OKC Thunder: 2 surprise players that could land starting gigs in 2020-21

Surprise player who could start for OKC Thunder No. 2) Ty Jerome

No, not the sexiest of names that one may have imagined being on this list but, frankly, there are barely any of such names on this current iteration of the OKC Thunder roster anyway.

Similar to our logic behind why Poku could eventually find himself in the starting rotation this year, Ty Jerome is also a recent first-round selection coming onto a team with little hopes for true contention in 2020-21.

This, coupled with the fact that, outside of George Hill, he is the closest thing to a true point guard on the roster — please don’t argue SGA, for you know as well as I that he is best served at the two — and you have a credible reason to, not only give solid playing time to the second-year player but, in turn, perhaps a few starts before the season is over.

While Jerome’s rookie season stats were not very impressive (3.3 points, 1.5 rebounds, 1.4 assists), his time spent as the lead floor general for the Virginia Cavaliers gives some glimpses at what could be should he be able to put all the pieces together.

During his final season, specifically, at the collegiate level, the point guard found himself posted impressive averages of 13.6 points, 5.5 assists, and 4.2 rebounds per game on 44 percent shooting from the floor and 40 percent shooting from deep.

Earning Second-Team All-ACC honors, Jerome would then go on to lead the Cavaliers to their first NCAA Championship in school history (posted 16 points, 8 assists, and 6 rebounds in the big game).

From the 2019 draft, he was seen as one of the best shooters in the class who proved to have a knack for fluidly running the pick-and-roll and efficiently running an offense. Perhaps he can find more success alongside SGA in the starting backcourt than he did coming off the bench in minimal time with Phoenix.