Why Ajay Mitchell is OKC Thunder’s Biggest Surprise

Oklahoma City has gotten solid production from its second round rookie.

Nov 20, 2024; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Ajay Mitchell (25) drives between Portland Trail Blazers forward Jerami Grant (9) and guard Dalano Banton (5) during the second half at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images / Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

Oklahoma City has had a season full of surprises so far, some good and others bad. Of course, the worst news of the season came when Chet Holmgren was sidelined for the next few months of the season. The Thunder has played small ball surprisingly well, though, and the team looks completely rejuvenated with Isaiah Hartenstein back in the lineup.

One of the Thunder’s most positive surprises this season, though, is its second round rookie guard, Ajay Mitchell, contributing quality minutes. It’s not just development minutes either, Oklahoma City genuinely needs him to play and fill its backup point guard role.

Nobody thought the Thunder would rely on rookies this year. On paper, this is one of the deepest teams in the league, and playing time would be hard to come by even for some of the Thunder’s best role players. Mitchell disregarded that, though, and carved out a role for himself.

Bleacher Report recently published an article detailing every team’s biggest surprise this season, and to nobody’s surprise, Mitchell was the Thunder’s.

“Oklahoma City's rotation is one of the best in basketball and can be tricky to crack,” Zach Buckley wrote. “Just ask Ousmane Dieng, who joined the Thunder as the 11th overall pick of the 2022 draft and still has fewer than 1,200 minutes on his NBA odometer.



“Ajay Mitchell, the 38th pick this year, has made it look easy, though. Playing on a two-way contract, he's up to eighth on the team in minutes—two spots ahead of Dieng—and seems capable of more. The 22-year-old will see more floor time, too, if he keeps this up: 12 points, 4.2 assists and 2.1 steals per 36 minutes with a 50/47.4/77.8 shooting slash.”

Mitchell had one of his first bad games of the season on Wednesday, scoring just two points on 1-of-8 shooting. The two games before that, though, he was in double figures and a true spark plug for the Thunder when they needed it most. Wednesday night being his first real off night of the season speaks to his consistency and professionalism. He doesn’t play like a rookie.

All in all, Mitchell is averaging 5.6 points, 1.7 assists, and 1.6 rebounds on 48.2% from the floor and 43.5% from 3-point range. He’s one of Oklahoma City’s biggest and best surprises of the young season.

---

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.