The Oklahoma City Thunder suffered a brutal loss, 93-110, to the Milwaukee Bucks on the eve of the All-Star Break. With almost all of their impact players out apart from Chet Holmgren, they failed to find any offensive momentum throughout the course of the night.
But the weirdest portion of the NBA season has now come to an end. Between the trade deadline and the All-Star Break, virtually anything can happen. The outcome of the game is relatively meaningless.
It is now time for the Thunder to regroup and find their footing again for the home stretch of the season.
Yet the story of the night was not the loss. It was the NBA debut of Nikola Topic, who returns from three months away from the game battling testicular cancer. His arrival, coupled with the team's acquisition of Jared McCain, grants them unparalleled flexibility in their rotation.
That is a silver lining that can be pulled from the defeat on Thursday night.
Nikola Topic gives the Thunder an extra backcourt weapon, and his eventual arrival at the NBA level could prove to be massive
Topic looked relatively solid in his debut, posting two points, one rebound, and one assist in 12 minutes on the court. McCain, meanwhile, looked even stronger, posting 13 points, three rebounds, and two assists in 24 minutes.
But this is not a period to be stat-watching. What's important right now is getting these players acclimated to the team's structure so that they can provide additional offensive weaponry when needed.
The Thunder are known for going big when necessary. They have Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein to dominate the frontcourt, and they have to ability to surround those players with bruising forwards and lengthy wings when they wish to.
But Topic and McCain grant them to ability to go small as well. There was an, albeit brief, period against Milwaukee where Holmgren was on the court with four guards: McCain, Topic, Alex Caruso, and Cason Wallace.
The results of those minutes aren't necessarily important. Just imagine what Mark Daigneault can do in a playoff series with this sort of versatility, being able to alternate between formidably big and confoundingly small within his rotation whenever it's called for.
It remains to be seen how much action Topic will see this season, but McCain is clearly cemented in the rotation. Both of these players provide a skill-set the Thunder generally lack, and their individual defensive upsides make their minutes viable.
Therefore, Topic's return has meaning beyond his personal story of perseverance and triumph. It is the ultimate vision of Oklahoma City coming to fruition, and it represents an enhancement of their greatest weapon.