Chet Holmgren scores 21 in NBA preseason debut, Thunder defeat Spurs

The former Gonzaga star finished with 21 points, nine rebounds and one block

While it doesn't count toward anything, the Oklahoma City Thunder's 122-121 victory over the San Antonio Spurs in Monday's preseason opener provided an optimistic glimpse at the future of the NBA for decades to come. 

The matchup between Oklahoma City's Chet Holmgren and San Antonio's Victor Wembanyama lived up to the hype, with the pair combining for 39 points in the first half alone. 

Wembanyama was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NBA draft after playing a couple of years overseas. Holmgren was picked second overall out of Gonzaga in 2022, but a foot injury in the offseason kept him sidelined for all of last season. 

In the opening tip-off, the 7-foot-1 Holmgren secured possession over the 7-foot-4 Wembanyama, but the pair did not go head-to-head often. Holmgren hunted his own shot early on, while Wembanyama looked to set up his teammates. Neither player had a point in the first few possessions as San Antonio jumped out to a 7-0 lead.

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Holmgren scored first after making one of two free throws to put Oklahoma City on the board. He continued to play a role in the Thunder's offense, connecting with Jalen Williams for a finger roll layup that narrowed the margin to 7-3. 

Holmgren's first field goal was a driving layup he finished with Wembanyama out of position and none of San Antonio's other defenders in the paint to help. He was fouled shortly after and sunk two free throws. He tallied five points in the first three minutes, but the Spurs remained in front 10-7. 

Wembanyama asserted himself more as the quarter progressed, scoring on a two-handed dunk and rejecting Williams in a 30-second span. On the Thunder's next possession, Wembanyama went right at Holmgren, finishing a layup while getting fouled in the process. He made the free throw to extend San Antonio's lead to 21-15.

Holmgren responded with a 3-pointer a bit later off a corner-to-corner perimeter pass from Josh Giddey, who tallied five assists on the night. 

With just under four minutes remaining in the quarter, Holmgren was given a break after registering 14 points, seven rebounds and a block in the first eight minutes. Wembanyama had 10 points in seven minutes before taking the bench. 

Both players checked back in at the beginning of the second quarter, but neither scored another point until Wembanyama scooped a layup under the arms of Holmgren as San Antonio's advantage grew to 54-39. 

Wembanyama scored again once Oklahoma City regained possession, this time on a 26-foot 3-point jumper. Holmgren nailed with a 27-footer 10 seconds later.

The Thunder trailed 59-42 when they gave Holmgren another rest. After a few minutes on the bench, Holmgren returned to the court and promptly finished an alley-oop pass from Williams. The dunk ignited a 10-2 run to cut Oklahoma City's deficit to 75-69. 

Holmgren made two more free throws before his outing ended at halftime, with the Thunder trailing 81-74. He finished with 21 points on 7 of 10 shooting from the field, while also corralling nine rebounds and blocking one shot. 

"[Chet] is a really good player," Wembanyama said. "I played against him once a couple of years back. He's part of the great players of this generation."

Wembanyama had played nearly six minutes of the third quarter when he was taken out for the rest of the game by the Spurs, who were losing 92-91. The favorite to win Rookie of the Year scored 20 points on 8 of 13 shooting, to go along with five rebounds, two steals and a block.  

"Obviously, he's a great player," Holmgren said of Wembanyama. "But that's what the NBA is, man. There are great players every single night. You just have to keep a steady head and not let tonight or tomorrow or the day after that make you go up or down."

Holmgren and the Thunder return to action on Thursday to host the Detroit Pistons.

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