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The Oklahoma City Thunder has waived guard Frank Jackson, it was announced today by Executive Vice President and General Manager Sam Presti.
Jackson appeared in three preseason games for the Thunder and averaged 12.3 points, 1.0 assist and 2.0 rebounds in 20.1 minutes per game. He was originally signed on Dec. 4.
The Oklahoma City Thunder has waived forwards TJ Leaf and Admiral Schofield.
Leaf appeared in two preseason games with the Thunder, registering eight points and seven rebounds. He was originally acquired from Indiana on Nov. 25.
Schofield appeared in two preseason games with Oklahoma City, grabbing two rebounds and dishing out two assists. He was originally acquired from Washington on Nov. 19.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have signed rookie forward Aleksej Pokuševski.
Drafted first round (17th overall) in the 2020 NBA draft, Pokuševski’s draft rights were acquired from the Timberwolves as part of a three-team trade on November 20.
According to the Oklahoman, “the Thunder now has 18 players under contract for this season, not counting its two players on two-way contracts.”
Pokuševski (7-0, 195) averaged 10.8 points, 7.9 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.8 blocks and 1.3 steals in 22.6 minutes in 11 games with Olympiacos B in the Greek Second Division, HEBA A2 during the 2019-20 season as the team went 17-4 and earned a second-place finish in A2. At the 2019 U18 European Championships, the Serbian native averaged 10.0 points, 7.2 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 2.7 steals and led with event with 4.0 blocks per game.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have signed rookie guard Theo Maledon.
Maledon entered the 2020 NBA draft, and was selected in the early second round (34th overall). His draft rights were acquired from the 76ers on December 8.
Listed at 6-foot-5, 180 lbs., Maledon in the 2019-20 season played in France’s Pro A league for ASVEL Lyon-Villeurbanne. He only started in half the games he played, and averaged 7.3 points, 2.7 assists and 1.9 rebounds in 17.3 minutes per game.
Over the course of his three seasons playing for ASVEL Lyon-Villeurbanne, Maledon did play in an All-Star game. And in the 2018-19 season he won the Rising Star award.
The Oklahoma City Thunder has signed guard Frank Jackson.
Jackson, listed at 6-foot-3, 205 lbs., has played in 120 career NBA games (18 starts) with the New Orleans Pelicans, averaging 7.2 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 16.4 minutes per game.
During the 2020 NBA Restart in the Bubble at Disney Wide World of Sports, the Duke product appeared in all eight games (one start) with the Pelicans and averaged 10.8 points on 47.3 percent shooting from the field, 2.5 assists and 1.5 rebounds in 17.6 minutes per game, earning the second-highest net rating on the team (8.9) and the third-best assist to turnover ratio (3.33).
The Oklahoma City Thunder waived forward Zylan Cheatham today.
In his rookie NBA season with the New Orleans Pelicans, Cheatham played in four games, for an average of 3.0 points and 2.3 rebounds in 12.8 minutes per game, and 66.7 percent shooting from the field.
The Thunder originally acquired Cheatham from the Pelicans on November 24.
The Oklahoma City Thunder has waived guard Josh Gray, it was announced today by Executive Vice President and General Manager Sam Presti.
Gray has appeared in seven career games with Phoenix and New Orleans, recording averages of 4.9 points, 2.0 assists, 1.7 rebounds and 1.14 steals in 15.6 minutes per game. He was originally acquired from New Orleans on Nov. 24.
STATEMENT FROM THE OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER
“As we continue planning for the start of the 2020-21 NBA season, our absolute top priority is the health and safety of our guests and our community. For months, we have worked in close collaboration with Chesapeake Energy Arena, the City of Oklahoma City, local health officials, and the NBA to put into place thorough health and safety measures to allow for reduced seating capacity. However, as we review ongoing and concerning trends in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations in Oklahoma, we want to exercise an abundance of caution to help control the spread of the virus in our community. Therefore, the Thunder has made the decision to begin the season without fans in the arena.
“We will continue to monitor and evaluate the situation over the coming weeks to determine when fans will be able to attend our games.
“We will take all necessary steps to create a safe environment for those who will be in attendance for games as the upcoming season begins, including players, coaches, staff, media and broadcasters.
“We urge everyone to take all the vital steps necessary to control the spread of the virus, especially wearing masks, washing hands and maintaining proper physical distance. As a community, we must all work together to get through this safely and move forward to welcome our fans into the arena to enjoy Thunder Basketball this season.”
In a three-team trade today, the Dallas Mavericks have acquired forward James Johnson from the Oklahoma City Thunder. In the deal, the Mavericks sent guard Delon Wright to the Detroit Pistons and forward Justin Jackson to the Thunder. The Pistons dealt forward Trevor Ariza to Oklahoma City. The Thunder acquired a 2023 second round pick (best from either Dallas or Miami) and a 2026 second round draft pick from Dallas.
