When the OKC Thunder opted to select Aday Mara with the 12 overall pick in this past June's NBA Draft, it was widely believed that they had done so in the hopes that he could become their "Victor Wembanyama stopper."
However, there's a case to be made that the ball club may have already snatched up such a talent the year prior.
With the 15 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, the Thunder took Georgetown big Thomas Sorber. Despite the fact that his one-and-done season at the collegiate level was cut short due to a left foot injury, during his 24 games of action, he proved to be a truly elite defensive talent down at the pivot.
Measuring in at roughly 6-foot-10 and 263 pounds, while boasting a ridiculous 7-foot-6 wingspan and a 9-foot-1 standing reach, during his time with the Hoyas, Sorber averaged a whopping 2.0 blocks per game and gave up just .7 points-per-possession while leading all of Division One in on-off defensive rating impact (plus-26.5).
Unfortunately, the 20-year-old was unable to showcase his potential as an elite defensive talent in 2025-26 due to a torn ACL sustained prior to his debut campaign.
Now, heading into his first active season in the league, the hope is that this on-court dominance will translate to the next level and help the Thunder better contain the likes of Wembanyama, along with a slew of other top-flight bigs, throughout the regular season and late into the playoffs.
Thunder could look to Thomas Sorber over Aday Mara early on in season
Coming into the association, Aday Mara was quite open about his belief that it may take some time for him to get adjusted to the NBA's style of play.
With the way he played during Summer League, dropping averages of just 8.7 points and 7.7 rebounds in his three appearances and being deemed the tournament's "most disappointing rookie," it seems he may be right.
Now, with training camp only a couple of weeks out, many are predicting Mara may not even be a regular rotation player for the Thunder until at least 2027.
On the one hand, a turn of events such as this could easily be seen as highly underwhelming considering the lofty capital used to bring Mara aboard this summer; on the other hand, this could excitingly pave the way for Sorber to come across more minutes than most may have anticipated immediately after June's draft.
After all, both head into 2026-27 with the expectation of playing the same position and providing similar complementary styles of play alongside stars Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, and Chet Holmgren. Being Mara is the lone lottery pick among the two, it only made sense upon his arrival to the Sooner State that he'd be the more sought-after youngster to enter the lineup in year one.
However, as recent rumblings suggest, this is not guaranteed to be the case, meaning Sorber could realistically work his way toward seeing consistent action in the Thunder rotation well before his incoming rookie running mate.
Add us as a preferred source on Google