OKC Thunder Must Find More Minutes for Bennett Stirtz

The Thunder aren't in an ideal situation, but they need to get their first-round pick on the floor.

Oct 25, 2026; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Bennett Stirtz (14) walks down the court during the first half at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Oklahoma City is still trying to adjust to its shorthanded lineup, but its rookie point guard can’t get squeezed out of the rotation. 

On Friday night, the Thunder dropped their third straight game, falling 113-112 to the LA Clippers in an NBA Cup matchup. The Thunder faltered in the final minutes and failed to come out on top in their third game in four nights. 

Now set for the final game of their four-game West Coast swing on Sunday night, the Thunder have some issues to try and sort out in Sacramento. One of the biggest potential issues for Mark Daigneault and the Thunder to figure out is how to manage their rotations, especially in the backcourt. 

Despite having a solid start to his rookie season and playing a key part in some of Oklahoma City’s wins, Stirtz was only able to get on the floor for just under 12 minutes against the Clippers. That marked his lowest minutes total since the Thunder lost three starters in the third game of the season, and it was only the third time in that 10-game span that he didn’t reach the 20-minute mark. 

While on most other nights, that could be chalked up to Daigneault liking a certain matchup over Stirtz or simply not wanting to wear out his rookie guard on the third game in four nights, Friday’s game was a bit more unique. The Thunder were still without Ajay Mitchell, but Nikola Topic made his season debut, which altered the rotation. 

Topic needs minutes to develop and find his role after effectively losing his first two NBA seasons to health issues, but that shouldn’t come at Stirtz’s expense. Without Mitchell in the lineup, there should’ve been no issues getting both of them minutes. 

There’s no need to overreact to the rotations of one game, but it’s tough to find any good reasons why Josh Dix would play more minutes than Stirtz in a one-point game. Stirtz adds needed shooting and spacing that Dix hasn’t yet proven he can provide at the NBA level. 

With Stirtz being a first-round pick and Dix being on a two-way deal, it also makes much more sense for Stirtz to be on the floor more from a development and organizational standpoint. Even if lineups may be a bit more undersized with Stirtz out there, the Thunder are no stranger to odd lineups and playing out of position, especially with their injury situation.