Chet Holmgren's latest injury makes future Thunder deal 'difficult' to predict

Throughout these early stages of the 2024-25 season, the OKC Thunder have had some poor luck in the health department, as they've played the majority of their games with several key players like Isaiah Hartenstein, Jaylin Williams, and, until this past Wednesday, Kenrich Williams sidelined due to varying health-related issues.

Late last week, these misfortunes reached a new low-point, as cornerstone big Chet Holmgren sustained a right iliac wing fracture in his hip which is slated to have him miss the next eight to ten weeks.

Considering the already depleted state of their center depth, this is an absolute gut punch for the Thunder who, despite having gone 2-0 since his diagnosis, have clearly struggled in many aspects of the game that are generally influenced by frontcourt play.

However, perhaps more devastating (at least, from a long-term standpoint) is the impact that this new injury could potentially have on Holmgren's future earnings, as the folks at Bleacher Report interestingly pegged the big man's upcoming contract extension talks as being "difficult" to predict now as a result.

Recent injury could impact Thunder, Chet Holmgren extension talks

This coming offseason, the Thunder will find their big three of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, and Holmgren all eligible for new contract extensions.

Considering just how successful they've proven to be when running alongside one another, it goes without saying that, once talks are permitted to be held, Sam Presti and company will do everything in their power to lock these stars up for the long term.

With that said, while all of their contract figures may be currently up in the air, B/R's Eric Pincus suggests that Holmgren's new deal seems to be the most complicated to determine at this time.

As noted in his case why, the big man's extended absence will unfortunately not be the first time where he's found himself sidelined for a long period, as the big man missed the entirety of his first year in the association back in 2022-23 due to a Lisfranc injury in his foot.

Sure, he did manage to suit up in all 82 games during the 2023-24 campaign, but through three years in the league, two will have found Holmgren donning street clothes for a significant portion of time as a result of injuries.

In all likelihood, even with this tricky track record, the Thunder and Holmgren will probably come to some sort of an agreement ranging anywhere between $180 million (think Alperen Sengun's rookie extension) and, with the new TV deals soon kicking in, $200 million.

Still, it's significantly less than what he may have been able to receive if he were to have managed to win Defensive Player of the Year or be named to one of the three All-NBA teams this season, which, now with him projected to be out through mid-January at best, he'll likely fall out of contention as a result of playing fewer than the minimum of 65 games needed to qualify.