What Does Recent Injury Mean for Aleksej Pokusevski?
On Thursday, the Oklahoma City Thunder announced that Aleksej Pokusevski suffered a small right humerus fracture during an off-season workout. The injury is the second fracture the third-year forward has suffered in the past seven months and is likely to setback his developmental trajectory to some degree.
Pokusevski had just overcome a non-displaced tibial plateau fracture he suffered back in December and made a healthy return with the Thunder’s G League affiliate, the Oklahoma City Blue, on March 15th. He would go on to play just three more games for the Blue, looking relatively spry, before being called back to the active roster.
Prior to his leg injury, the Serbian 7-footer was arguably in the middle of playing his best stretch of professional basketball, finding success in his new role as a connector, or tertiary playmaker.
In those 31 games, Pokusevski averaged 8.8 points, 5.1 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 1.3 blocks while shooting 37.6% from 3-point range, showcasing improvements to his outside shot, decision-making ability, and weakside rim protection.
This latest fracture in his right arm will result in Pokusevski being re-evaluated in four to six weeks’ time, but he could be sidelined for longer if there is any setback or if the Thunder’s front office opts for more precaution.
Whatever the case, the former 17th overall pick will lose out on months of precious developmental time just as he becomes eligible for an extension this summer.
But assuming a healthy recovery, it’s hard to imagine the Thunder not extending Pokusevski’s current deal rather than letting him hit the restricted free agent market. Oklahoma City’s roster isn’t exactly filled to the brim with frontcourt talent and Pokusevski, if all things go well, should emerge as a better player in his fourth year, giving the team a necessary dose of size, playmaking, and defense at the forward position.
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