To the delight of OKC Thunder fans near and far, sophomore Ajay Mitchell is breaking out toward rising star territory right before their very eyes.
Following an underrated rookie campaign that saw him serve as a consistent contributor within the eventual champion's rotation and rank fifth in three-point percentage (38.3) and first in defensive rating (100.0) among his rookie peers who logged a minimum of 30 games played, the former second-round pick has seemingly brought his play to an entirely new level here in year two.
Though admittedly a small sample size, Mitchell finds himself dropping stellar, all-around averages of 18.2 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 1.2 steals while shooting 47.3 percent from the field.
During the summer months leading up to 2025-26, a case was already being made that the Santa Barbara product may have given the Thunder coaching staff reason to second-guess their depth chart and rotational decision-making moving forward.
Now, with his hot start to the season, such questioning is only bound to take place internally, which, while on the one hand should be viewed as exciting, on the other, makes Nikola Topic's future with the franchise even more puzzling.
Ajay Mitchell breakout makes Nikola Topic's Thunder role confusing
Right from the jump, the addition of Topic with the 12 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft was already viewed as a head-scratching move for the Thunder to make.
Sure, the great value for where they landed him was undeniable, especially when considering he was viewed as a legitimate top-three option before tearing his ACL that same year.
Even this summer, there were rumblings that, had he held out for the 2025 draft, he still would have been a top-five pick if healthy.
However, the confusion over his selection was never about his talent but, rather, his style of play.
Topic boasts a prototypical floor general's game, one where he looks to pass first and shoot second. Now, on the surface, such a skill set could be seen as an ideal fit on a Thunder team that boasts heavy-hitting scorers already in the likes of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, and Chet Holmgren in tow.
However, regardless of how dominant this trio can be in this area of play, they still require players surrounding them who are willing and able to take on some of the scoring load, especially in kick-out catch-and-shoot scenarios.
Considering he shot just 24.7 percent from deep in international play and 33.3 percent during the 2025 Las Vegas Summer League, the rookie is far from what one would consider a long-range marksman.
This Thunder team has already seen what the experiment of having a pure floor general with a non-existent jumper brings to the rotation during Josh Giddey's three-year tenure, and we all remember how that turned out.
Frankly, the only true arguments that fans and pundits have been making for why having Topic is a plus for this OKC rotation are that he provides elite play-making abilities, versatile defensive efforts, and trusty tertiary ball-handling skills which, admittedly, are extremely valuable qualities.
Of course, as we discovered last season and are reminded of even more so this year, Mitchell is someone who possesses these very attributes, along with an extremely reliable shooting stroke.
With this, there's a built-in argument that last year's 33 overall selection is simply a better fit for the role that the lottery-selected Topic was expected to play for Oklahoma City moving forward, and should the club come to this conclusion, the Serbian native's future standing out in the Sooner State may be brought into question.