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Darnell Mayberry saying Huestis may not even be signed to a NBA deal this year essentially making him a domestic draft and stash.

Darnell Mayberry @DarnellMayberry · 2h
Why Josh Huestis might become the NBA's first domestic 'draft-and-stash' player http://okne.ws/1nJDKCL

Clearly the pick now makes a lot more sense. They didn't want to use a roster spot on another rookie and either didn't want to or couldn't trade the pick and felt better about this than a Euro Stash for some reason. Still a questionable pick considering Huestis' age/lack of upside. Even after a year in the D League he isn't likely to develop all that much.

Old Man Game wrote:Darnell Mayberry saying Huestis may not even be signed to a NBA deal this year essentially making him a domestic draft and stash.

Darnell Mayberry @DarnellMayberry · 2h
Why Josh Huestis might become the NBA's first domestic 'draft-and-stash' player http://okne.ws/1nJDKCL

Clearly the pick now makes a lot more sense. They didn't want to use a roster spot on another rookie and either didn't want to or couldn't trade the pick and felt better about this than a Euro Stash for some reason. Still a questionable pick considering Huestis' age/lack of upside. Even after a year in the D League he isn't likely to develop all that much.

Was just coming in to post this. It's an odd and interesting move. I feel a little better too, and hope they use the roster spot for someone. Most surprising to me is Huestis taking that pay cut, but I guess since he was projected by most as a late 2nd rounder, he figured this would be where he was anyway. Odd move, but it works out in the end it seems.

bondom34 wrote:

Old Man Game wrote:Darnell Mayberry saying Huestis may not even be signed to a NBA deal this year essentially making him a domestic draft and stash.

Darnell Mayberry @DarnellMayberry · 2h
Why Josh Huestis might become the NBA's first domestic 'draft-and-stash' player http://okne.ws/1nJDKCL

Clearly the pick now makes a lot more sense. They didn't want to use a roster spot on another rookie and either didn't want to or couldn't trade the pick and felt better about this than a Euro Stash for some reason. Still a questionable pick considering Huestis' age/lack of upside. Even after a year in the D League he isn't likely to develop all that much.

Was just coming in to post this. It's an odd and interesting move. I feel a little better too, and hope they use the roster spot for someone. Most surprising to me is Huestis taking that pay cut, but I guess since he was projected by most as a late 2nd rounder, he figured this would be where he was anyway. Odd move, but it works out in the end it seems.

It does except for one thing. Presumably as a first round pick he'll still have a guaranteed deal when he does eventually sign. If he ends up being a fringe nba player (as he was a fringe nba prospect) then it would have been preferable to have him on a non-guaranteed deal so you could cut him or more easily use him as a trade piece throw-in.

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I think this makes the drafting worse. There were better euro prospects if we wanted to draft and stash and this means We're acknowledging Huestis was clearly not a first round prospect. We could have traded that pick for any pair of mid seconds and probably stashed Jokic and Huestis, or just not picked Huestis at all.

Edit: I do love that we're so adept at using the d-league though. I think we talk about it more on this forum than the rest of the team forums combined

Here's a short interview Presti did last February on the team's use of the D League. You can see some of the seeds already being sewn for this move I think.

http://newsok.com/thunder-gm-sam-presti ... le/3930806

spearsy23 wrote:I think this makes the drafting worse. There were better euro prospects if we wanted to draft and stash and this means We're acknowledging Huestis was clearly not a first round prospect. We could have traded that pick for any pair of mid seconds and probably stashed Jokic and Huestis, or just not picked Huestis at all.

Edit: I do love that we're so adept at using the d-league though. I think we talk about it more on this forum than the rest of the team forums combined

I have to agree. Damien Inglis looked like a much better wing prospect and he just turned 19. How on Earth does 22 year old Josh Huestis make sense when you could have had that instead.

bondom34 wrote:I feel a little better too, and hope they use the roster spot for someone.

They'll use that roster spot for the great and powerful Thabeet!

PG- Russ, Reggie, Telfair
SG- Lamb, Morrow, Roberson
SF- KD, PJ3
PF- Ibaka, Collison, McGary, Jerrett
C- Adams, Perkins Thabeet

This was a deep draft, maybe this type of move would have made more sense last year or next year - but not this year. there were some really good players available where Huestis was drafted. And I agree with the poster who said draft-and-stash a European player would have been better.

This is pretty shady, IMO. If you're a 1st round draft choice, you shouldn't be looking at a $25,000 salary in year 1. This is shady NBA bus in my eyes. Whether it was an agreement beforehand or not, a 1st round pick, stateside, should draw a 1st round paycheck.

