Former OKC Thunder star tabs Chet Holmgren as Rookie of the Year

The Oklahoma City Thunder have one of the best young cores in the entire NBA. After a massive leap in win total from 24 to 40 a season ago, some of the fanbase has the exact expectations for this upcoming season. Chet Holmgren has been added to the fold after spending all last season on the shelf with a Lisfranc Fracture.

Chet Holmgren represents the highest pick of the OKC Thunder rebuild, selected second overall in the 2022 NBA Draft. The organization looks forward to adding this potential franchise-changing talent, once considered a unicorn big man.

Former OKC Thunder star Paul George tabs Chet Holmgren as the 2023-24 NBA Rookie of the Year.

The Oklahoma City Thunder will be one of the League’s most exciting teams led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Josh Giddey, Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren, and the depth Mark Daigneault’s squad possesses. One of the biggest storylines with this season is what Holmgren has to offer.

Chet Holmgren will be in a heated battle with San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama for the 2023-24 NBA Rookie of the Year. The NBA is not shying away from this matchup, highlighting it in the preseason, the In-Season tournament, and during “Rivalry week.” This will be a debate waged all season long.

Former OKC Thunder star Paul George was asked to predict this season’s Rookie of the Year, and the former MVP candidate said, “There is a lot of good talent. I mean, it will come down to who is going to play more? I am going to go Chet [Holmgren], I am going to go Chet [Holmgren]. I think he is going to play more, they are going to be a winning team. The way they play, they are going to get a ton of coverage. [Chet Holmgren] plays both ends, he blocks shots, He is a little bit more polished, further along, I think, than [Victor Wembanyama is].”

Paul George highlighted how important it was for Chet Holmgren to see the game up close while injured last year: “I think you know [Victor Wembanyama] is going to have a little learning curve, even though [Chet Holmgren] did not play much, but being in the league, seeing it up close for a year is going to give him that much more of a head start. So I am going to say Chet Holmgren [Wins Rookie of the Year].”

The Oklahoma City Thunder big man has a strong argument for Rookie of the Year, as Paul George made the case for the Gonzaga product on his Podcast “Podcast P.”