The Oklahoma City Thunder have waived veteran center Daniel Theis, after acquiring him in a trade with the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday, per Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints. As part of the deal, the Thunder sent cash considerations to the Pelicans for Theis and a 2031 second-round pick

The move freed up space for the Thunder to convert two-way guard Ajay Mitchell to a two-year, $6 million contract, agents Todd Ramasar and Mike Simonetta of Life Sports Agency told ESPN, per Shams Charania.

The Thunder have Chet Holmgren returning to the rotation on Friday against the Toronto Raptors, so it makes sense why they would want to balance the roster for their second half push toward the NBA playoffs. Oklahoma City has a strong rotation of bigs in Isaiah Hartenstein, Jaylin Williams, Ousmane Dieng and Kenrich Williams for the rest of the season.

Ajay Mitchell secures a future with the Thunder

Related Oklahoma City Thunder NewsArticle continues below
Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams with medical signs and question marks
Are Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren playing tonight? Thunder vs. Kings injury report
Thunder Kings prediction, odds, pick, NBA odds
Thunder vs. Kings prediction, odds, pick, spread – 3/25/2025
Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault next to Clippers guard Alex Caruso with the Thunder logo in the background
Thunder’s Mark Daigneault makes ‘winner’ Alex Caruso claim after beating Clippers
Jan 2, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Ajay Mitchell (25) dribbles against Los Angeles Clippers guard Kris Dunn (8) during the second quarter at Paycom Center.
Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

The Thunder originally added Mitchell on a two-way contract last July, per ESPN. In 34 appearances, he's averaging 6.4 points on 50.6 percent shooting and 43.1 percent from deep. Capable of providing solid relief minutes behind Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the rest of the Thunder's deep backcourt, Mitchell should have a promising future with the team, having already proved himself in limited game action.

Mitchell was selected by the New York Knicks in the second round of the 2024 NBA Draft, after a successful collegiate run at UC Santa Barbara where he was a three-time All-Big West player with 16.1 points, 4.3 assists and 3.0 rebounds per game in his career.

OKC sits atop the Western Conference standings at 40-9, and face a struggling Raptors squad on Friday night. Mitchell's status remains up in the air, as he's been out with a toe sprain since January 3. He'll compete with Lu Dort and Aaron Wiggins for minutes when he is able to return.