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.
