Brian Windhorst shares how OKC secured Jalen Williams by drafting another player and making a deal with the Knicks

Brian Windhorst reveals that the Thunder orchestrated a complex trade to secure Jalen Williams

NBA insider Brian Windhorst revealed that Oklahoma City specifically targeted Williams in that draft and executed a calculated strategy to ensure they could select him.

The Thunder sent three first-round picks to the New York Knicks for the 11th selection, which they used on Ousmane Dieng. The move protected them from other teams potentially trading up ahead of them.

“The Thunder had the 12th pick in the draft. They knew the Knicks were auctioning off the 11th in front of them and they [OKC] really wanted Jalen Williams,” Windhorst explained.

Oklahoma City feared another team would acquire the Knicks’ pick and select Williams before their turn at 12th overall.

“And so, not that they didn’t want Ousmane Dieng, but the guy they wanted was Jalen Williams and they were afraid with the Knicks pick being very available that somebody was going to trade into that spot and take Jay Dub in front of them,” he continued.

Strategic insurance policy paid massive dividends

The Thunder’s approach involved securing the 11th pick as insurance rather than using it directly on their primary target. This strategy eliminated any uncertainty about Williams’ availability at 12th overall.

The organization chose this complicated route because they couldn’t risk losing their preferred prospect to an unexpected trade.

“So, they [OKC] sent three first round picks. Now they were protected, it wasn’t three unprotected picks. But they sent three first round picks to the Knicks to take to get number 11 pick and took Dieng,” Windhorst noted.

“And you might say, ‘Well, why didn’t they take Williams instead of Dieng if they were so worried about that?’ Because they were worried that something might happen in the trade or somebody might back out. They knew that they had the 12th pick, which was the Clippers pick. They knew for sure that they had it,” he added.

Considering Williams’ contributions over three seasons, the price paid to New York proved worthwhile. His All-Star level production and max contract extension validate the Thunder’s aggressive approach.

While Dieng hasn’t fulfilled expectations as a higher draft selection, he served his purpose as insurance to secure Williams’ talent.