After the Oklahoma City Thunder's first loss of the season in a 120-96 blowout to the Dallas Mavericks, will GM Sam Presti make a move for either New Orleans Pelicans' Herb Jones or Memphis Grizzlies' Ty Jerome sooner rather than later? The injuries continue to stack up for the Thunder, as Alex Caruso and Chet Holmgren were both out in addition to Jalen Williams and Cason Wallace's setbacks ahead of Wednesday's game against the Mavericks.
For a team like the LA Clippers, who lost first-round picks for the next five seasons, Derrick Jones Jr. and Kris Dunn have also been mentioned as potential trade targets for Presti, who has more future firsts than any other GM in the NBA. While the Thunder are in no rush to make a trade, Presti will most likely do so at some point before this year's deadline, as ClutchPoints' Brett Siegel noted, per Clutch Scoops.
“The Thunder are going to make at least one trade. That's a given,” Siegel said. “We know that Sam Presti is always very adventagous on the trade market. We didn't think that they were going to make a trade last season. And then, Jared McCain fell in their lap because they leveraged some draft picks — first-round and second-round picks — that we're going to be of use to them. We could see something similar happen this year, where it's not going to be a big splashy name; a $20-plus million guy.
They're not going to be trading away their core players, but around the edges, they could look to make some moves. That's why we bring up a guy like Nikola Topic. Maybe they look to get him on the court when he's healthy for a month or a month and a half just to showcase him to other teams. Same thing can be said about Thomas Sorber, a center who has yet to play for the Thunder. Two guys that are on rookie deals.”
NBA Injuries, OKC Trade Rumors, Latest Intel | Clutch Scoops with @TomerAzarly & @BrettSiegelNBA https://t.co/yfwqR9muV0
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) October 29, 2026
The Thunder had eyes for Pelicans' Herb Jones ahead of last season's deadline before striking a deal with the Philadelphia 76ers for Jared McCain. Perhaps Thunder GM Sam Presti contacts the Pelicans within the next few months.
“We reported last year before the deadline how the Thunder were one of three or four different teams along with the Lakers and the Warriors that were floated as a team that had a level of interest in Herb Jones,” Siegel said. “That's an interesting scenario to look at, especially because Herb Jones' minutes have been very limited to this point with the Pelicans. For some reason, Jahmal Mosley doesn't want to play him. They're saying that there's nothing to this. That he just needs to be worked into the rotation.
“We'll wait and see what happens there. But there's been nothing new about Herb's status with the Pelicans throughout the offseason. The message has been consistent; they want two first-round picks if they're going to trade him. And so far, no team's been willing to offer them that.”
Article Continues BelowThen, there's Ty Jerome, who's currently the third-leading scorer (29.8) in the NBA after a sizzling start to the regular season. He spent two seasons with the Thunder during his second and third year in the league.
“Ty Jermone. We always see the Thunder go after these scoring guards and these guys that find a lot of success. They did so last year with Jared McCain. They could do so again with Ty Jerome,” Siegel added. “He played two seasons in OKC. And can say with certainty, from people that I've spoken with, is that he'd be welcomed back with open arms, and he's beloved within that organization.”
Those are the bigger names attached to the Thunder since Jalen Williams and Cason Wallace's long-term injuries. However, that could certainly change as the regular season progresses.

