The 2024 NBA Draft is less than two weeks away. As teams finalize their big boards and prepare for all kinds of trade scenarios, now is a good time to go over the best fits for certain players. That is especially the case with Purdue's Zach Edey. The 7-foot-4 two-time Naismith Player of the Year, Edey is perhaps the most fascinating prospect in this year's class. The best fit in the draft for Edey would be the Oklahoma City Thunder, owners of the 12th pick, for a couple of reasons.
Thunder need help on the boards
The Thunder played the Dallas Mavericks the best of any team in the West during the playoff. Despite the fact that they lost that second-round matchup 4-2, the Thunder's point differential in that series was exactly zero. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander often looked like the best player on the floor. If Oklahoma City got a better performance from Jalen Williams or Chet Holmgren, the outcome of that matchup may have been different.
One area, in particular, the Mavs exploited the Thunder was on the glass. Oklahoma City wasn't a great rebounding team all year, ranking just 28th in rebounding percentage (48.4%) during the regular season. That number fell even further to 47.5% in the playoffs.
Dallas wasn't a very good rebounding team, either. Their 48.5% mark in the regular season was 26th in the league, but that number did climb to 50% after the trade deadline, once Daniel Gafford and PJ Washington became mainstays of Jason Kidd's rotation. The Mavs were even better on the glass in their series against the Thunder, grabbing 52.6% of available boards while registering a dominant 33.2% offensive rebound rate. For reference, the Knicks led the league in that statistic with a mark of 33.3%.
Dallas centers Gafford and Dereck Lively II owned the boards and created a ton of second opportunities as a result.
The Thunder could help solve that issue by bringing in Zach Edey. He posted a career defensive rebound percentage of 25.8% while at Purdue, as well as a 22.7% total rebound percentage. No Oklahoma City player was above 20% in either stat during the playoffs. Edey would be a tremendous help on the glass for Mark Daigneault's team.
Stylistic versatility
Another area where the Thunder got exploited in the playoffs was their inability to throw a different look at their opponent. Similar to the Boston Celtics, they like to play five-out and have everyone on the floor be able to dribble, pass and shoot. That didn't really work against Dallas, who ignored the likes of Josh Giddey, Aaron Wiggins and Lu Dort to pack the paint and force Oklahoma City's stars into tough shots.
Zach Edey would present a drastically different approach for teams to deal with. He is an excellent lob threat out of the pick-and-roll and could put defenses in a bind with the pressure he puts on the rim. He can also just bulldoze opposing centers in the post for a few possessions, drawing fouls and double-teams.
Donovan Clingan—a potential top-five pick in this year's draft—is hardly small at 7-foot-2 and 280 pounds, but Edey still didn't have many problems against him. He dropped 37 points and 10 rebounds on 15-of-25 shooting against Clingan and UConn in the National Championship game.
The best part about drafting Edey for Oklahoma City would be that he and Holmgren can play together. Holmgren can stretch the floor and allow Edey to dominate inside. The Boilermaker can also take on the assignment of banging with opposing bigs defensively, saving Holmgren from that assignment and letting him roam off non-shooters to seal the paint shut completely.
Drafting Edey makes a lot of sense for Oklahoma City. They could use a towering and bulky paint presence who can clean the glass and be a threat offensively on the interior, a perfect description of his game. Edey should be high on the Thunder's draft board as the draft fast approaches.
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