OKC Thunder Tabbed Winner and Loser of Injury-Riddled Preseason

Injuries across the league have put the Thunder's poor injury luck in perspective.

Oct 9, 2024; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder center Isaiah Hartenstein (55) gestures after a play against the Houston Rockets during the second quarter at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images / Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

Not everything has gone the Thunder’s way in the preseason, but there are silver linings to their shortcomings.

Oklahoma City wrapped up its preseason slate on Thursday with a win against the Atlanta Hawks to finish 4-1. With the regular season set to start in only a few days, Oklahoma City will be shorthanded.

While Jalen Williams, Jaylin Williams, and Kenrich Williams could miss small amounts of time to begin the year, the team will be without its backup center for an extended period. In the Thunder’s preseason game against the Denver Nuggets, Isaiah Hartenstein suffered a left hand injury that will sideline him for at least five weeks. 

In Bleacher Report’s recent article detailing winners and losers of the preseason, Dan Favale listed Hartenstein as a loser. His placement makes sense, considering the hype surrounding the team, particularly as a result of Hartenstein’s addition. 

In three preseason contests, Hartenstein gelled well alongside Chet Holmgren and other Thunder stars. He had 21 points, 20 rebounds and 13 assists across 53 minutes of action.

While the Thunder will miss his rebounding ability over the first month of the season, they will simply go forward with roughly the same core that was enough to win 57 games and earn the No. 1 seed. 

Although Oklahoma City had some rough injury luck in the preseason, it could also benefit from another team’s poor injury luck. The LA Clippers were also listed as a loser with news that Kawhi Leonard will be out indefinitely.

Still seemingly recovering from a knee injury he suffered last season, Leonard’s status for this season is up in the air. With Paul George and Russell Westbrook departing over the offseason, the Clippers’ streak of winning seasons is destined to come to an end.

Thanks to the teams’ blockbuster deal in 2019, the Thunder have the right to swap their pick for the Clippers’ pick in 2025. Although the league is undeniably better when its key players are healthy, the Thunder are likely to benefit from another team’s injury misfortunes.

---

Want to join the discussion? Like Thunder on SI 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.