Fans of the Oklahoma City Thunder had a rough weekend.
When it was announced that their new rookie sensation Chet Holmgren was going to play in the CrawsOver pro-am game Saturday night, followers of the Thunder were elated because they have loved watching Holmgren every chance they could get.
But then Holmgren only played briefly during the game.
This is because he rolled his ankle while trying to defend LeBron James.
Chet already learning valuable NBA lessons: don’t play defense in a pro-am.
(I like the mindset though.)
— Brandon Rahbar (@BrandonRahbar) August 21, 2022
Holmgren will be okay in the long run and it’s not clear how serious the injury is.
But he learned a couple of good lessons here: firstly, defending James is sometimes a danger to your health.
Secondly, as Brandon Rahbar summed up on Twitter, playing defense in a pro-am game isn’t always a very smart idea.
Welcome to the NBA!
Holmgren Hurt
Since being drafted, Holmgren has truly impressed the loyal Thunder fanbase.
He was a star of the NBA Summer League and dominated in multiple games.
However, people constantly mentioned that the Summer League isn’t as difficult as the regular season in the NBA.
Holmgren’s incident is an example of that.
Defending a prospective regular-season bench player in the Summer League is very different than trying to slow down a four-time champion and Hall of Famer like James.
This won’t be the last time that Holmgren has to go toe-to-toe with a superstar.
Imagine him trying to stop Giannis Antetokounmpo or Zion Williamson.
Holmgren’s ankle injury will actually be good for him because it’s teaching him that he is about to be roughed up in ways he’s never experienced before.
It’s time for him to get prepared.
His first injury at the hands of James means he has finally really entered the NBA.
