The Oklahoma City Thunder may already be plotting after their championship defense came up short.
Oklahoma City is being linked to Cleveland Cavaliers big man Evan Mobley, Sam Amick of The Athletic reported on Sunday. Amick notes that there has long been chatter about the Thunder having interest in Mobley.
The 24-year-old Mobley was an All-Star, an All-NBA selection, and the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year with the Cavaliers in 2025. He saw some slight regression this season but still managed to average 18.2 points, 9.0 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 1.7 blocks per game.
Meanwhile, Mobley is still signed for several more years. Next season, he will be entering the second year of a five-year, $224 million contract (with an extra $45 million in incentives) that runs through 2030.
As for the Thunder, they got a largely poor performance during the Western Conference Finals from their own All-Star big man Chet Holmgren, who was especially horrific in Game 7 on Saturday. They also have a sizable $28.5 million team option for next season on fellow seven-footer Isaiah Hartenstein and might have to consider turning it down in order to avoid the second apron of the luxury tax.
Of course, Oklahoma City could always view this season’s failure as a product of bad luck after the injuries to Jalen Williams and Ajay Mitchell and simply opt to run it back next season. But if the Thunder really want to shake things up, a trade pursuit of Mobley or even possibly a bombshell move in next month’s draft could be on the table.
