The OKC Thunder are preparing for the 2023-24 NBA season this offseason by making a plethora of trades, drafting two players in the 2023 NBA Draft, and bringing over a two-time EuroLeague MVP. As if the anticipation for next season was not sky-high already, with the team owning the best young core in the NBA, Sam Presti’s Summer transactions have only boosted the buzz around Bricktown for this season.
With a new set of players comes a new set of jersey numbers for the Oklahoma City Thunder. Unlike last year when current player Darius Bazley gave up his digit so rookie Chet Holmgren could sport the number 7, all returning Oklahoma City players will continue to use their same number from this past season. We now know the newcomers’ numbers for the upcoming 2023-24 season.
OKC Thunder newcomers see their jersey numbers revealed for the 2023-24 season.
The Oklahoma City Thunder selected Cason Wallace with the 10th overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft as the team traded up from pick 12 to grab the Kentucky product. Cason Wallace elected to stick with his college number, 22, the same digits Shai Gilgeous-Alexander wore while at Kentucky.
Cason Wallace will be the sixth player in OKC Thunder history to wear 22. It was last worn by Isaiah Roby in 2022, the number was also sported by Devon Hall, Taj Gibson, Cameron Payne, Mustafa Shakur, and Jeff Green.
The OKC Thunder also used the 50th overall pick on Keyontae Johnson out of Kansas State. With the Wildcats, Johnson wore 11, which is currently occupied by Isaiah Joe. That forced Keyontae Johnson to pick a new number, and he landed on 18. That number has only been worn twice in Thunder history, most recently by Georgios Kalaitzakis in 2022, as well as by Mouhamed Sene, who wore it during the team’s first season in Bricktown, only playing in five games for the Thunder before being traded to the Knicks.
I asked Keyontae Johnson what went into picking the number 18 he mentioned 11 and 22 were taken pic.twitter.com/CzAsU2c6dW
— Rylan Stiles (@Rylan_Stiles) June 24, 2023
The OKC Thunder finally brought over Vasilije Micic after trading for him back in December of 2020 during the Al Horford swap to net the veteran big man from the Philadelphia 76ers. After a few flirtatious summers, Micic has finally landed in Bricktown, inking a multi-year pact with the OKC Thunder.
Overseas, Vasilije Micic wore the number 22, which the aforementioned Cason Wallace currently occupies. Micic has swapped his number to 29 in the NBA. While we do not know if the number 29 has any deeper significants to the new guard, it is the rookie’s current age. Perhaps that is why he elected to sport the number 29.
Vasilije Micic is the second player in OKC Thunder history to wear the number 29, only behind former guard and interim head coach Mike Wilks during the 2009-10 season with the franchise.
TyTy Washington joined the Oklahoma City Thunder in Summer League wearing the number 28, which would make him the first Thunder player ever to wear the number 28 in franchise history.
The only numbers that have yet to be revealed for Oklahoma City are Jack White, Victor Oladipo, Davis Bertans, and Usmane Garuba. Obviously, it is no guarantee any of the three will make the opening night roster. Though, at training camp, we will find out their assigned digits for however long they last in Bricktown.
Davis Bertans has worn the numbers 42 and 44 in his NBA career, both of them are open in OKC. Usmane Garuba has only dawned the number 16 in his career, which is currently vacant in Oklahoma City. Jack White might need a number change, as he wore 10 in Denver, which has never been worn in Thunder history but is retired in Sonics lore. Victor Oladipo has worn the number 5 before in OKC while also using 4 and 7 in his NBA career. The number 4 is retired for the OKC Thunder, his old OKC number now belongs to Lu Dort, and 7 is grabbed by Chet Holmgren. Oladipo, if he sticks, will need some new digits.