The 2023 NBA Draft is set to take place in just over three weeks. On June 22, the Oklahoma City Thunder will have big decisions to make as this major event will impact the future of the franchise. As of today, the Thunder has three selections in the upcoming draft, slated to choose a prospect at No. 12, No. 37 and No. 50 overall.

Oklahoma City is already in a bit of a roster crunch, so bringing in three additional players could be challenging. However, Thunder GM Sam Presti has never been one to avoid adding talent and creating competition in training camp. Furthermore, the NBA has introduced a third two-way spot in the upcoming season, which does help a team like OKC retain prospects.

This situation will only get more difficult next year, as the Thunder has upwards of four first-round selections in the 2024 NBA Draft. As such, it could make sense for the team to be active on draft night next month to get ahead of that.

While the natural option with a surplus of future draft capital is to package future selections to move up, there’s quite a few things the Thunder could do to maximize the value of these assets.

Move Up

Again, the most likely scenario if Oklahoma City was to make a move on draft night would be moving up. Whether it’s consolidating with the second rounders in this draft or throwing in future picks along with No. 12, this would be Presti’s way of moving up to get a prospect he views as a cornerstone piece in the lottery.

Move Back

Despite already having an incredible amount of future draft capital, Oklahoma City could add more while also taking a prospect viewed as a long-term core player. With how deep the middle part of the first round is expected to be, the Thunder could trade back and still get one of the top players on Oklahoma City’s board plus another asset. When the No. 12 selection comes around, if there’s several players that OKC likes still available, this could be a quality option.

Sell Picks

If Oklahoma City wants to maintain the quantity of picks it owns, but kick the can down the road, selling picks in this draft could be a good option. While this is more likely something that’s considered with the second-round picks, it should be a very viable scenario. For example, trading pick No. 50 for a second rounder in a few years not only helps avoid a roster crunch in the upcoming season, but also provides the potential opportunity to land a higher selection when the future pick conveys.

Buy Additional Picks

In what would be the opposite of kicking the can down the road, Oklahoma City could also buy an additional pick in the 2023 NBA Draft. This is exactly what the Thunder did last year, trading three future first rounders for the No. 11 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, where Ousmane Dieng was taken. This option is still a consolidation move, which could alleviate having more picks than the team can use in the future. Current players could also be involved in this type of deal.

Each of these scenarios make sense depending on the offers that Oklahoma City has on the table when the draft comes around. The Thunder is at an interesting point in the rebuild in which there’s a variety of directions the team can go and still take a step forward in long-term sustained success.

While OKC could simply stay put and select at the three spots the Thunder is currently slated to, don’t be surprised if there’s movement on draft night.