Does Ousmane Dieng Being Shut Down for Summer League Mean Anything?

The Oklahoma City Thunder have shut down Ousmane Dieng for NBA Summer League, does that mean anything for the future?

Oct 9, 2023; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder forward Ousmane Dieng (13) during the game against the San Antonio Spurs at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Ferguson-USA TODAY Sports / Rob Ferguson-USA TODAY Sports

As the Oklahoma City Thunder shifted to Vegas the team announced that third-year wing Ousmane Dieng would not be participating in the second stage of Summer League games, though he will continue to work on his game in his offseason development.

This caused an uproar and plenty of questions came flooding in on whether this move meant anything for the future of the 2022 NBA Lottery pick.

The easy answer is: No. This means nothing in and of itself. It is a more predictable and rhythmic formula than Elvis' acting career. Dieng - while not playing in Vegas - already played in three Summer League games in Salt Lake City.

For a 21-year-old third-year player to rattle off a trio of Summer League games that is all anyone could expect. There is no need to play in more contests in this setting as he can't truly prove his worth at this level - look at Tre Mann as an example who only played four games a summer ago.

The difference in how the organization - or observers - view Dieng was never going to swing on a solid performance against the Toronto Raptors on Saturday in Vegas. There are ample data points of him competing against this level of competition after an extended run way in the G League winning a championship a year ago.

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