To think the Thunder were missing JDub, Ajay, and in reality Chet Holmgren in the Western Conference Finals and still were right there at the end with a reasonable chance indicates how deep this roster was and is.
I have Ajay as my No. 7 player on Coach Mark’s roster heading into this 2025-26 NBA season.
My thoughts on Ajay, like those of Cason Wallace, are that he’s only scratched the surface of his potential heading into this his third NBA season. The problem for Sam Presti is how does he keep Chet, Cason, and Ajay when we see the extension contracts value on the latter two players from other GMs in the league. This won’t be cheap.
Does Sam Presti part with Chet eventually? Does he calibrate Alex Caruso’s body can only absorb so much punishment heading down the road?
I don’t know these answers as of yet, nor does Sam Presti. But his job is to keep Shai and JDub in that proverbial championship window I constantly write about here on the blog.
Who is San Antonio’s No. 7 currently on their roster? I think it’s De’Aaron Fox, but we’ll see as this unfolds.
But beyond that…Sam Presti knows his team was 4-8 head to head versus the Spurs last season, and unless Wemby goes down with a serious injury—OKC’s road to another NBA Finals will have go thru the Spurs.
We still haven’t witnessed the grown up version of the Spurs’ or their head coach Mitch Johnson. That’s a sobering thought for the Thunder. Common basketball sense tells us they’ve only scratched their potential as well.
As a passionate NBA fan my foremost hope is we get to see the best versions of both teams as this season gets underway and concludes in June.
My takes on Ajay are…he’s a uniquely versatile, intelligent, skilled basketball player who can fill several needs for Coach Mark depending on the opponent as relates to time and score. He’s a player who in my mind warrants 28-30 minutes a game this season if he’s healthy.
His defense will need to be a bit more physical as he matures…but I love his basketball IQ and the fact he never seems to rush things. He is truly one of those players who allows the game to come to him. Extremely coachable.
Count MJ as a big Ajay Mitchell fan.
So for now…I’m going to pause my Thunder evaluation list at 1-7 for two weeks. I want to take a little more time considering why I have 8 thru 12 currently in this order… 8 J-Ark, 9 Jared McCain, 10 Kenrich, 11 Barnhizer, and 12 Topic.
For instance…is Kenrich a rotational player this season or just an insurance policy for Sam Presti? Developmental minutes are going to be needed not only for Jaylin, Jared, and Barnhizer, but for Sorber and Aday as well.
My take is that Kenrich for the most part is an insurnace policy this season. I love Kenny Hustle, but that’s maybe the way this goes if Presti wants to find the best eleven players to take the Thunder past the Spurs in their attempt to win a second NBA championship in three years.
That’s it for me on the Thunder for two weeks or so as we plan to go spend time in Colorado with our family where it’s been raining and the temperatures truly feel like autumn has arrived. My grandson Robert turned seven this Wednesday and that’s a big deal. His very tough little sister Aubrey turns six in December…. and that’s a big deal as well. Youth soccer and hockey seasons have begun. She scored a goal last week and did a little chirping evidently. MJ likes the hubris.
These are the kind of moments I was dreaming about during the tougher days of chemo and such. Dreaming, hoping I’d get to see these type of things.
My cup runneth over. Surely goodness and loving-kindness will follow me the remainder of my days, and I will dwell in the House of the Lord forever. That’s the hope. The vision. One day at a time….truly.
Eteternal love,
Mike J