By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
The Oklahoma City Thunder will have to brace for a tough NBA regular season stretch without their superstar center Chet Holmgren.
After the final results were done by the team’s medical staff, it was determined that the uprising sophomore suffered a right iliac wing fracture in his hip during Oklahoma’s 127-116 loss to the Golden State Warriors last November 11, 2024.
Holmgren fractured his hip in the 6:54 mark of the opening quarter when he contested Andrew Wiggins’ aggressive drive to the basket.
After Wiggins already soared mid-air, Holmgren went up late and got entangled, resulting in an awkward fall, damaging his hip.
Seconds after the loud thud that was heard inside the playing court, Holmgren immediately grimaced in pain and failed to stand up for a minute.
He then had to be helped off the court by the medical staff and his teammates and would not return, a big blow to Oklahoma during their highly-anticipated clash with Stephen Curry and the Warriors.
Oklahoma quickly released their official update regarding Holmgren’s health status and announced that the versatile big man will be out for 8-10 weeks.
Holmgren is currently having a great start in the 2024-2025 NBA season and is averaging 18.2 points, 9.2 rebounds, 2.9 blocks, and 2.2 assists in nine games played.
With Holmgren’s solid two-way efficient outing, Oklahoma is currently sitting at the no. 2 spot of the Western Conference with a win-loss record of 8-2.
The Thunder will have to devise a new game plan as they are headed for a grueling schedule against the Pelicans, Phoenix, Dallas, Spurs, Portland, and Sacramento in their next six-game trip.