OlDirtMcBert wrote:This is pretty shady, IMO. If you're a 1st round draft choice, you shouldn't be looking at a $25,000 salary in year 1. This is shady NBA bus in my eyes. Whether it was an agreement beforehand or not, a 1st round pick, stateside, should draw a 1st round paycheck.

My theory is that in the next collective bargaining agreement, perhaps in part because of the publicity this deal will garner, you will see a provision allowing teams to sign their first rounders to the d League before camp starts, pay them their normal salary as a first rounder, but not have that take up a regular season roster spot or count against the parent team's cap.

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This doesn't make the organization look very good

Josh Huestis' agent spoke with Zach Lowe and confirmed that this was a pre-arranged deal made by both sides before the draft. This casts the situation in a more favorable light, since Huestis was not 'taken advantage of' and forced into a scenario he didn't want. His agent explains to Lowe that instead of taking the risk of not getting drafted at all, he preferred taking the one season in the D-League (as opposed to Europe, where he could make more money presumably) and then sign a rookie scale contract.

If there's anything wrong with this picture, it's the peanuts salary of the D-League. I like the move from both sides. Huestis was scouted intensively by Troy Weaver -- the team liked him, and they acquired him in a way that is favorable for the organization if he pans out without having to commit a precious roster spot this year.

Space Dracula wrote:Josh Huestis' agent spoke with Zach Lowe and confirmed that this was a pre-arranged deal made by both sides before the draft. This casts the situation in a more favorable light, since Huestis was not 'taken advantage of' and forced into a scenario he didn't want. His agent explains to Lowe that instead of taking the risk of not getting drafted at all, he preferred taking the one season in the D-League (as opposed to Europe, where he could make more money presumably) and then sign a rookie scale contract.

If there's anything wrong with this picture, it's the peanuts salary of the D-League. I like the move from both sides. Huestis was scouted intensively by Troy Weaver -- the team liked him, and they acquired him in a way that is favorable for the organization if he pans out without having to commit a precious roster spot this year.

Was just gonna post this. Also said he'd only do it for OKC or the Spurs, which shows something as well. It's still a very very strange arrangement, but I guess he felt better knowing that he had some future in basketball than not knowing if he'd be drafted. I don't think the league can or will do anything, but it'll probably be dealt with in the next CBA. For now, it frees up a roster spot if they decide to use any of the remaining MLE or BAE and cut Thabeet. Doubt it, but you never know. I kinda wish they would, but as usual, conservative.

I'm not sure I'd construe an organization that just pulled this move off as 'conservative' in their actions.

Space Dracula wrote:I'm not sure I'd construe an organization that just pulled this move off as 'conservative' in their actions.

You know what I mean, free agency wise.

I think this is kinda crap. Just take the best player available. Pinching penny's in free agency is one thing, but for the second year in a row OKC made a cheap move in the draft (Roberson's 80% rookie scale). This is a good thing for Huestis, but OKC basically forfeited a first round draft pick in order to save cap space. Although the impact on the team will likely be minimal, once again we sacrificed talent in order to save money.

Now i get that Presti has a great tack record in the draft, but thats when he's actually trying to get the best guy available, not a much worse player who would actually accept this deal. We very likely could've ended up with Mitch McGary either way, and either Rodney Hood, Shabazz Napier, or Kyle Anderson etc.. someone who has a way better upside. But instead we chose to save cap space.. smh.

And yes i get the consideration of saving a roster spot. But would you rather have Telfair on the team as a 3rd PG or Napier? Rodney Hood or Grant Jerrett? Kyle Anderson or Hasheem Thabeet? Personally, I'd prefer a prospect with potential, instead of a prospect with little to no upside or a proven bust with absolutely zero upside.

I think Presti believed that McGary was the BPA at #21. That is why he picked him. Rather I agree with him being the BPA is irrelevant, but McGary has talent and was viewed as a top 10 pick going into the season until he got hurt. As for Huestis, my issue is more along the lines I saw better talented euro players. However, Presti must have seen something in him he liked.

I do not think this is pinching pennies. I also do not think Roberson was pinching pennies any more so then having the leverage and making him take the minimum to keep room for a move without hitting the tax. Paying a player the minimum you can is just good business. A guy like Roberson, or any late first round pick, can't hold out for more because their options are too limited. If you are picking in the top 10 then that is a different story. The player can tell you to pay them or they will sit out and be a top 10 pick again next year. What is a late 1st round pick going to say? Pay me or I'll sit out the year and maybe be a late 1st round pick next year?

