OKC Thunder Exploring Roster, Josh Giddey Done For Summer League
The Oklahoma City Thunder’s past two seasons have been filled by roster exploration.
From the days of starting Moses Brown and Tony Bradley to last year’s stages of starting four OKC Blue call-ups to place a cap on the season – Sam Presti has not shied away from tapping into everyone on the roster.
In the Las Vegas Summer League, the Oklahoma City Thunder are fully loaded with familiar faces. With 12-of-17 players netting guaranteed money on the roster, it’s been a tough task getting an extensive gauge on everyone on the roster.
Following the news of Josh Giddey being sat for the remainder of Summer League, the Thunder got a big-time look at parts of their roster Wednesday evening.
At The top of the list, Ousmane Dieng starred in a starting role, producing 12 points (5-of-8 FG) and one three-ball. Prior to this, Dieng struggled mightily from the field, shooting 12-of-42 (28.6%) across his last four contests.
With Giddey out of the mix against the Kings, Dieng took on a familiar role as a ball-handler for the Thunder. He was not a big-time producer in his first four games, being pinned to the corner in most instances. However, Wednesday was a step in the right direction.
Gabe Brown also received a minute uptick with the absence of Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, netting 20 minutes of run Wednesday evening. The former Spartan shot 2-of-6 from the floor. However, the Thunder’s pivot to handing Exhibit-10 contracts playing time is a step in the right direction for their G League affiliate.
Given Giddey’s sunset for Las Vegas, the Oklahoma City Thunder should have a rotational revolving door for the rest of Summer League – handing more players increased minutes and roles.
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