The Thunder have signed their first-round picks, Nikola Topic and Dillon Jones, to rookie scale contracts, as announced via email. Second-round pick Ajay Mitchell has signed a two-way deal.
Topic, selected 12th overall, was initially projected as a potential top-five pick, but his draft stock fell due to a partially torn ACL. The 6-foot-6 point guard averaged 15.1 points, 5.9 assists, and 3.2 rebounds for Crvena Zvezda in the Adriatic League this year. He is expected to sit out next season to allow ample time for his injury to heal.
Jones, the 26th overall pick, was acquired in a draft night trade with New York. The 6-foot-5 small forward from Weber State led the Big Sky Conference in scoring this season with 20.8 points per game, along with 9.8 rebounds, 5.2 assists, and 2.0 steals per game. He was a finalist for the Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Award.
Mitchell, a 6-foot-4 shooting guard from UC Santa Barbara, was the 38th pick in the draft. This season, he averaged 20.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 1.2 steals, earning First Team All-Big West honors for the past two years.
If Topic and Jones received the maximum rookie contracts they were eligible for, Topic will earn approximately $4.9 million in his first season and $23 million over four years, while Jones will make $2.6 million as a rookie and $13.5 million over his four-year deal. Oklahoma City will have third- and fourth-year team options for both players.
