Josh Huestis signs four year rookie contract with Thunder

Josh Huestis, the 29th overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft, has finally signed a contract with the Oklahoma City Thunder. The contract will be four years at the standard rookie scale.

After being selected by the Thunder in 2014, Huestis agreed to not immediately sign the standard rookie deal. Instead, Huestis would spend time with the Thunder's D-League affiliate, the Oklahoma City Blue. Additionally, the Thunder promised Huestis that they would sign him eventually. The Thunder had too many players at the time, and couldn't afford to cut a player with guaranteed salary for Huestis' sake. Had the Thunder signed Huestis in 2014, they would have been sent into the Luxury Tax.

This year, the Thunder are already over the Luxury Tax. So Huestis' salary wouldn't put the Thunder over any sort of threshold, like it would have last year. Also, the Thunder managed to trade away Perry Jones and Jeremy Lamb, opening up the roster spot necessary for Huestis.

Last season for the Blue, Josh Huestis averaged 10 points and 6 rebounds in 33 minutes of action. Those numbers aren't terrible, but Huestis' 31.6% average from three is pretty worrisome. There are very few shooting guards in the NBA who can't shoot. Still, it would be silly to ignore what Huestis does offer. Huestis averaged 1.57 blocks a game, which is ridiculously high for a shooting guard. Also, Huestis brings hustle and a high-level understanding of basketball.

It's unlikely that Huestis will see any regular minutes next season, barring injuries. The Thunder already have a defensive specialist in Andre Roberson, and Roberson is more athletic. But Huestis could certainly be someone to step in and be a defensive stopper were anything to happen to Roberson.

Prior to being selected by the Thunder, Huestis spent four years at the University of Stanford. During Huestis' Junior and Senior seasons at Stanford, he was named to the Pac 12 All-Defensive team. If you're interested in the stats, Huestis peaked at 11.2 points and 8.2 rebounds per game during his senior season. Huestis also shot 33.8% from the shorter college three point line.