With their commanding 120-109 win on Monday night, the OKC Thunder are now up 3-2 over the Indiana Pacers in this year's NBA Finals and, in turn, are just one win away from a championship.
With this, excitement among the fanbase is presumably at an all-time high, for not only is this club on the brink of their first title of the Sooner State era, but, with the likes of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, and Chet Holmgren all in their early-to-mid 20s and bound to sign long-term extensions, we could be bearing witness to the official start of a new-age dynasty.
Should they wind up taking home the 2025 Larry O'Brien Trophy, there's a strong case to be made that the most impressive aspect about their postseason excursion is not something highlight-worthy such as J-Dub's recent 40-point explosion or the league's newest MVP becoming the fourth player in history to record 15 or more 30-plus point games in a single postseason.
In fact, in an ironic sense, the most inspiring takeaway from this potential championship run is that Holmgren has been far from full strength and still has played a pivotal role throughout all four rounds.
Chet Holmgren is only bound to get better for Thunder over the years
As noted by ESPN's Tim MacMahon in a recent edition of The Hoop Collective Podcast, "this will be the worst version of Chet in a while," and he couldn't be more right.
After playing all 82 games of the regular season last year, the former second overall pick sustained a right iliac wing fracture a little over two weeks into the campaign and was practically bedridden from November through February, missing 39 straight games along the way.
Upon his return to action, Holmgren was thrust into a late-season playoff push with clear signs of rust. From there, with the non-stop action of an NBA season, he was never able to get back to full strength.
Frankly, now five games into the Finals, it's clear that the big man still isn't his pre-injury self. Even those who weren't plagued with injuries this season are feeling the toll of such a long playoff ride -- why should we expect things to be different for Chet?
Yet, despite his lacking health and nonexistent shooting rhythm (has gone 2-of-14 from deep against Indiana), Holmgren has still found ways to contribute in a positive manner throughout the series, especially over these last three games where he's pulling down 12.0 rebounds (3.3 on the offensive end) and playing elite defense with averages of 1.3 blocks and a defensive rating of 103.6.
Add all this to the fact that he ranks fifth on the Thunder in net rating throughout the playoffs and number one in plus-minus (+7.0) during this year's championship round, and it should send shivers down the spines of opposing teams knowing that Chet Holmgren can be this effective even while being visibly bruised and battered.
Just wait until he comes into 2025-26 with a full offseason of rest and rehabilitation under his belt!