OKC Thunder Rookie Finds Offensive Groove In G League

Brooks Barnhizer waltzed into the Press Conference room in the bowels of the Paycom Center on Thursday night with both knees wrapped in ice and his hair still sopping wet with a sweat stained OKC Blue jersey on. It was his fourth game in three nights. His second NBA G League contest of his career, and a week he can only compare to his AAU days.

That didn't stop the rookie from being all smiles and asking the assembled media how they were doing. One thing is for certain, we were a lot less tired than he was. Barnhizer logged 26 minutes for the OKC Blue en route to a career-high 18 points, nine rebounds, three assists and two steals on 6-for-9 shooting including 1-for-1 from 3-point land.

The Defensive-ace was a +7 in the contest despite Oklahoma City's heartbreaking 122-119 loss at the buzzer as Tyler Burton splashed in a triple dished out by former Thunder forward Charlie Brown Jr. as the backboard lit up in red and the Memphis Hustle began to storm the floor.

This week marks Barnhizer's first G League assignment, which will become common place for a majority of Blue home games as the Northwestern product sits on a two-way pact. After logging minutes in the Blue's home opener on Tuesday monring, he played in the Thunder's back to back on Tuesday and Wednesday before once again getting the start for the Blue on Thursday night. A gauntlet of a week that throws the swingman right into the fire of the G League.

“I feel good… It’s really cool to just kinda learn whenever you’re up with the main team, just what your role will be in those short bursts," Barnhizer said.

Throughout the press conference, the youngster was peppered with questions that all took the same tone at some point. How can you resist the temptation of playing out of character when down on the farm?

“Definitely trying to be a little more assertive on offense when I come down. Not trying to shot-hunt. But just being more aggressive in that role… When you go up with the main guys, you’re a lot more confident," Barnhizer said following Thursday contest.

While growing that confidence is key, Barnhizer highlights the fact that he nor Chris Youngblood or Branden Carlson –– his fellow two-way teammates making the trip down to the G League along side him –– will ever be called upon to lead a team's offense at the varsity level. So working on trying to be that with the Blue would be an exercise in futility.

“None of us are going to be main engine guys in the NBA. It’s not just who we are. We’re specialists who can affect the game in different ways," Barnizer detailing his mindset on his G League assignment.

As the Blue fall to 1-2 on the year, and a shocking 0-2 at home, there were still plenty of highlights for this young team. Anthony Pritchard lit up the scoreboard and keep this Blue offense humming with 19 points, 10 assists, two rebounds, two blocks and two steals while shooting over 50% from the floor.

Youngblood and Carlson posted 13 and 15 points respectively as the seven-footer tallied nine rebounds, five assists, a steal and a jaw-dropping five blocks in his 27 minutes of action.

OKC Blue forward and former NBA first round pick Dariq Whitehead produced his best game as a member of the Blue, turning in 12 points, two assists, a rebound and a steal.

Up next, the Oklahoma City Blue hit the road to take on the Mexico City Capitanes on Nov. 16 and Nov. 17.