Yeah, Morey needs to hurry up and trade the rights to Sergei Lishouk soon, or he won't have time to get them back at the trade deadline. Maybe packaging Brewer with Lishouk will get it done.
I like Grant in OKC. He's super active and will fit in well with Oladipo and Westbrook. Runs around, high energy, creates havoc, doesn't command the ball. I don't think he has to rebound or dribble to make an impact there. Ersan never settles in. Stretch 4's are overrated.
They have enough high energy, don't command the ball, can't shoot players. Tell that to Daryl & the Rockets who just spent a pretty penny on a stretch four.
Trade Grades The deal Thunder get: Forward Jerami Grant 76ers get: Forward Ersan Ilyasova, protected future first-round pick Oklahoma City Thunder: B- There are layers to this move from the Thunder's perspective, some positive and some negative. Let's start with the good. Grant's contract, which falls into the category known as "the Hinkie Special" after former Philadelphia GM Sam Hinkie, is one of the league's most favorable from the team's perspective. Grant will make the veteran's minimum this season, fully non-guaranteed, then has a 2017-18 team option for the minimum that's fully non-guaranteed even if exercised. The Thunder can decide next summer whether to pick up Grant's option and have another year of him at a bargain price or decline it, making him a restricted free agent and giving them the opportunity to match any offer. (Grant will be an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2018 if he plays out his full deal.) At that price, Grant is a good value. He started 52 games and played more than 2,000 minutes last season, and while that had more than a little something to do with the 76ers' weak roster, Grant has translated his athleticism into prodigious shot blocking for a power forward: 2.2 blocks per 36 minutes last year, a rate better than that of the average center. The issue is the other end of the floor, where Grant can't shoot at all. After hitting 31.4 percent of his 3-pointers as a rookie, Grant regressed to 24.0 percent last season, which is probably closer to his true ability. The non-shooting means Grant can't really play on the perimeter, and Oklahoma City will even find it difficult to play him at power forward alongside its starting perimeter trio of Russell Westbrook, Victor Oladipo and Andre Roberson. The Thunder were already shooting a dismal 29.0 percent from 3-point range this season, and now they've swapped one of their better shooters for a much weaker one. So right now, this move probably makes Oklahoma City a worse team. That's tougher to say in the long run. The most interesting part of this deal is that the Thunder can drop about $7.2 million below the salary cap by swapping Ilyasova's $8.4 million salary for Grant's $1 million salary. That could allow Oklahoma City to help another team save money between now and the deadline by acquiring a more expensive player or outbid most playoff teams for any free agents who hit the market after buyouts. According to Bobby Marks of The Vertical, the pick the Thunder are sending to Philadelphia is top-20 protected and otherwise converts into two second-round picks. That limits the downside to this deal, particularly because the first-round pick can't convey until 2020 at earliest. On its own, paying a late first or two second-round picks for Grant is probably an overpay for Oklahoma City. Adding in the additional cap flexibility, however, makes this a more favorable swap that could result in a stronger Thunder team by the playoffs. Philadelphia 76ers: B The 76ers' floor spacing issues are every bit as bad as Oklahoma City's, and Grant was a poor fit alongside their center trio of Joel Embiid, Nerlens Noel and Jahlil Okafor. So despite his favorable contract, Grant was probably not long for Philadelphia. In the short term, the addition of Ilyasova is of a piece with signing Gerald Henderson as a free agent last summer. He's a veteran with complementary role-player skills who can help make the 76ers more competitive on the court this season, and theoretically help the development of the centers. Like Henderson, Ilyasova costs Philadelphia almost nothing financially because the team is below the salary floor this season and his contract expires next summer. In the long term, the Sixers are betting they can get more value out of either a late first-round pick or a pair of second-rounders than they got out of Grant. From a pure value standpoint, turning the No. 39 pick of the 2014 Draft into that is a win for Philadelphia.
Good trade for OKC. That pick is worse than top 20 protected in 2020. OKC also has to make the playoffs in 2018 for it to convey due to the Stepien rules (owed first to Utah). So most likely it's second rnders in 2022 and 2023. Grant is worth more than that.
