The Oklahoma City Thunder made a change on the back end of its roster on Monday morning in waiving 26-year-old swingman Buddy Boeheim from his two-way pact with the team and inking Rookie sharpshooter Payton Sandfort in his place to the Thunder’s third and final two-way slot.

The timing of the move makes sense; the deadline to ink two-way contracts looms this week. On March 4, it is pencils down for NBA front offices in hopes of shuffling their two-way slots.

Boeheim earned his two-way deal after Rookie guard Chris Youngblood exhausted his 50-day limit at the NBA level. Youngblood earned the pact out of training camp and stayed with the team until Feb. 6 when he ran out of eligibility to play at the varsity level.

The Thunder rewarded the Syracuse product at the time in no small part due to the work he has put in grinding the NBA G League system with the OKC Blue. It was with the Thunder’s G League affiliate that he served not only as a valuable player on the court but as a true leader for the youngsters in Oklahoma City’s system. Boeheim was no stranger to two-way pacts, having spent two seasons with the Detroit Pistons.

Now, the 26-year-old has been waived in favor of the coveted rookie sharpshooter in Sandfort. It is worth noting that this likely does not remove Boeheim from the organization entirely; this scribe would expect the swingman to be back on a G League contract with the Blue to finish out this season.

For Sandfort, there is a lot of meat on the bone of this signing. The Iowa product suffered the fate of shoulder surgeries leading into the 2025 NBA Draft and the Thunder still coveted him enough to immediately ink him to an Exhibition 10 contract the second the NBA Draft wrapped up. They secured his G League rights and his rehab process put him back on the floor faster than a lot of estimates had him pegged for to start the year for the OKC Blue.

The 6-foot-7 swingman played in 134 games for the Iowa Hawkeyes from 2021-25. He averaged 12.1 points, 4.6 assists, 1.9 assists and a stock (Steals + Blocks) per game while shooting 40% from the floor, 35% from beyond the arc and 89% at the charity stripe.

Sandfort had a stellar Senior season posting 16.7 points, 6.0 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.5 stocks per game while shooting 40% from the floor, 34% from the 3-point line and 89% at the charity stripe. He averaged 7.5 triples

The rookie has true staying power in the NBA. A fluid athlete who has no wasted movements and long strides to cover ground and make up for a lack of pure speed. His ability to launch triples at a high volume stims from a strong relocation ability to find passing windows and his high quick release to get shots up against a strong contest. Those are the traits that caused Sandfort to be a priority for the Bricktown Ballers after he went undrafted in the 2025 NBA Draft.

Watch out for this move to be one that not only let’s him wrap up the 2025-26 campaign on a two-way deal but perhaps start the 2026-27 season in the same role for the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Oklahoma City Thunder will be back in action on Tuesday against the Chicago Bulls in the Windy City while the Oklahoma City Blue will return to the hardwood on Wednesday in the Paycom Center against the South Bay Lakers.