NBA Draft 2016: Grades for every team

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Jun 23, 2016; New York, NY, USA; Domantas Sabonis (Gonzaga) greets NBA commissioner Adam Silver after being selected as the number eleven overall pick to the Orlando Magic in the first round of the 2016 NBA Draft at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports /

Oklahoma City Thunder

Picks: No. 11 Domantas Sabonis, No. 56 Daniel Hamilton

Admittedly, there are people around the NBA that aren’t the biggest fans of the Oklahoma City Thunder trading Serge Ibaka at this point in time. While I understand that sentiment considering that he’s still a player with upside bursting at the seams and a player that seems tailor-made for the modern NBA, I absolutely love what the Thunder were able to do on Thursday and what they were able to turn Ibaka into for them.

For one, the Thunder got a king’s ransom in and of itself for Ibaka in virtually every regard. That they were able to lure both Victor Oladipo and Ersan Ilyasova in addition to a lottery pick is an absolute haul for OKC. What you have to love even more than that if you’re a Thunder fan, though, is the fact that the lottery pick turned out to be Domantas Sabonis. I don’t think it’s possible to love that selection for the Thunder more. You pair a tough-as-nails player with skill like Sabonis in a frontcourt with a guy like Steven Adams moving forward and you really have something special.

What’s even underrated about the Thunder’s draft is that I kind of like the Daniel Hamilton pick at the end of the second round as well. While he had his issues at UConn, he has the physical tools to potentially develop into something and OKC taking a flyer to see what they can do with him only makes a great draft night for them even more attractive.

Final Grade: A+

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