Saric’s tenure with the Thunder only lasted roughly two months, but he provided quality wing depth in his brief stint in OKC.
He was part of a trade deadline trade with the Phoenix Suns in order to make the finances work. Initially seen as a possible buyout option, the Thunder decided to keep Saric around for the last couple of months of the season, and was a pleasant surprise.
Replacing Mike Muscala, Saric gave the Thunder a veteran wing who was a well-rounded offensive weapon. In 20 games with OKC, he averaged 7.4 points on 51.5% shooting and 3.3 rebounds. From 3, he shot 39.1% on 2.3 attempts.
The peripherals also showed that Saric was a really good pick-and-roll partner — as he was an 81.5 percentile roll man with OKC — and cutter — as he was in the 81.4 percentile with OKC. During his time with the Thunder, he was also in the 97th percentile for rim-finishing among bigs at 82.8% shooting.
Down the stretch of the season, the Thunder lacked serious depth at the wing/center spots due to trades and injuries, Saric helped fill out some of the void.
The 29-year-old spoke in his exit interview about being open to returning to the Thunder, but the right deal will need to be in place. I’m not so sure how much sense it makes to bring him back considering roster spots are going to be at a premium, but he was a good soldier during his two-month stay in OKC.
Honestly, if the Thunder decide to bring back one of their former veteran wings between Saric and Muscala, feelings aside, I think I’d lean toward Saric. While he’s not as good of a 3-point shooter, he’s a much more well-rounded offensive threat who still has some juice in his legs post-ACL tear.
If Saric’s stint with the Thunder is over, he was a fantastic addition — both on and off the court. It’s evident that he was a good fit in the locker room and the veteran never complained about a lack of playing time despite his status.
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