Thunder NBA Championship Odds Following Chet Holmgren Injury Update

The Oklahoma City Thunder will be without Chet Holmgren for at least the next two months, putting them in a tricky spot when it comes to the futures market.

Oklahoma City Thunder forward Chet Holmgren. / Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

The Oklahoma City Thunder suffered their second loss of the season on Sunday night against the Golden State Warriors, but their bigger loss came before the game even concluded.

Star big man Chet Holmgren went down hard on a play where he tried to block Andrew Wiggins' shot, and the Thunder revealed that he suffered a right iliac hip fracture and will be re-evaluated in eight to 10 weeks.

Thunder: Chet Holmgren suffered a right iliac hip fracture and a return to play protocol will be provided in 8 to 10 weeks. pic.twitter.com/ijma0D5zy5

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) November 11, 2024

This is a massive blow for OKC, who is widely expected to be one of the best teams in the Western Conference after earning the No. 1 seed last season.

The Thunder entered the season with the best odds to win the NBA Finals of any Western Conference team, and they improved up on those with a fast start to the season, winning their first seven games.

However, the gap that OKC has created on the rest of the Western Conference may not be there for long. Right now, the Thunder are +475 at DraftKings Sportsbook to win the title -- behind only the Boston Celtics (+290). However, they have been ravaged by injuries to their frontcourt which could really hurt them the next few months.

Offseason acquisition Isaiah Hartenstein (hand fracture) has yet to play in a game this season, and third-string center Jaylin Williams has been dealing with a hamstring strain since the preseason.

So, OKC doesn't have any options left on the roster at the center spot outside of forwards like Ousmane Dieng and Dillon Jones -- who played some small-ball center on Sunday againt Golden State.

It'll be interesting to see how the Thunder navigate this stretch without Holmgren until Hartenstein or Williams can return.

This season, Holmgren was off to a great start, averaging 18.2 points, 9.2 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 2.9 blocks per game while shooting 51.9 percent from the field and 40.0 percent from 3.

After missing the 2022-23 season (right after he was drafted) with a foot injury, Holmgren returned to play all 82 games last season. Hopefully, the hip injury won't be something that limits him going forward in his NBA career.

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