Ariza (6-8, 215) has appeared in 1,064 career games (731 starts) with New York, Orlando, L.A. Lakers, Houston, New Orleans, Washington, Phoenix, Sacramento and Portland, registering averages of 10.5 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.49 steals in 29.7 minutes per contest. Last season the former NBA champion split the season between Sacramento and Portland. In his time with Portland, the Miami native appeared in 21 games (all starts) and averaged 11.0 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.62 steals in 33.4 minutes per game, shooting 49.1 percent from the field and 40.0 percent from three-point range.
Jackson (6-7, 220) has seen action in 214 career games (58 starts) with Sacramento and Dallas, recording averages of 6.5 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.0 assist in 19.5 minutes per game, shooting 43.1 percent from the floor. Last season with Dallas, the North Carolina product appeared in 65 games (three starts), averaging 5.5 points and 2.4 rebounds in 16.1 minutes per contest, shooting 84.0 percent from the free throw line.
Johnson has appeared in 634 career games (220 starts) with Chicago, Toronto, Sacramento, Memphis, Miami and Minnesota, averaging 8.0 points, 3.6 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 20.6 minutes per game, shooting 47.7 percent from the field. He was originally acquired from Minnesota on Nov. 20.
New Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault’s staff is set. Mike Wilks, Dave Bliss and David Akinyooye will be joined by Mike Miller as assistant coaches and Zach Peterson and Kameron Woods will serve as player development coaches.
“This group has proven to be great collaborators during their time with the Thunder, complementing their ability to help develop our team and players,” said Daigneault. “They all share a deep commitment and understanding for the values of the organization and are dedicated to being continuous learners. I’m looking forward to welcoming Mike to the Thunder and our coaching staff as we work to maximize our team and program.”
Wilks is set to begin his second year as an assistant coach after spending the previous seven seasons with Oklahoma City as a senior pro evaluation scout. Wilks is the second former Thunder player (Royal Ivey) to join the team’s coaching ranks. He enjoyed a seven-year NBA playing career where he appeared in 233 games with ten different NBA teams.
Bliss returns for his second season on the Thunder bench after spending the 2018-19 season as a senior player development coach for the Thunder. Bliss returned to Oklahoma City in 2018 after spending the three previous seasons with the New York Knicks as a player development coach. He previously worked with the Thunder as video analyst/player development coach from 2010-15 and last summer Bliss served as the head coach of the Thunder’s summer league team.
Akinyooye enters his second season as an assistant coach with the Thunder after spending the previous four years as an assistant coach with the Oklahoma City Blue. Akinyooye came to Oklahoma City in 2015 following a one-year stint as an assistant coach in Lyon, France with Asvel Lyon-Villeurbanne Basket. Prior to his time in Lyon, he served as a player development quality assurance assistant with the San Antonio Spurs during their 2013-14 NBA championship season.
Miller brings nearly three decades of coaching experience to the Thunder after spending the 2019-20 season as an assistant coach for the New York Knicks before assuming the role of interim head coach last December. Miller was moved to his position on the NBA bench after four years at the helm of the NBA G League’s Westchester Knicks. Before moving to New York in 2015, Miller spent two seasons as an assistant coach with the Austin Spurs, San Antonio’s G League affiliate. He has also spent time as a head coach at Eastern Illinois University (2005-12) and Texas State University (1994-00) and has served as an assistant coach at UC Riverside (2012-13), Kansas State (2001-05), Texas State (1992-94), Sam Houston State (1990-91) and Western Illinois (1989-90).
Peterson returns to the Thunder sideline after spending the 2019-20 campaign with Oklahoma City as a player development coach. Previously, he served as the head video coordinator for the Milwaukee Bucks during the 2018-19 season. Prior to his time in Milwaukee, Peterson spent four years with the Atlanta Hawks, where he quickly climbed the ranks from a video intern in 2014 to an assistant video coordinator in 2016 and finally the head video coordinator for the 2017-18 season. Peterson began his work in sports as he attended Michigan State University from 2009-13, spending his first two years as the student manager for the women’s basketball team before working with the men’s team his junior and senior years.
Woods joins the Thunder bench after two seasons as an assistant coach for the Oklahoma City Blue. He previously played as a forward for the Blue for two seasons. In his G League career, he appeared in 99 games (43 starts) and averaged 4.6 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 23.7 minutes per game. A Butler University product, Woods finished his four-year collegiate career as the second leading rebounder in the school’s history with 956 rebounds. He led the Bulldogs in blocked shots in all four seasons.