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Lu Dort, Oklahoma City (TO): $17,705,328 It seems unlikely that the Thunder can continue with Dort next season. They have multiple players at his position who are both better and younger, the team is set to be $40 million over the projected luxury tax line and Dort is coming off an off-year in which he was ineffective in the Western Conference finals. The Thunder’s most likely pathway out would be to trade him for a second-round pick or two and generate a $17 million trade exception.
Rylan Styles: Sam Presti on the team options to Isaiah Hartenstein, Luguentz Dort, Kenrich Williams “The first thing is like I said I gotta talk to everybody. Got to get a sense of where everybody is…Is it possible that we just pick up the options for everybody and roll into next season? That’s certainly possible. I certainly wouldn’t rule that out because we haven’t gotten through those conversations…The process itself could take a little while because I want to understand what all is available to me.” Said “If we feel that it’s more beneficial to the organization to have the draft rights to those players irrespective of if they’re going to be on the team..” said it may not fit into a box
The Oklahoma City Thunder certainly face some difficult roster decisions over the next few weeks as they weigh the team options they hold for Hartenstein, Dort and Williams, but sources insist that trading Chet Holmgren is not part of the plan. As one close observer to the playoff exit of last season's champions put it to The Stein Line: "He's the best defensive player in the league ... aside from one."
Draymond Green: "How about this guy need to go back and get in the lab and get better and go work on his game because this guy just exposed all your weaknesses and showed everything that you need to get better at. What about the criticism of he need to get back in the lab this summer and be motivated and get better? Why is it we need to trade him? Like these takes they they just seem to get a little lazy at times to me, like trade him, why is all of a sudden everything always about the trade? Up, trade this guy, trade that guy, trade like, what? I just don't understand it. So, no, I don't expect Chet Holmgren to be traded. They will have to make some moves because I also don't foresee OKC paying $250 million in salary and taxes next year and going into the second apron. I don't see that either. So they will have to make some decisions, maybe Lu Dort, maybe Hartenstein, maybe trade Joe, maybe trade Wiggins. Like they're going to have to make some tough decisions for sure. Maybe they trade them picks because if they if they sign their 12th and 17th pick and they keep those and draft those players, it's going to cost them in the first year those salaries $80 million over the course of those two players. So maybe they do some of that stuff, but the whole trade Chet Holmgren is blasphemous, what he did this year."
Caruso, entering the second season of a four-year, $81 million extension, is considered a firm member of the long-term core, league sources said, proving again his extreme playoff value the past month in the locker room and on the court. Hartenstein and Dort also remained beloved organizationally, but their team options demand a more urgent decision -- opt them into an expiring, opt them out, trade the number at a positive market value or work out a decline-and-extend at a lower starting number.
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The decision on Dort is considered murkier, in part due to Wallace's presence as a potential replacement in the starting lineup who is in line for a significant raise, starting in the 2027-28 season. While Gilgeous-Alexander publicly vowed not to provide input to Presti on personnel matters, sources familiar with the superstar's thinking said that he privately intends to emphasize to management how much he values playing alongside Canadian countryman Dort. Dort switched agents from Thaddeus Foucher to Klutch Sports' Mike George this season, a move that hardly signifies a willingness to accept a team-friendly deal.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have some decisions to make this offseason after losing to the San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference Finals, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander will reportedly let his voice be heard despite previous comments suggesting he won't have any impact. "I was told, though, that Shai was playing a little bit coy there," ESPN's Tim MacMahon reported Monday (three-minute mark). "He will at least remind Sam Presti and the Thunder management just how much he values having Lu Dort as his teammate. Remember, those two are tied for the longest tenures of the guys on the roster right now. And, they spend their summers together playing for Team Canada."
Run It Back: Lou Williams says the Thunder shouldn't give up on Chet Holmgren. "Lu Dort will be the adjustment." Chandler Parsons: "Good news for OKC is Hartenstein & Dort are their only free agents. Bad news is Harrison Barnes is the only FA on the Spurs."
Lou Williams says the Thunder shouldn't give up on Chet Holmgren 🗣️
— Run It Back (@RunItBackFDTV) June 1, 2026
"Lu Dort will be the adjustment."
"Good news for OKC is Hartenstein & Dort are their only free agents. Bad news is Harrison Barnes is the only FA on the Spurs." - @ChandlerParsons@MichelleDBeadle | @TeamLou23 pic.twitter.com/MKutLS01ZD
Josh Lewenberg: To sum up NBAers in for Canada this summer: SGA, NAW, Barrett, Brooks, Dort, Nembhard bros, Mathurin, Olynyk, George, Miller Out this summer but in for this cycle: Edey, Powell Didn’t commit: Murray, Sharpe, Wiggins Committed but not selected: Lawson, Banton, Houstan, Prosper
Joel Lorenzi: Isaiah Hartenstein notes that this Thunder roster once represented an underdog story — with Lu Dort being undrafted, Hartenstein spending time in the G League, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander being traded — but says “it’s a little different now, I guess.” What does he mean? “I mean it’s…next question?”
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Joel Lorenzi: Lu Dort on how much he has grown as a person during his time with OKC: "A lot. Just imagining me at 20 years old when I came here first, the person I am today is totally different. Just the way that this organization shapes you on the court and off the court as a man, how to be professional and also just the love that we get from this city and our fans, there's nowhere I go around the city where I don't get reminded that I'm a Thunder player. People are so happy to see me. It's been amazing, and I'm still enjoying it."
Joel Lorenzi: Lu Dort on his upcoming team option: "The conversation hasn’t happened yet. I have a lot of trust in this organization, in Sam (Presti). Really grateful for all the stuff he did for me to this point. I want to stay here. This organization, this city shaped me as a player. My main goal is to stay here."
“The whole league now is trying to beat (OKC). That means they’re building their teams that way,” Kerr said. “San Antonio, they got young talent, they got Wemby, and they have really good and strong defensive guards. It was like, ‘Oh, s—.’ All of a sudden, they got a rival. I don’t know who the next young team who’s going to be doing that is, but you better believe when all these teams are building their rosters, they got the Thunder in mind, because they know for the next six, eight years, the Thunder are going to be at the top of the heap.” Now the Thunder will move with the Spurs — who boast a core trio aged 22 and younger — in mind. OKC’s summer comes with decisions. Holmgren and Jalen Williams’ extensions activate next season. With the second apron looming — the Thunder currently projected to be about $39 million above that mark next season — they hold team options on Isaiah Hartenstein ($28.5 million) and Lu Dort ($18.2 million).
