Biggest potential flaw for Thunder ahead of 2024-25 season

The Oklahoma City Thunder are loaded, both with young talent and future picks. But while the roster and the horde of picks were built patiently, will the front office be decisive if the team needs help at the deadline?

With Alex Caruso and Isaiah Hartenstein joining a team that finished first in the Western Conference last season, the young Thunder look poised to be even better. Caruso adds another tenacious defender who can make threes, and Hartenstein should help OKC's struggles with rebounding that doomed them in a second-round loss to the Dallas Mavericks. However, Hartenstein will be out until at least November, as he recently suffered a broken hand.

But those flaws were apparent last season when the Thunder were a top-three team in the West from December on. Yet, the team's big move at the deadline was to trade for an aging Gordon Hayward, then to trade a 2024 first-round pick for a 2028 pick swap. That's not the kind of move that puts a young team over the top.

General manager Sam Presti remained patient the whole time. He even managed to get Caruso from the Chicago Bulls without attaching a future draft pick, trading third-year guard Josh Giddey for Caruso straight up. He's got an incredible amount of ammunition for deals, especially after signing Aaron Wiggins and Isaiah Joe to eminently tradeable descending multiyear deals (meaning the salaries get smaller each season).

That's all theoretical until Presti and the Thunder actually do make a game-changing deal. Perhaps OKC trusts its young players and doesn't want to mess with team chemistry. Perhaps there hasn't been an ideal player available for them yet. However, it's a lot easier to trade off players and rack up future picks than it is to trade for ceiling-raising players.

There's no reason to distrust Presti yet, but with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in his prime, the Thunder shouldn't wait to maximize their chances with him. After all, the Thunder have far more future draft choices than they could ever fit onto their roster. If the Thunder have a glaring weakness this season, they can't wait until after they're bounced from the playoffs to correct it this time.