Otega Oweh's leg injury sustained late in Tuesday's 114-112 preseason win over the Indiana Pacers was nothing short of devastating. Not only is this the second time the rookie has been roughed up since joining the OKC Thunder back in June's NBA Draft, but considering the look of it, this latest ailment very likely could turn out to be season-ending.
Perhaps most gut-wrenching of all is the fact that the second-round pick was steadily establishing himself as a legitimate candidate to earn a standard deal with Oklahoma City this offseason to, in turn, fill their 15 spot on the bench.
Should his recent non-contact injury prove to be an Achilles tear, as many are already fearing, hopes of such a happening will be all but dashed.
Of course, as the Thunder have often declared as their mantra, this organization is all about abiding by a next-man-up mentality.
With this, if Oweh is shelved, Sam Presti and company will likely look to one of their other promising training camp and preseason participants to ultimately fill their final roster spot.
As a result, Josh Dix could easily be argued as next on the totem pole.
Josh Dix may have just seen his odds of making Thunder roster skyrocket
Since he was scooped up by the Thunder out of the undrafted free agent scrap heap this past July, Dix has only managed to impress.
From his steady long-range shooting stroke in the Summer League that saw him cash in on 41.7 percent of his shots from beyond the arc to his stat-sheet stuffing performance of 16 points, seven assists, three rebounds, two steals, and a block in his recent start against the Hawks, the Creighton product has showcased quite a well-rounded skill set.
Even during OKC's recent bout against the Pacers, despite having a rather quiet day in the scoring department, posting just two points on three shots, he remained active in the nitty-gritty areas of play, particularly on the glass, where he pulled down a team-high seven rebounds.
His energy and activity on the floor were so impactful that coach Mark Daigneault opted to use him in the starting lineup alongside Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Cason Wallace, Jalen Williams, and Aday Mara coming out of the half.
As Daigneault said during his post-game media session, Dix's usage in the rotation on Tuesday was strategic, as the coaching staff wanted to see how he'd produce alongside the team's core rotation players, noting that "he's got the kind of reliability that tends to translate well to our lineups."
Clearly, as the Thunder headman put it, "he did a nice job" with these opportunities, and has seemingly done so all throughout camp and the preseason.
Now, with less competition presumably gunning for the final roster spot, Dix appears to have an inside track to convert his two-way deal into a full-scale standard contract come the regular season.
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