How Aleksej Pokusevski Can Secure Long Term Roster Spot

Oklahoma City seems destined for a roster crunch, making it a big year for multiple guys.

Aleksej Pokusevski has been working in silence this summer. He played briefly for Oklahoma City’s summer league squad, and has been relatively quiet since. The Thunder opted to keep Poku away from playing for the Serbian national team to continue his extensive training program.

He’s not one top be spotted at any high profile Pro-Am games or offseason runs littered with NBA talent. But the few videos from Pokusevski’s offseason that have surfaced are definitely impressive.

Poku ... after 2h 💪 pic.twitter.com/TTfQXRHfmh

— Saša (@SPokusevski) August 20, 2022

What he’s doing in that video is exactly what he needs to do next season to secure a long term spot in Oklahoma City. Yes, Pokusevski’s potential is in his guard-like skills at 7-foot, but his floor becomes so much higher if he is an above average 3-point shooter in the NBA.

The Serbian hasn’t seen much improvement from his long-range jumper over his young two-year career. He hovered around 28% in both his rookie and sophomore seasons, but clearly understood his role better last season. He took more high percentage shots, he just struggled to find consistency.

While it’s important to keep in mind how young Pokusevski is, Oklahoma City is also headed for an unfortunate roster crunch soon. Before Chet Holmgren’s injury, it was unclear if Pokusevski would even crack the rotation. Now, the Thunder will need help from different places, and Poku will likely get another shot at extended court time.

There’s no silver lining to Holmgren’s devastating injury, but Pokusevski’s his another year to try and prove himself to the organization. He’s shown flashes, none brighter than his end-of-the-year stretch last season. Pokusevski averaged 12.3 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.6 assists in 29 minutes over the course of his last 17 games. It’s a small sample size, but reason enough to be excited about his extra minutes on the court.

If he can solidify himself as an average 3-point shooter this season, Oklahoma City would likely be inclined to continue to Poku-project. His consistency from long range could determine not only his immediate future, but the direction of his NBA career. If a player like Pokusevski becomes a reliable outside shooter, he will have a spot in the league for many years.

---

Want to join the discussion? Like SI Thunder on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest Thunder news. You can also meet the team behind the coverage.