The Oklahoma City Thunder are widely considered the favorites to earn the 1-seed in the Western Conference for the second straight season. That’s because OKC made two major additions this offseason that addressed their most glaring weaknesses from the playoffs, without losing much from their rotation a year ago.
They traded Josh Giddey for Alex Caruso, upgrading their perimeter defense significantly and bringing in a player more comfortable playing off-ball on offense. Then, they used their cap space to sign Isaiah Hartenstein to fill a hole in the frontcourt and give them a strong rebounder, rim protector, and pick-and-roll big next to Chet Holmgren. The only real question for the Thunder is how long will it take them to get those new pieces acclimated to how they play, and unfortunately the assimilation process for Hartenstein is going to be delayed.
On Thursday, the team announced their new center would miss at least 5-6 weeks after suffering a non-displaced fracture in his left hand during their preseason game against the Nuggets on Tuesday. That means he will miss at least the first month of the regular season, which is one month of reps he won’t get with his new teammates in live game action.
It’s not an injury that should have a significant impact on the Thunder’s long-term goal of contending for a title, but it does make the path to the 1-seed in the West (and homecourt throughout the first three rounds, at least) a bit tougher. Not only is Hartenstein out, but Jaylin Williams and Kenrich Williams are both also currently injured and will be re-evaluated after the preseason. That means Chet Holmgren will have to log pretty heavy minutes early on and Mark Daigneault will have to get a bit creative with small-ball lineups until Hartenstein and the Williams’ are back.
With it likely taking another season in the mid-to-high 50s to earn the 1-seed, even a good but not great start to the season can create an uphill climb to land that top spot, and OKC will now have to navigate the start of the year with a much thinner frontcourt rotation than they expected.