Chet Holmgren is the only member of the OKC Thunder Big Three who has yet to be selected as an NBA All-Star.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has already participated in the illustrious exhibition three times, while Jalen Williams just earned his first nod last season.
Though being the number three option on a championship team is certainly enviable on its own, considering his well-documented drive and desire to continue improving, there's no doubt that Holmgren's not completely satisfied with his current "rising stud" status.
Excitingly enough, as we inch our way closer to the start of the 2025-26 season, it appears more obvious by the day that the big man is looking to change this in year four, as he finds himself working on the exact kind of skill-set that, if honed enough, should lead him to Inglewood come February.
Thunder big Chet Holmgren working on improving his shooting game
The NBA's official X account recently shared a "behind-the-scenes" video of Holmgren participating in and talking up his offseason workouts with skills coach Drew Hanlen.
In the video, the 23-year-old was shown participating in drills that focused on areas of his game such as dribbling, driving, and off-ball motion.
However, easily the most noteworthy takeaway from the clip was Holmgren revealing that he had been working on improving his shot "all summer."
Last offseason, this was also the case for the Thunder cornerstone, as he went on record stating that he will always be looking to improve in this department, for his philosophy is "wherever you're at is where you'll be stuck" if you don't keep working.
During the early stages of 2024-25, this offseason focus seemed to clearly be paying off for Holmgren, as he got off to a scorching hot start to the campaign and looked to be beelining it to his first All-Star Game while dropping scoring averages of 18.2 points on 51.9 percent shooting from the floor and 40.0 percent shooting from deep through nine fully-healthy games.
Sadly, a right iliac wing fracture sustained in early November forced him to miss three months of action, ultimately derailing the momentum he had built coming into the season.
With a chance at personal redemption, the hope now is that Holmgren can tap back into his pre-injury groove on offense while sustaining his elite level of play on the less glamorous side of the ball that already has many believing him to be a top-five defender.
Should this happen, it'll undoubtedly prove hard to keep a 7-footer who can defend the rim like few others (averages 2.3 blocks per game for his career), who just ranked first in the league in field goal percentage allowed (minimum 200 layup and dunk attempts defended), and who can drop in 18-plus points per game on north of 50.0 percent shooting from the floor and 40.0 percent shooting from distance out of the 2026 All-Star Game.