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The 2026 NBA draft has come and gone. The two-day event saw teams across the league add youth to their rosters. It’s the one time of year when all 30 front offices feel good about where they’re at — both in the short-term and long-term futures.
For NBA draft sickos, it’s their Christmas. Years of work piecing together information and conjuring up talent all work toward the two-day extravaganza. Finally, teams learn who they add as young pieces that could change the trajectory of their franchises.

Another element that makes the NBA draft must-watch TV and such an epic event? Trades. Trades. Trades.
In their designated war room, NBA front offices gather together and are on the phone for most of the two nights. Depending on how the order breaks out, favorite prospects could be within or out of reach. Some teams like to trade up. Others like to trade down. And thrill-seekers stand pat to see if their patience will be paid off by the time they’re on the clock.
The Oklahoma City Thunder experienced all three at the 2026 NBA draft. They stood pat at No. 12 and landed Michigan’s Aday Mara. They traded up to No. 16 and took Iowa’s Bennett Stirtz. And then they traded back in the second round to get Kentucky’s Otega Oweh at the No. 41 spot.
Not only are phones constantly ringing for teams during the NBA draft, but the same can be said about the draft prospects. Sometimes, they learn in real time where they’re going. That chaotic nature is what the league invites with its age-old draft hat rules. You saw it happen firsthand in Round 1 — when it looked like ESPN’s Brian Windhorst accidentally broke the news to Karim Lopez that he was actually going to the Memphis Grizzlies, not the Detroit Pistons.

For Stirtz, he could sympathize with Lopez. The Thunder sent the Grizzlies the No. 17 pick and two future second-round picks for the No. 16 pick. The one-spot move-up secured OKC the 22-year-old. He was a late bloomer in the predraft process with an unorthodox journey to the first-round range.
Stirtz started his college hoops career at D-II school Northwest Missouri State. After two years, he made the jump to D-I at Drake. And then made a name for himself at Iowa. Pretty wild to see a first-round pick actually play at the D-II level. You rarely see that happen. But he had a true Disney-esque journey to get to this point.
“I thought I would have been at D-II my whole career, but opportunities presented themselves and went with it and seized the opportunity, and I’ll never look back,” Stirtz said. “Every step of the way, I needed that just to get me where I’m at today. Super grateful for all those stops.”
Considering how crazy the NBA draft can get once the trades start happening, Stirtz kept himself composed. He talked about what it was like to be part of a trade. Thankfully, he knew ahead of time before ESPN’s Shams Charania tweeted out the partial details.

“Yeah, my agent, it was probably like a minute before Memphis picked. He’s like, ‘You’re going to OKC,'” Stirtz said. “Before anyone else knew, I knew.”
Wild to hear some of the behind-the-scenes madness that involves the NBA draft. Stirtz had a taste of it with OKC’s trade-up. The Thunder have now made a trade-up move in the past seven draft cycles — dating back to 2019. If Sam Presti really likes you, he’ll find a way to land you. After all, the draft is the lifeblood for every small-market franchise in bettering its situation.
“In the moment, it was super slow, but now looking back, it went by super fast. I tried to stay in the moment, but pretty anxious, pretty nervous, pretty excited,” Stirtz said. “All those three traits was something I was feeling. Yeah, it goes by quick.”
This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Bennett Stirtz details behind-the-scenes process of being traded in NBA draft
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