Promising Thunder rookie primed for uptick in action in game one of Emirates NBA Cup

Many key members of the OKC Thunder have received chomps from the injury bug this season, leaving coach Mark Daigneault's rotations short-handed and longing for players to step up.

Amid the health-related turmoil, rookie Ajay Mitchell has managed to make his presence felt on the hardwood, as he's served as a surprise revelation for Oklahoma City during these early stages of the campaign.

Despite having been selected in the second round of this past June's NBA Draft and being attached to a two-way contract, the wing has made his way into on-court action in every game played thus far in 2024-25.

Mitchell has not just participated, but, rather, has been a legitimate difference-maker for the Thunder, as he's been a lights-out sniper from long-range and a plus contributor on the defensive end while averaging 5.3 points, 1.6 rebounds, and 1.9 assists while shooting 53.1 percent from the floor and 45.5 percent from distance.

Through these first few weeks of the season, the 38th overall selection finds himself ranked 18 in total minutes logged (182) among his fellow rookie classmates, with a large chunk of his accumulated playing time coming over the last four games where three saw him play roughly 20 or more minutes.

Now, heading into Friday's matchup against the Suns, it's more than likely that he'll once against significantly add to his impressive on-going minutes count due to the continuously growing injury report.

Thunder rookie Ajay Mitchell in line for big minutes against Suns

Six Thunder players are currently listed on the league's most recently updated injury report, four of whom have proven themselves to be big-time components of the club's rotation.

The newest addition to this lengthy collection is veteran guard Alex Caruso, who was initially sidelined Wednesday ahead of Oklahoma City's win against New Orleans with a nagging right hip ailment.

As a result of his absence, coach Daigneault called upon Mitchell to take on a significant portion of his vacated averages of 19.5 minutes, seeing roughly 23 minutes on the floor and posting a solid all-around stat line of 6 points, 3 assists, 2 rebounds, and 2 steals on 50.0 percent shooting from the field all while tying Shai Gilgeous-Alexander for the highest plus-minus rating of +18.

Following such a showing, it seemed likely that the Thunder would continue to try and find ways to get the UC Santa Barbara product more run within the rotation moving forward.

Now, with it being ruled that Caruso will once again be donning street clothes, fans should once again expect to see the promising young rookie see significant action in game one of The Emirates NBA Cup against the Phoenix Suns.