Injuries to Key Big Men Prove Catastrophic for OKC
Selecting Gonzaga center Chet Holmgren with the second overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft was supposed to be the first step in fortifying the Oklahoma City's interior defense.
Holmgren, who was heralded for his defensive prowess in high school and college, averaged a whopping 3.7 blocks per game as a freshman. His length, footwork and intelligence give the former five-star recruit plug-and-play ability when he his healthy.
Due to Holmgren's season-ending injury over the summer, however, OKC entered the season already at a disadvantage in the frontcourt. With Aleksej Pokusevski and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl now out of the lineup with injuries of their own, the Thunder are lacking depth at center.
Oklahoma City now relies on Jaylin Williams, Eugene Omoruyi, Darius Bazley and Mike Muscala to occupy the big man roles on a nightly basis. In the team's previous two outings, 6-foot-10 second round rookie Jaylin Williams has been the team's tallest starter with 6-foot-8 guard Josh Giddey operating as the squad's second-tallest starter.
This has created issues for the Thunder on both ends of the floor, as OKC has missed the rim protection abilities of Pokusevski and the strength of Robinson-Earl on defense while missing the floor spacing each provide on offense. Additionally, Oklahoma City has been outrebounded in each of its last two games.
In the team's New Year's Eve matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers, superstar center Joel Embiid recorded a triple-double at the Paycom Center. While Embiid is a spectacular player, it is likely that Pokusevski and Robinson-Earl would've given the Thunder a better chance at slowing down the former Kansas Jayhawk.
Offensively, the team is missing the output that their two injured big man usually provide. Between Pokusevski, a 37.6% 3-point shooter, and Robinson-Earl, a 38% shooter from beyond the arc, OKC is missing out on over 17 points and 10 rebounds per game.
In the two games since Poku and JRE appeared on the injury report, Jaylin Williams, Omoruyi, Bazley and Muscala have pitched in a combined 14 points, three less than Pokusevski and Robinson-Earl combine to average in a single game.
With their two main big men sidelined for the foreseeable future, it appears as though Oklahoma City will struggle early in the New Year.
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.
