How The Oklahoma City Thunder Are Molding Josh Huestis Into a 3-and-D Wing

Mandatory Credit: Spruce Derden-USA TODAY Sports

On Monday, the Oklahoma City Thunder were involved in a three-team deal that saw them acquire Dion Waiters from the Cleveland Cavaliers in return for a protected future first-round draft pick. According to Adrian Wojnarowski, the Thunder were willing to part ways with the pick because they are under the impression there will not be a roster spot available next season. They currently have seven players on rookie contracts, not including Josh Huestis, who they drafted with the 29th pick in 2014. Although taken much higher than projected, the Thunder believe Huestis has the potential to fill a much needed void on the team as a 3-and-D wing.

Unlike most first-round picks, Huestis is spending the entirety of his rookie campaign in the NBA Development League with the Thunder’s affiliate, the Oklahoma City Blue. However, as apposed to what happened with Jeremy Lamb, Perry Jones III and Andre Roberson, he’s not in the D-League on assignment. Instead of inking a standard rookie deal, worth around $750,000 a year for a late first-round pick, Huestis agreed to become the first ever domestic draft-and-stash. As a result, he’s on the Blue’s payroll — not the Thunder’s — making no more than $25,000 this season.

Even with that being the case, though, the Thunder will likely bring Huestis up next season now that they’ve parted ways with their lone draft pick.

The decision to stash Huestis in the D-League made sense on a number of fronts for the Thunder. By having a one-to-one affiliate, they are in full control of the Blue’s basketball operations. Sam Presti and his staff have a hand in everything that goes on, which includes how many minutes Huestis plays on a game-to-game basis. They can begin molding him into the player they want him to be without having to immediately sign someone else to a rookie contract.

For Huestis, there’s no wonder he accepted their ultimatum seeing as he was projected to be a mid-to-late second-round pick. Instead of outright signing with a D-League team — as is the case for most second-rounders who fail to stick in the NBA as rookies — he’s assured that his hard work won’t go unnoticed by being under the Thunder’s watchful eye.

The hope for the Thunder is that Huestis will develop into a player like Thabo Sefolosha — a multifaceted defender with the ability to space the floor. It’s no secret that they have been on a quest for a 3-and-D wing to compliment Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant and Serge Ibaka for years now, only to see Roberson, Jones and Lamb fail to live up to the expectations. Huestis is the next man up, the intention being that a year in the D-League to hone the necessary skills will help him bridge the gap in the NBA.

While Huestis’ statistics with the Blue are nothing to write home about — in 16 games, he’s averaging 10.0 points and 6.4 rebounds on 38.2 percent shooting from the floor and 31.8 percent from three-point range — the underwhelming numbers are to be expected given the role he is fulfilling. While functioning as a stopper on the defensive end, Huestis is operating strictly as a floor spacer on offense, something he has never been asked to do before in his career.

Over his four years at Stanford, Huestis’ Three-Point Attempt Rate (3PAr) — the percentage of field goals attempts from three-point range — was 23.7 percent. In 16 games with the Blue, that number has skyrocketed. Of his 152 shot attempts on the season, 116 have been jump shots, most of which coming from the perimeter. Conversely, the 6-foot-7 forward has only attempted 27 field goals in the restricted area, a place that made up the bulk of his scoring as a senior at Stanford.

Under his newfound role, Huestis has showcased the ability to knock down three-pointers in volume on a number of occasions already this season, connecting on three or more perimeter shots in four games. He also has made the third most three-pointers on the team, barely trailing Mario Little and Michael Jenkins. While only shooting 31.8 percent overall, a decline was expected given the uptake in volume and the adjustment to a longer three-point line.

While still in need of developing his overall game, it’s a positive sign that Huestis’ jump shot has improved greatly since he was at Stanford. Even more promising is that he has emerged as one of the elite perimeter defenders in the D-League. He’s averaging 1.6 blocks and 0.9 steals per contest with the Blue, all the while being asked to matchup against players of various positions on a nightly basis. Against the Los Angeles D-Fenders on December 26th, his versatility was on full display when he spent time guarding Vander Blue, Manny Harris and Roscoe Smith at various points of the game. He has the foot speed to matchup against more smaller wings and is able to disrupt passes and shots with his 7-foot-1 wingspan.

Watch below as Huestis navigates his way through two screens only to block a jump shot by Jonathan Simmons, one of his six rejections on the night.

It remains to be seen how good of a player Huestis can be at the next level but it’s clear what the Thunder have in store for him. Although he still has great strides to make on the offensive end, he’s emerged as an stout perimeter defender this season, ticking at least one of the boxes needed for him to become a 3-and-D wing. He’s still far too unreliable of a shooter to be a difference maker in the NBA this season but that’s the exact reason he finds himself in the D-League and why his role on the Blue is so concentrated.