OKC Thunder: How Thomas Sorber Will Stay Ready Despite Injury

The No. 15 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, OKC Thunder big Thomas Sorber, will miss the entire 2025-26 season with a torn ACL. This setback will not change his drive to be the best player he could be, though.

Sorber spoke to the media on Monday, Sept. 29, for the Thunder's media day prior to training camp. When asked about the injury, he said that it feels like a blessing.

"Yeah. It [the injury] was awfully disappointing. Yeah, I see it as like a blessing as well. I get to come into the league for a year just to learn," Sorber said in the press conference.

Sorber injured his knee during an offseason workout on Sept. 4. This was after missing NBA Summer League and the end of his lone collegiate season with Georgetown University due to a foot injury.

With the Hoyas, Sorber averaged 14.5 points, 8.5 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.5 steals and 2.0 blocks per game. He shot 53.2% from the field in his 31.3 minutes per game.

Despite his season getting cut short, Sorber was still named to the All-Big East third team and the Big East All-Freshman team.

Sorber said during media day that he keeps in touch with some great Georgetown bigs of the past, like Roy Hibbert.

OKC Thunder General Manager Sam Presti believes that Sorber's character will help him through the recovery process.

“He’s got a great energy to him just as a person, and that’s going to really help him through this," Presti said at his beginning of season press conference.

This is not the first time a Thunder first-round rookie missed the entirety of his rookie season, nor is it the second. Sorber can use Thunder center Chet Holmgren and guard Nikola Topic's advice on how to overcome this adversity this early in his career. In fact, Topic dealt with this same injury.

Sorber's already received advice from these highly-touted prospects, and they want him to stick to rehab.

"Those guys have been telling me just to stick to rehab, just to keep your head down, keep to listening to what the trainers have to tell you," Sorber said. "So that's what I've been doing and I feel I've been doing pretty well at that."

Despite his status being confirmed as out for his entire season, Sorber will use this redshirt opportunity for future success just like his predecessors.