The OKC Thunder have spent the majority of the offseason carrying the maximum of 21 players on their roster. This led to some outrageous takes about the Thunder actually having too many good players.
Since then, the OKC Thunder have w on from the likes of Rudy Gay, Usman Garuba, and TyTy Washington. None of them found their way back to a standard contract to start the NBA regular season. Gay was waived in Golden State as the Warriors elected to enter the season with two open roster spots instead, and Washington jr and Garuba could only net two-way pacts.
The OKC Thunder also traded Victor Oladipo and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl to Houston to help clear up that roster crunch. This left them with one final roster decision to make at the buzzer before setting their opening night roster for the 2023-24 NBA season.
The OKC Thunder have set their final roster ahead of the 2023-24 NBA season after moving on from Jack White.
The roster bubble seemingly came down to keeping Tre Mann, a 2021 first-round pick by the franchise, or Jack White, who signed a low guarantee free agent pact just a few weeks ago.
Ultimately, the franchise elected to waive Jack White; this is the second time Sam Presti has inked a player in free agency just to cut them before the start of the regular season. White served as a solid training camp player and earned a payday along the way.
Jack White has been waived by the Thunder, and the roster is now set. pic.twitter.com/8iLLJkKESV
— Rylan Stiles (@Rylan_Stiles) October 22, 2023
Tre Mann saw his contract option picked up this week and made the opening night roster in Oklahoma City ahead of a pivotal year for his career.
The Opening Night roster is as follows:
- Guards: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Josh Giddey, Lu Dort, Isaiah Joe, Cason Wallace, Vasilije Micic, Tre Mann (7)
- Wings: Jalen Williams, Aaron Wiggins, Kenrich Williams, Ousmane Dieng, Lindy Waters III (Two-way), Keyontae Johnson (Two-Way) (6)
- Bigs: Chet Holmgren, Aleksej Pokusevski, Davis Bertans, Jaylin Williams, Olivier Sarr (Two-Way) (5)
The Oklahoma City Thunder will take on the Chicago Bulls in their season opener on Wednesday, October 25th. Stay tuned to Thunderous Intentions for coverage all season long.