The Oklahoma City Thunder made their No. 12 pick, selecting Serbian point guard Nikola Topic. Coming off their previous success at the 12th pick, the Thunder are hoping to have pulled off another bargain.
At times during this process, Topic has been considered one of the top talents in the class, soaring to the top five – some landing as high as the No. 1 spot for the Serbian product. However, knee injuries have set Topic back, the latest being a partially torn ACL that is expected to sideline him for the entire 2024-25 NBA season.
However, the organization has already had a redshirt season and feels confident in its ability to maximize Topic’s bye year as it did for star center Chet Holmgren. That was part of the thought process behind selecting the guard in the lottery.
Oklahoma City also redesigned its schedule with a giant point guard archetype. After sending Josh Giddey to the Windy City last week, Oklahoma City selected Topic, a 6-foot-5 point guard with a more likely path to shooting success.
Topic finished at the rim at a high rate (68 percent) and shot free throws at an 86 percent clip — with Chip Engelland needing another shot, the 18-year-old’s potential to maximize his jump shot is much more likely than it ever was with Giddey and his already productive finishing at the rim.
Another area that the franchise says will help this remake of the archetype come to fruition is the starting point. Topic will immediately know what role he’s in and will be able to evolve into it with the team rather than taking on the ever-changing challenges that Giddey faced.
Topic’s pick isn’t inspiring for the current iteration of the team – mostly because he’s been sidelined for the entire season – but even if the Thunder were to target a more “pro-ready” player, the path to consistent minutes with this loaded roster would be difficult to find.
But that’s the luxury Oklahoma City can afford. With a team already loaded with talent coming off a 57-win season, the Thunder can bet on Topic reaching his potential as a top-five talent without fear of extinction.
If Topic comes to the Thunder, he’ll have an extremely talented player to add to an already championship-caliber core. If the 18-year-old struggles to adapt to the NBA, never sees his jump shot coming, and is slow defensively, that’s fine.
The fact that the deal doesn’t come to fruition doesn’t set the Thunder back one step in their climb to the top of the league. OKC has plenty of get-out-of-jail-free cards in the upcoming draft picks and ways to compensate for a potential failure. However, if he’s a top-five talent in this draft, it’ll be like taking an elevator to the top of Mount Everest.
Oklahoma City would never have been able to count on a rookie of this class, with plenty of options in free agency and the trade market to have a bigger impact on next year’s team than a rookie ever could. Now it’s up to the Thunder to bolster their roster with more experienced players as free agency is upon us.
Category B – A bet on the house money that, if it pays off, sets up the franchise and, if not, it will be forgotten in just a few days after the hypothetical end of the era.
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