Which OKC Thunder Player is Most Likely to Breakout Next Season?
Fresh off an NBA title, the Oklahoma City Thunder have practically maintained their same roster from the championship-winning team. In fact, the roster is the exact same.
This should allow for the stars to shine and the role players to keep in their same roles, but there are a few players who came off the bench last season who could see an increase in playing time and production. This is from a variety of reasons, but there are clear candidates for a breakout.
Candidates may be a stretch. There is one obvious name to look out for a Thunder breakout and he recently just shined in the NBA Summer League.
Second-year point guard Ajay Mitchell had an incredible Summer League, which was capped off by making the All-Summer League second team. He averaged 20 points per game in his three appearances in Las Vegas, showing why he can establish himself as, at the very minimum, a rotational backup point guard.
He saw some turmoil in his rookie season, appearing in only 36 regular-season games. His year was shut down early after suffering a turf toe injury, but he did manage to get back for some playoff action.
Despite the injury, Mitchell averaged 6.5 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game on 16.6 minutes per game. His flashes in the 2024-25 regular season and his stardom in the Summer League are proof enough as to why he can see an increased role for OKC next season.
Mitchell showed not only that he can score the ball at a high level, but that he can also command an offense as a point guard. He averaged 4.3 assists per game in the Summer League to prove that, but also looked more comfortable than he ever has with the ball in his hands.
His competition for the backup point guard spot is against rookie Nikola Topic, a former Serbian lottery pick. He is a very clearly talented player, but hasn’t stepped foot on a true NBA court yet. That puts him at an immediate disadvantage and gives it to Mitchell.
