OKC Thunder Take NBA Draft Lottery Loss

Despite this, the Thunder still look to be the team to beat in the Western Conference thanks to their young core including MVP finalist Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

While the Thunder prepare for Game 5 on Tuesday, they also had a massive opportunity to land a lottery pick in the 2025 NBA Draft on Monday night during the draft lottery.

Of course, the Thunder would grab a lottery pick if the Philadelphia 76ers’ pick would have ended up outside of the top six but unfortunately for Oklahoma City, that was not the case.

Instead, the 76ers received the third pick in the draft and while this is a major loss for the Thunder, it could work in their favor in the future.

Philadelphia will now send the Thunder a 2026 top-four protected first-round pick and if that pick does not convey, then the 76ers would send them another top-four protected pick in 2027.

With Joel Embiid’s injury history and Paul George not fitting will during his first season, it could be a long road ahead for the 76ers, which could turn out well for the Thunder.

While the Thunder did not receive the 76ers pick during the draft lottery, they still own the 15th, 24th and either the 44th or 45th pick in the upcoming 2025 draft.

Because of this, Oklahoma City will have another opportunity to add more young talent to their team next season to make another deep playoff run.