The Oklahoma City Thunder have enjoyed success over the last few seasons, but that doesn't mean they don't go through injuries like every other team in the league. Before this season has tipped off, they've lost rookie Otega Oweh after he suffered a torn Achilles against the Indiana Pacers in the preseason. With Oweh's injury, that makes it the fourth rookie in five seasons for the Thunder who has been ruled out for the year before debuting.

The other rookies include Thomas Sorber, who didn't play in 2025 because of an ACL injury, Nikola Topic in 2025 because of an ACL injury, and Chet Holmgren in 2024 because of a Lisfranc injury.

The good news is that Holmgren and Topic were able to come back the following seasons and play. Sorber has yet to play during the preseason, and it's uncertain when he'll return. The hope for Oweh is that he can have an easy recovery and be able to come back next season.

The Thunder want to make sure they stay fairly healthy this season, especially since they lost some of their role players during the offseason. Lu Dort and Aaron Wiggins were traded to the Atlanta Hawks, and Isaiah Joe was traded to the Detroit Pistons.

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That means other players on the team will have an increased role, such as Cason Wallace, who has a good chance of being in the starting lineup. Ajay Mitchell will have a bigger role as well, and he showed late last season that he can provide extra scoring for the team.

Of course, the big 3 of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, and Holmgren will have to lead the team every night, which hasn't been a problem for them over the last few years.