age: 20 Hometown: Nassau, Bahamas College: Texas
Jones is an electric athlete with a remarkable, albeit raw, skill set. He’s most dangerous as a rim-runner and lob threat, but he can also handle the ball surprisingly well. Jones only attempted 34 3-pointers last season, but he made 38% of them. Jones didn’t start playing organized basketball until he was 15. He was the Big 12’s Sixth Man of the Year as a sopho
more.
No. 34/36/55 picks Charles Bassey
Height/weight: 6-foot-11, 235 pounds Position: Center | Age: 20 Hometown: Lagos, Nigeria College: Western Kentucky Bassey was a five-star prospect in the 2018 class. In three years at Western Kentucky, Bassey averaged 15.9 points, 10.5 rebounds and 2.6 blocks per game. He was named Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year last season in Conference USA.
Luka Garza
Height/weight: 6-foot-11, 235 pounds Position: Center | Age: 22 Hometown: Washington, D.C. College: Iowa
Garza was an all-time college player. He was the unanimous National Player of the Year last season, a two-time AllAmerican, a two-time Big Ten Player of the Year and Garza is the all-time leading scorer in Iowa history (2,306 points). Why isn’t he projected to go higher? Most draft experts don’t believe he has the athleticism to stick in the NBA.
RaiQuan Gray
Height/weight: 6-foot-8, 260 pounds Position: Forward/center | Age: 22 Hometown: Fort Lauderdale, Florida College: Florida State
Gray is going to push people around. He was the heaviest player measured at the combine, and it will be interesting to see what kind of role he can have in the NBA.
Filip Petrusev
Height/weight: 6-foot-11, 234 pounds Position: Center | Age: 20 Hometown: Belgrade, Serbia Previous team: KK Mega Soccerbet Petrusev has taken an unconventional route. He played at Gonzaga for two seasons, and was named West Coast Conference Player of the Year as a sophomore in 2019-20. He then moved back to Serbia, where he was named MVP of the Adriatic League.
Jeremiah Robinson-Earl
Height/weight: 6-foot-9, 230 pounds Position: Forward | Age: 20 Hometown: Kansas City, Missouri College: Villanova Robinson-Earl was the Big East Freshman of the Year in 2020 and Co-Big East Player of the Year in 2021. Robinson-Earl averaged 15.7 points and 8.5 rebounds per game last season.
Day’Ron Sharpe
Height/weight: 6-foot-11, 265 pounds Position: Center | Age: 19 Hometown: Greenville, North Carolina College: North Carolina
You know how Cade Cunningham, Scottie Barnes and Moses Moody were high school teammates at Montverde Academy? Sharpe was also on that team. Sharpe is one of the biggest players in the draft, and he uses his size on the boards. His seven offensive rebounds per 40 minutes were the most in UNC history.
Jericho Sims
Height/weight: 6-foot-10, 245 pounds Position: Center | Age: 22 Hometown: Minneapolis, Minnesota College: Texas
Add Jones and Sims to an already impressive group of Texas big men in the NBA. Sims was a four-year player and two-year starter for the Longhorns. He’s a dunking machine and a solid defender. He had the third-highest max vertical in NBA combine history.
Aamir Simms
Height/weight: 6-foot-8, 245 pounds Position: Forward/center | Age: 22 Hometown: Palmyra, Virginia College: Clemson
Simms was a productive four-year player at Clemson. He’s a skilled passer and shooter for a big man, making 40% of his 3-pointers in each of the past two seasons.
JT Thor
Height/weight: 6-foot-10, 205 pounds Position: Forward | Age: 18 Hometown: Omaha, Nebraska College: Auburn
Thor committed to Auburn over OSU in a tight recruiting battle. He needs to get bigger and stronger, but Thor has a high defensive upside.
Isaiah Todd
Height/weight: 6-foot-10, 220 pounds Position: Forward | Age: 19 Hometown: Baltimore, Maryland Previous team: G League Ignite Todd, a former Michigan commit, was overshadowed on the Ignite next to lottery picks Jalen Green and Jonathan Kuminga. Todd projects as a stretch four in the NBA. He shot 36% from 3point range in the G League.
Neemias Queta
Height/weight: 7-foot, 245 pounds Position: Center | Age: 22 Hometown: Lisbon, Portugal College: Utah State
Queta’s 7-foot-4 wingspan is the longest in the draft. It’s no surprise that he’s a shot-blocking specialist. He averaged 3.3 blocks per game as a junior at Utah State, and he was a two-time Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year.
Moses Wright
Height/weight: 6-foot-9, 233 pounds Position: Forward/center | Age: 22 Hometown: Raleigh, North Carolina College: Georgia Tech
Wright was the ACC Player of the Year last season, and Georgia Tech’s first All-ACC first-team in 20 years. He averaged 3.6 points per game as a freshman, and 17.4 points per game as a senior.