“Can’t believe this mf still made the lay” - Chet Holmgren ‘pi**ed’ after injury sacrifice doesn’t prevent Andrew Wiggins from scoring
The OKC Thunder lost way more than just a game on Sunday night. Chet Holmgren suffered an injury while trying to contest an Andrew Wiggins layup and will be sidelined for an extended period.
Per reports, the former No. 2 pick will be out until at least January after fracturing his right iliac wing. He'll be reevaluated in eight to 10 weeks; however, that's not even the worst part for him.
After the news of his injury broke online, Holmgren took to X to share his frustration about how Wiggins was still able to finish the layup despite his contest and hard fall.
OKC needs size after losing Chet Holmgren
The OKC Thunder were already thin at the center position before Holmgren's injury. They made a significant financial investment to land Isaiah Harstentein in free agency, but he suffered a non-displaced fracture in his hand in the preseason and won't be able to make his season debut until late November.
Jaylin Williams is also nursing an injury, forcing the team to commit to playing small ball for now. They could also dig deep into the free agent market, with players like Moses Brown, Bismack Biyombo or JaVale McGee as potential fill-in starters.
The Thunder had the best record in the Western Conference last season, but their lack of size at the five eventually doomed them in their playoff matchup against the Dallas Mavericks. While it's still early in the season, it could once again pose a major threat to their aspirations this campaign.
Injury concerns about Chet Holmgren resurface
This is the second significant injury in three years for Chet Holmgren. He missed his entire rookie season with a Lisfranc injury, which he suffered in the offseason.
There have always been injury concerns regarding Holmgren and whether he can withstand the physicality and the wear and tear of an entire 82-game season, especially for a big man.
However, Holmgren managed to suit up in all of the Thunder's games last season, and he would've run away with the Rookie of the Year award if it wasn't for Victor Wembanyama's dominance.