Minnesota acquired Chucky Atkins; Damien Wilkins while sending out Etan Thomas; 2010 second round pick (#32-Dexter Pittman); 2010 second round pick (least favorable of Blazers, Bulls, Rockets picks) (#51-Magnum Rolle) in the 2009-07-27 transaction with Thunder.
Minnesota sent Etan Thomas and two 2010 second-round picks to Oklahoma City for Chucky Atkins and Damien Wilkins. Atkins never played a regular-season game for the Timberwolves; the team waived him on September 22. Wilkins supplied the real direct return. He appeared in 80 games, started 31 and averaged 5.6 points and 3.1 rebounds in 2009-10, giving a 15-win roster a steady veteran wing for one season.
Thomas was a useful depth center but not the reason this deal tilts toward the Thunder. He played 23 regular-season games for Oklahoma City, started once and averaged 3.3 points and 2.8 rebounds. He also appeared briefly in the 2010 playoffs. That is a modest direct return, comparable in scale to Minnesota receiving one useful season from Wilkins rather than a franchise-changing piece.
The more valuable Oklahoma City branch was Minnesota’s own 2010 second-rounder, which landed at No. 32. The Thunder did not simply draft Dexter Pittman and keep him. On June 23, 2010, Oklahoma City traded that pick to Miami and received Daequan Cook plus the No. 18 pick. The Thunder then drafted Eric Bledsoe at No. 18 and traded his rights to the Clippers for a future first. Those later conversions belong to the pick’s traceable asset chain, though the value created after each subsequent move should not be confused with guaranteed value on the original trade date.
The second 2010 pick became No. 51 Magnum Rolle. Oklahoma City drafted Rolle and immediately traded his rights to Indiana for Ryan Reid and cash. Reid eventually appeared in only five NBA games for the Thunder, so this branch was minor. Still, when combined with the No. 32 pick’s conversion path and Thomas’s depth minutes, Oklahoma City extracted more transactional flexibility than Minnesota did from Atkins and one Wilkins season.
Slight Thunder Edge — Oklahoma City B+, Minnesota B. Minnesota received a legitimate one-season contributor in Damien Wilkins, while Chucky Atkins was waived before playing a game for the team. Oklahoma City got 23 games from Etan Thomas and, more importantly, two second-round picks it converted into additional assets. The No. 32 pick helped bring back Daequan Cook and No. 18, while No. 51 was swapped for Ryan Reid and cash. The difference is real but modest, matching the one-grade-step gap.