Key Thunder player officially taken off injury report ahead of Spurs rematch

Luck has not been on the side of the OKC Thunder thus far into the 2024-25 campaign when it comes to health.

Through 14 games played, Oklahoma City has regularly played at sub-100 percent due to the widespread injuries that have ravaged their rotation.

From Isaiah Hartenstein and Jaylin Williams' ongoing ailments that have held them out since the preseason to, most recently, Chet Holmgren's right iliac wing fracture in his hip that will keep him sidelined through at least mid-January, coach Mark Daigneault's rotations have certainly been undermanned.

Interestingly enough, however, as of Tuesday morning, it appears the Thunder are now finding their health fortunes turning, as one of their core members seems to be in line for a return to action.

OKC Thunder slated to get core rotation member back vs Spurs

In the league's most recent injury report, veteran guard Alex Caruso was nowhere to be found. This is a genuinely exciting sight to see, as the offseason acquisition has been relegated to street clothes for the past three games with a nagging hip injury.

Fortunately, as has been the case throughout this season while dealing with injuries, the Thunder managed to scrape out a winning record despite his absence, going 2-1 and, overall, advancing to 11-3 on the year.

That said, his elite two-way presence was certainly missed during this stretch, particularly on the defensive end where he's proven to be a major contributor, particularly when matching up against opposing centers during OKC's Holmgren-less stretch.

Through 11 games into his debut season in the Sooner State, Caruso has been a high-impact player for Oklahoma City.

While he may currently be struggling with his long-range game (21.9 percent conversion rate), his efforts on the less glamorous side have been invaluable, boasting a defensive rating of 97.2.

His skills will come in handy moving forward, especially during Tuesday's rematch against San Antonio where the center-less Thunder will be facing the currently surging 7-foot-3 Victor Wembanyama, who comes in sporting averages of 37.3 points, 11.3 rebounds, 4.3 assists, and 2.7 blocks on 56.6 percent shooting from the floor and 43.9 percent from deep over his last three games.

Though the return of the 6-foot-5 guard may not be the size boost that Daigneault and company would relish in having against the lengthier Spurs, at the very least, it'll certainly help in the defensive department and it serves as a positive injury update after a long stretch of negative news.