Tag: 2023 Summer League

OKC Thunder to officially participate in 2023 Salt Lake City summer league

The Thunder are officially participating in two summer leagues again this year.

The Utah Jazz announced they will host their eighth consecutive summer league this July, and four teams, including the Oklahoma City Thunder, will participate.

The four teams are the Thunder, Jazz, Philadelphia 76ers and Memphis Grizzlies. All four will play each other during the Salt Lake City summer league from July 3 to July 6.

This will be the second consecutive season the Thunder participated in Utah’s summer league. Thunder general manager Sam Presti confirmed OKC’s attendance during his end-of-season press conference.

There is a chance Chet Holmgren suits up for this summer league. Presti noted it’s possible he plays in July after missing the entire 2022-23 season due to a Lisfranc injury that required multiple foot surgeries.

“More reps, different environments, more opportunities,” Presti said on playing a second summer league. “The hard part is you just can’t play everybody the whole time because the schedule is pretty grueling. But our guys played — they soaked it up last year. We had to take a couple guys off the floor because they were just toast by the end. I think it’s great for us to do that. I’m a fan of doing that.”

The Thunder also will participate in Las Vegas’ league-wide summer league from July 7 to July 17. This means the Thunder will have games every other day for two weeks, from July 3 to July 17.

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Sam Presti confirms OKC Thunder will play in two summer leagues again

The Thunder will have two separate Summer Leagues once again this year.

During his end-of-season presser, Oklahoma City Thunder general manager Sam Presti confirmed they will once again play in two summer leagues.

The Thunder played in two summer leagues last year as well: Las Vegas and Salt Lake City. The former was used for mostly the rookies and bubble roster players while the latter was used for the second-and-third year players on the roster.

“More reps, different environments, more opportunities,” Presti said on the benefits of playing two summer leagues. “The hard part is you just can’t play everybody the whole time because the schedule is pretty grueling. But our guys played — they soaked it up last year. We had to take a couple guys off the floor because they were just toast by the end. I think it’s great for us to do that. I’m a fan of doing that.”

The impending Thunder rookie class as well as some sophomore and junior players will likely make appearances in summer league. Ousmane Deing confirmed he’ll play in it during exit interviews.

The biggest draw could be Chet Holmgren though. Presti said it was a possible he plays in summer league. The No. 2 pick missed the entire season recovering from a season-ending Lisfranc injury. Holmgren is still rehabbing and is close to beginning 5v5 play.

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Sam Presti said it’s possible Chet Holmgren plays in summer league

Summer League might be appointment viewing for Thunder fans.

It looks like fans might see Chet Holmgren sooner than expected.

During his end-of-season press conference, Oklahoma City Thunder general manager Sam Presti didn’t officially rule Holmgren out from participating in the summer leagues, which will be held in July.

“It’s possible,” Presti said. “We’ll see when we get to that point. If he’s at that point where we feel good about making that decision — I wouldn’t say he wouldn’t. It’s very possible that he does, but he’s got a lot of time between now and then.

“He’ll want to play for sure because he’ll play anywhere, anytime. It’s just a matter of if it’s the right thing for him physically at that point.”

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It’s a little eyebrow-raising to see Presti not officially rule Holmgren out from summer league. Many assumed the Thunder would play it extra safe and not have him return to in-game action until the 2023-24 season starts.

When asked if he’d play in summer league during his exit interview, Holmgren was noncommittal and said he’s focused on continuing his rehab and progressing toward 5v5 action, which is in the near future.

“I’m focused on following the plan that we have in place, and when that time comes, that’s part of the plan, I’ll follow the plan like I have up to this point,” Holmgren said. “But right now I’m focused on the plan that I have here in the near future, and we’ll figure that out as we go.”

The No. 2 pick missed the 2022-23 season recovering from a season-ending Lisfranc injury he suffered last August. Holmgren’s last competitive game was in last year’s summer league, during which he garnered hype due to how impressive he looked.

Presti also acknowledged during his presser that the Thunder will play in two separate summer leagues once again this year — as was the case last year with Salt Lake City and Las Vegas.

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OKC Thunder to participate in 2023 NBA summer league from July 7-17

The NBA announced on Tuesday the official dates for 2023 summer league.

The NBA officially announced the dates for 2023 summer league, an event expected to be headlined by presumed top-two picks Victor Wembanyama and Scoot Henderson.

The Oklahoma City Thunder, along with the rest of the league, will participate in the summer event from July 7-17 in Las Vegas.

The Thunder own the eighth-best lottery odds and have a realistic shot to climb as high as fifth in the lottery. They trail the Orlando Magic by three games with 21 games left to go.

The Thunder also own swap rights with the LA Clippers, meaning they could their pick if it’s better than OKC’s. Considering the Clippers will likely make the playoffs, that likely will not happen.

The Thunder will ultimately find out where they’re selecting in the draft on May 16 when the 2023 draft lottery results are known.

In terms of sophomore players who could participate in summer league, Chet Holmgren’s availability is up in the air.

The Thunder ruled Holmgren out for the entire 2022-23 regular season, but his status for 2023 summer league is unknown. By the time summer league starts, it’ll be nearly 11 months since Holmgren suffered his Lisfranc injury.

If Holmgren does play, it’ll be the first time he’s played in a professional game since last year’s summer league, which was highlighted by a dominating debut.

Ousmane Dieng and Jaylin Williams are likely safe bets to play in a handful of summer league games. Considering how productive Jalen Williams has been this season, he might’ve already outgrown summer league participation.

Regardless of who participates, it’ll be a fun 10-day experience for Thunder fans as summer league will provide the first glimpses of OKC’s newest members.

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