The Thunder have added a pair of undrafted rookies to their preseason roster, announcing today that they’ve signed guard Hunter Maldonado and forward K.J. Williams.
Maldonado spent six years at Wyoming, including a redshirt season in 2018/19 and a “super-senior” year in 2022/23. He earned three All-Mountain West nods during that time, claiming a spot on the All-MWC first team in 2021/22 when he averaged a career-best 18.5 points and 6.3 assists per night in 33 games (37.3 MPG).
Like Maldonado, Williams went undrafted earlier this year following his super-senior college season. The 6’10” forward played four years at Murray State before transferring to LSU in 2022. He averaged 17.7 PPG and 7.7 RPG in 33 games (32.8 MPG) last season, posting an impressive shooting line of .490/.411/.785.
In all likelihood, both Maldonado and Williams signed Exhibit 10 contracts that will make them eligible to earn bonuses worth up to $75K if they spend at least 60 days with the Thunder’s G League affiliate, the Oklahoma City Blue, after being waived by the NBA club. Even after Tuesday’s trade with Houston, the Thunder have a roster crunch, so there’s no clear path for Maldonado or Williams to make the regular season roster.
Oklahoma City now has a full 21-man preseason roster.
Williams is nice