The Oklahoma City Thunder are dealing with an array of injuries to start the season. At 10-2, the Thunder are still atop of the Western Conference, but they’ll have to stay afloat for a bit.
With all three of their centers now out due to injury after Chet Holmgren suffered a right iliac wing fracture this past Sunday against Golden State, this is their latest case of adversity that the Thunder will have to get past and overcome. Luckily, the construction and the makeup of this team is wired to withstand an unfortunate situation such as this one — due to the amount of talent, mental toughness, and the togetherness that’s on this roster. Without Isaiah Hartenstein and Jaylin Williams, and now losing Holmgren, others will undoubtedly have to step up.
How OKC Can Manage Without Holmgren
Utilizing and Perfecting Small Ball
With the way the current roster is at the moment, the Thunder are going to have to lean heavily on their small-ball lineups. Fortunately, head coach Mark Daigneault has utilized such lineups in the past, so it will not be out of the ordinary for the Thunder.
Fortunate news for the Thunder — Kenrich Williams returned to action on Monday against the Los Angeles Clippers. During the 2022-23 season, in which Holmgren missed due to a Lisfranc injury, Williams operated as the Thunder small ball center and was quite successful.
There have been numerous times where Daigneault has run a 5-out lineup that consists of all guards and wings. Expect a healthy dose of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, Lu Dort, Alex Caruso, and any assortment of remaining Thunder guards or wings out on the court. Rebounding and protecting the paint will become much harder, the upside of the current situation is that OKC knows how to play this style of feisty, scrappy, fast-paced basketball. This could lead to teams being forced to play on their terms even more.
The player who will have the biggest chance to maximize this opportunity is Ousmane Dieng. The forward will likely fill in some minutes at the center position (given he is the tallest active player now at 6’10), and he will likely see his role and minutes increase quite a bit. In 12 games, Dieng has averaged 4.1 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 0.9 assists, in 12.3 minutes per game. These next stretch of games with no Hartenstein, Holmgren, or J-Will will be very crucial in Dieng’s development as he will have the opportunity to further solidify himself into the Thunder’s rotation.
OKC’s Versatility
The Thunder’s versatility has been a point of emphasis since the beginning of their rebuilding process. And it certainly shows and blends into the play styles of nearly all the players the Thunder put on the court.
Offensively, every player on the floor can dribble, pass, and shoot, which will allow the Thunder to play fast and push the tempo. Having all guards and wings lineup will provide floor spacing and open the floor more — which should benefit SGA and Jalen Williams.
Defensively, every player can guard several positions, and they have a cohesive flow about the defense that makes it difficult to penetrate. Of course, Holmgren anchoring the paint entirely changes the complexity of the defense and impact on winning, but that doesn’t mean it will be easy for opposing teams’ centers or elite scorers due to the feistiness and scrappiness this Thunder team plays with.
With perimeter pressure and pesky hands from Caruso, length from Jalen Williams and SGA, and Cason Wallace and Dort providing the strength, and many more defensive impactors, the team will be in good hands despite not having a big to ward off attackers at the rim.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Will Need To Play At An MVP level
Ultimately, how far the Thunder goes depends on the play of their star player, Gilgeous-Alexander. Shai needs to play at an MVP level with Holmgren out because Holmgren’s absence significantly reduces the Thunder’s offensive and defensive output, which means, SGA will need to handle a larger workload.
During the first 10 games of the season, SGA was below his standards, as he averaged 26.1 points and 3 turnovers per game on 48/26/88 shooting splits.
Part of SGA’s scoring and efficiency dip was his experimentation on his increased 3-point volume. Finding the balance in increasing his volume while taking the better quality of shots from beyond the arc will prepare him for the playoffs and will be a crucial step for the Thunder’s championship aspirations. Another reason for SGA’s slight dip in scoring was due to the ascension of Holmgren.
Without Holmgren’s rim protection and offensive versatility, SGA’s performance will directly dictate OKC’s ability to win games. If he plays at the level he did last year while carrying a heavier workload with Holmgren out and the Thunder stay in contention for the number one seed, it’ll certainly strengthen his MVP case: demonstrating his ability to elevate his game as well as his teammates game when needed.
OKC’s Outlook
All in all, this is a massive blow to the Thunder and to the NBA as a whole, as Chet is one of the young rising stars in the league. It’ll be an adjustment, and there will be rocky moments but the Thunder will be just fine as they will navigate their small ball lineup and patiently wait for the return of Hartenstein in the next couple to few weeks, then J-Will in the month or so, and then at some point this season Holmgren.
Main Image: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images
