Amid an offseason where the OKC Thunder dropped upwards of $877 million on several new, standard contracts, there's a case to be made that their most impressive signing came via a mere two-way deal.
Last week, the ball club opted to bring back sophomore big man Branden Carlson on a non-guaranteed, $636,435 pact that's slated to have him split time between the varsity team and its G League affiliate, the OKC Blue, for the second straight year.
Frankly, after the impressive debut season he managed to have with the organization in 2024-25, it came as quite a shock that Oklahoma City was able to re-sign him to such a deal, especially considering he was a restricted free agent and was both eligible for and deserving of inking a standard contract with any club in the association.
Now officially back with the Thunder, Carlson is making all 29 other teams in the league regret not snatching his services up off the open market when they had the chance, as the young center has absolutely dominated during this year's Summer League.
Thunder got a full-time caliber player in Branden Carlson on a two-way
Though it may have only been one game, Branden Carlson has already proven that he doesn't belong in the NBA Summer League -- and for the best reason possible.
Simply put, the 7-footer may be too good for the competition he's currently facing. His performance in OKC's 92-75 rout of the Orlando Magic on Tuesday night only seems to strengthen such a notion.
Producing like a two-way machine, in just 19 minutes of action, the 26-year-old poured in 23 points and 7 rebounds while shooting an electric 69.2 percent from the floor and 66.7 percent from deep.
He would also find himself anchoring the defense that held Orlando to just 32.3 percent shooting and forced 24 turnovers while swatting away two shots and redirecting several others.
For the Thunder faithful, this type of logline is not all that shocking to see. After all, the last time Carlson was found suiting up in an Oklahoma City uniform, he went on to drop 26 points, 10 rebounds, 2 assists, and 3 blocks against the New Orleans Pelicans in their regular season finale.
Not to mention, even when seen logging double-digit minutes last year, the center clearly showed flashes of being a highly productive contributor within the eventual NBA Champions' rotation, as he would average 10.2 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 1.9 blocks in such outings.
After a three-month hiatus from in-game action, in his return to the court, Branden Carlson is reminding everyone that not only was it absurd that he went unselected in the 2024 NBA Draft, but that he undoubtedly has the tools and overall potential to be a full-time rotation player in the association.
The fact that the Thunder scooped him up for the second year in a row on a two-way agreement is absolutely insane!