Oklahoma City wing Kenrich Williams has emerged onto the NBA scene as we cross the 24-hour mark from tomorrow’s 3 p.m. ET trade deadline.
The 26-year-old has been highly-coveted amongst Thunder fans all-season long, and as he’s continued to prosper under Mark Daigneault, opposing league executives have taken notice.
There has been no baseline price or interested suitors for Kenrich Williams in the days leading up to the deadline, however; that changed this morning. The Athletic published a lengthy, well-drawn up article over the looming trade deadline, giving insights not just into big names on the board, but also some little guys — of those listed, Kenrich Williams made the cut.
John Hollinger made a concise excerpt on Williams entitled “Keep an Eye on Kenrich,” in his article, Hollinger gave us our first look into what potential trade value he may hold.
“The 26-year-old Williams would likely command at least a second-round-pick, allowing the Thunder to add to their draft hoard. Subtracting Williams would also help the Thunder in another sense, as the team keeps inadvertently winning games and harming its own lottery odds.”
John Hollinger- The Athletic
In terms of hard-core facts on Williams’ trade value and overall interest from prospective teams — there is none here. What makes Hollinger’s statements worthy of note is that of names to comment on Williams’ potential return, he is the most credible source.
Hollinger’s analysis of “at least a second-round pick” is about as vague as it gets, but it gives you that baseline of what will be needed at a minimum to force Presti’s hand.
Taking into account Williams’ 3-year deal amassing to only $6 million, there is almost no question that Presti has a stockpile of trade proposals taped on the wall. With that being said — it is hard to imaging Presti would move Williams for just one second-round selection.
ESPN Senior Writer Zach Lowe dabbled into Williams’ market in a televised “Trade Deadline Special” with Adrian Wojnarowski.
In Lowe’s series of hypothetical trades, he made a call for the Pheonix Suns to be on the hunt for wings — one of which was Williams.
The mock-up sent Jevon Carter and two second-round picks to Oklahoma City for Kenrich Williams.
Lowe’s mock-up makes sense on both ends. Phoenix continues their future championship aspirations bolstering their wing core of E’Twaun Moore and Abdel Nader while the Thunder collect two future draft chips and a cheap piece at the point in 25-year-old Jevon Carter.
At this point there is no cold-hard evidence backing Williams’ value in a potential trade deal. What can be said — with big names in John Hollinger and Zach Lowe adding their two-cents, Kenny Hustle should only continue to gain traction entering the deadline.