I'll take Telfair all day every day over Nappier. I'd rather have Semaj Christon then either of them. Hood, I would like to have in the d-league learning to play defense and adjusting to the NBA 3-point line. However, I wouldn't want him in OKC as a rookie. He can't defend or rebound or maybe I should say doesn't, because those tend to point to a lack of effort and not talent. Lazy players do not make it in the NBA and you can go ask Michael Beasley about talented and lazy. I'd rather have Seth Curry or Doron Lamb over Rodney Hood this year. Both Curry and Lamb are better shooters right now and none of the three play defense they are a poor man's Anthony Morrow and maybe some day they grow up to be Morrow.

BrianDavis wrote:
And yes i get the consideration of saving a roster spot. But would you rather have Telfair on the team as a 3rd PG or Napier? Rodney Hood or Grant Jerrett? Kyle Anderson or Hasheem Thabeet? Personally, I'd prefer a prospect with potential, instead of a prospect with little to no upside or a proven bust with absolutely zero upside.

I'd rather have Semaj Christon than Napier. We couldn't get Rodney Hood and mcgary so I'd prefer McGary. Thabeet had no impact on who we drafted. I wouldn't have wanted any of those three guys, but I would have liked Damien Inglis or Jokic.

Kizz Fastfists wrote:I do not think this is pinching pennies. I also do not think Roberson was pinching pennies any more so then having the leverage and making him take the minimum to keep room for a move without hitting the tax. Paying a player the minimum you can is just good business. A guy like Roberson, or any late first round pick, can't hold out for more because their options are too limited. If you are picking in the top 10 then that is a different story. The player can tell you to pay them or they will sit out and be a top 10 pick again next year. What is a late 1st round pick going to say? Pay me or I'll sit out the year and maybe be a late 1st round pick next year?

This is what I find frustrating. Just that so many are reaching for a story, and that's what they want it to be, so suddenly it's pinching pennies. I actually think it was a brilliant move by Huestis's agent if he really didn't think he'd be drafted.

bondom34 wrote:This is what I find frustrating. Just that so many are reaching for a story, and that's what they want it to be, so suddenly it's pinching pennies. I actually think it was a brilliant move by Huestis's agent if he really didn't think he'd be drafted.

The more of the story comes out the more interesting I find it. I'll never feel Huestis was the correct pick at the time, but that doesn't mean he won't end up being better then the guys I would have drafted instead. I didn't like Westbrook and he is still one of my least favorite players on the team. If he ever develops a dependable 3 point shot, or stops taking them in volume, I'll like him a lot more. Huestis was only willing to take this type of deal for the Thunder or Spurs. Since that is the case I have to think both teams had the option so there is a chance the Spurs might have taken him. I think this will make for some interesting discussion about draft picks signing d-league contracts and will create a new CBA issue to be discussed in a few years.

Putting Huestis in the d-league isn't saving any more money then if they had picked one of the draft and stash guys I wanted. I actually thought that pick would be used on Semaj heading into the draft just because of how much he fits the idea of a Thunder PG and OKC worked him out, etc. Everything just looked like they would end up with Semaj. They got him in the 2nd round so even better. We can argue that the pick should have been Inglis or others instead of Huestis, but we really won't know that for 3-5 years. If Huestis ends up playing a year or two in the d-league then having a solid career for the Thunder it could really open up options for them to get other guys to agree to it down the road. If Huestis never gets that rookie contract then it will be hard to sell others on it. I thought there was a pretty big group of prospects from around 25-45 that were very similar in pure talent with various skill sets, but none that jumped out as more of a sure thing then the others. My problem was I thought Huestis was in the group below that as a fringe 2nd round pick.

Huestis has an NBA skill, defense, and if his shooting turns out to be as good then he could end up as a very good player. I don't think anyone expects him to be an all-star, but a better shooting Thabo would be great in my book. If Huestis becomes a legitimate 3 and D guy then there will be no complaining about the pick in a few years and people will just be marveling at the brilliance of Presti. Now that everything has played out I'm not as down on the pick as I was on draft day. I'm not high on the pick by any means. I'm more indifferent on it at this point similar to how I felt about Roberson last year. Although, Presti could have drafted a 5'2 300llb SG after drafting Adams and I still would have been screaming it was a great draft. If Presti had been fortunate enough to have a top 15 pick this year then no one would have been paying as much attention to Huestis.