Chet Holmgren was one of the highly touted prospects coming out of college for the 2022 NBA Draft, and the Oklahoma City Thunder made him the second overall pick. But injury concerns became reality before he ever stepped on an NBA floor.
Chet Holmgren Makes His Return From Foot Injury
Chet Holmgren on his return from injury:
“It’s like the injury never happened… if you erased my memory, I wouldn’t know anything happened to my foot.”
(via @kadekimble, https://t.co/1k0o7nVDdf) pic.twitter.com/ua05vHc8TJ
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) July 4, 2023
Holmgren’s wiry frame and slender leg build had plenty of experts concerned about his durability. Tall, lanky players have been notorious for dealing with leg and lower body ailments, and it was a red flag on the 7’1″, 208 pound Holmgren’s scouting report.
Sure enough, in August 2022, two months before his rookie season was set to begin, Chet Holmgren suffered a Lisfranc injury to his foot during a pro-am game. He was forced to miss the entirety of his first year in the NBA, and still has never competed in any level higher than the Summer League.
But Holmgren has started off his second Summer League campaign by showing that he might be back to full strength. In their first game against the Utah Jazz, Homgren scored 15 points, grabbed 9 rebounds, and blocked 4 shots in 29 minutes of play. All of it was a good sign for his progression and rehab.
Holmgren Will Be Eligible For ROY In 2023-24
Chet Holmgren tonight:
15 Points
9 Rebounds
4 Blocks
2 Assists pic.twitter.com/Zl6Yt0D5LE— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) July 4, 2023
He had some comments after the game about how it felt to return to action:
“It’s like the injury never happened…if you erased my memory, I wouldn’t know anything happened to my foot.”
Holmgren still has a chance to become something special. The 4 blocks in the game against the Jazz was an impressive performance, but not as productive as his 6-block game in last year’s Summer League. The sample size is small, and the competition is not quite NBA-level, but the defensive prowess has been obvious thus far.
The Thunder showed promise last year and have one of the youngest rosters in the league to go along with a treasure chest full of future draft picks. They finished with a record of 40-42 and qualified for the play-in tournament. They have Jalen Williams on their roster, who was the runner-up in Rookie of the Year voting, and the added production from Chet Holmgren will certainly be a boost to the rotation.
Speaking of Rookie of the Year, Holmgren will be eligible for the award this year. He is currently listed with the third-shortest odds of anyone to take home the hardware, behind only Victor Wembanyama and Scoot Henderson.
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