Bubble Watch: Can TyTy Washington make the OKC Thunder’s Roster?
By Parker Eaves
The case against TyTy Washington making the OKC Thunder roster
There are many reasons why TyTy Washington Jr won’t make the roster, but the most straightforward answer is that the Thunder didn’t draft him. They didn’t invest the capital of a first-round pick into him, and he was a throw-in with their trade to the Atlanta Hawks.
The Houston Rockets were trying to get rid of Washington Jr along with Usman Garuba, and if the Thunder don’t see enough from him this summer, they can cut him at no cost.
The Thunder have to think about who gets priority on developmental minutes this year, as there aren’t as many developmental minutes to be had, given the success of last year’s team.
The pecking order probably goes to Chet Holmgren, Ousmane Dieng, and Cason Wallace. Washington Jr might be next in line, but someone like Aleksej Pokuseveski still needs developmental minutes, given the amount of time he has missed due to injury over the past year.
If you look at the minutes for guards coming off the bench who are ahead of Washington Jr, it is Vasilije Micic, Cason Wallace, and Tre Mann.
Washington Jr would be the fourth guard coming off the bench, and that kind of player would only get a maximum of ten minutes per game. That is not enough time, given where he is in his development. The question is whether the Thunder thinks he is worth that investment or if using those minutes on someone who can contribute right now is better.