The Oklahoma City Thunder made the first trade of the NBA offseason late-Sunday, shipping off swingman Aaron Wiggins to the Atlanta Hawks in exchange for future draft capital.
ESPN’s Shams Charania reported the trade. Atlanta will be sending OKC two second-round picks, one in 2030 and one in 2032. The latter will be the more favorable of the Hawks and Lakers’ picks.
The first offseason domino has now fallen for OKC. With several roster decisions seemingly on the horizon, in addition the 2026 NBA Draft, several league-wide have been waiting for the Thunder to make their move. The first was the trading of Wiggins, who was a key part of the team’s championship run.
Wiggins was the No. 55 pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, a success story for the Thunder through and through. A score-first guard, he averaged 8.7 points per game for his career with OKC, shooting 49% overall.
He was vital to the team’s win over the Pacers in last season’s NBA Finals, scoring 14 points and 18 points in two separate games to add a scoring spark off the bench.
This season, Wiggins struggled mightily to score the ball, falling somewhat out of the primary rotation, especially with the addition of scoring guard Jared McCain. He was an essential non-factor in the postseason, unable to see much scoring success while struggling defensively.
The Thunder are armed with the No. 12 and No. 17 picks at the 2026 NBA Draft, and will have to clear roster space to draft any player. They’ve now done so, potentially needing to clear one more spot if they want to draft two players.
Wiggins should be a shoo-in in Atlanta’s core if he can return to his winning ways as a scorer. He can shoot the three and create off the dribble, perfect for Atlanta’s run-and-gun style with the recently re-signed CJ McCollum.
The Thunder now have interesting decisions to make at the ’26 draft. They could simply stay pat at No. 12 and 17, taking two solid players in a reportedly deep draft. They could also consolidate to move up into a star-laden top-10, or trade out entirely for even more future assets.
More moves could be on the horizon for OKC as the draft nears. The first day will tip off at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, June 23, with the second at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, June 24.
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