Trading Chet Holmgren Elsewhere Could Help Oklahoma City Thunder in Long Run

Losing big man Chet Holmgren just over two weeks into the season hasn’t slowed the Oklahoma City Thunder down one bit.

Holmgren was playing in his 10th game of the campaign when he went up to defend a shot and came down awkwardly, slamming against the hardwood and sustaining a pelvic fracture in the process.

That happened back on Nov. 10, and Oklahoma City said that there would be an update on the 22-year-old’s condition eight to 10 weeks from then.

Well, here we are, eight weeks later, and there hasn’t been a peep.

Not even Thunder coach Mark Daigneault knows what’s going on.

“I don't even know if (Holmgren is) traveling. I swear to God,” Daigneault said as Oklahoma City braces for a four-game road trip. “I have no idea if he's traveling. Sometimes they'll travel for different reasons, and if it's best for their rehab to stay back, they'll stay back, but I literally don't know the plan on that.”

Even with Holmgren watching from the bench, the Thunder have positioned themselves atop the Western Conference at 30-5 and are currently riding a 15-game winning streak. 

If there ever comes a day where a healthy Holmgren gets added into the mix, Oklahoma City could make a serious playoff run. But that is, of course, a big “if.”

Availability is the best ability, and since being selected with the second overall pick in the 2022 draft, Holmgren has been a spectator for 107 of the 199 regular-season games that he could have potentially played in.

Holmgren missed the entire 2022-23 campaign because of a right foot injury before playing all 82 games a season ago, but now he’s once again come down with the injury bug, and we really don’t officially know when we’ll get to see him again.

Sure, he’s talented—super talented at that—but he can only do so much from the sideline.

Staying healthy in the NBA as the lanky big man is hard. Just ask Boston Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis. Putting on some muscle would surely be beneficial for Holmgren, especially since he is already slowly establishing himself as someone who could be injury-prone.

When the time does come for Holmgren to return, as long as he gets back to form within a reasonable amount of time, his ceiling is going to continue to be through the roof—for now. 

One or two more serious injuries, and the Thunder—and teams across the league—are going to have to have some very serious conversations about just how valuable Holmgren truly is.

It certainly isn’t time to jump ship on Holmgren just yet. Don’t press the panic button, either. But at least know where it is. It could come in handy a year or two down the road depending on how things play out. 

Wheeling and dealing is about the last thing that Oklahoma City general manager Sam Presti is afraid of. The Thunder have been great without Holmgren, and if the organization ever does choose to move on from him, it shouldn’t be hard finding a replacement with all the draft capital it has.

Oklahoma City has a bright future. Just don’t be surprised if Holmgren doesn’t end up being part of it.