The Oklahoma City Thunder certainly aren't at a deficit for young talent.
Not only are two of their three primary stars—Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren—only set to exit their rookie contracts in 2026-27, but their decision to hang onto their draft capital in this past cycle allowed them to replenish the roster with some upside swings. Aday Mara is obviously the big headline there as a potentially monstrous rim protector behind Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein, but Bennett Stirtz deserves some love too as potential ball-handling insurance in the backcourt.
It's unclear how much time on the court either player will see during their rookie campaigns. But when it comes to Stirtz, the pressure may already be ramping up to prove he's worth his place on the roster.
For now, the Thunder have room to work in the entirety of their guard depth. With the departure of Luguentz Dort, both Cason Wallace and Ajay Mitchell will be elevated into new roles, leaving Nikola Topic and Alex Caruso with a relatively full complement of bench minutes. But moving forward, it seems as though Oklahoma City may need to make a decision between their young players in Topic and Stirtz.
Oklahoma City's deadline for deciding on Topic's team option for 2027-28 is Oct. 31, which means that their decision has likely already been made in that regard. With the Thunder having as many as three first-round selections in next year's draft, Stirtz is going to need to do enough during his rookie campaign to justify his place next to Topic in the team's young backcourt.
Bennett Stirtz is a solid player, but the Thunder's roster crunch will be real next offseason
We already saw the Thunder face one roster crunch this offseason, and that's why they ultimately chose to hang onto their draft capital, replenishing the back end of the rotation with young talent while letting proven veterans go via trade.
But now it's time to sort out which of those young pieces have a future with the roster.
We've seen very little out of Topic on an NBA court to this point—to no fault of his own. He suffered a torn ACL that took away his rookie season, and his rehabilitation from testicular cancer took away a large chunk of his sophomore campaign. When he has been on the court though, he's looked like one of the best pure ball-handlers on Oklahoma City's roster. He averaged 18.4 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 7.8 assists while shooting 46.5% from beyond the arc across 13 appearances in the G-League last season.
Perhaps another year of limited availability would make this a tougher decision for the Thunder. But as of now, it doesn't seem like they'll hesitate for even a second in picking up Topic's team option for 2027-28.
But even assuming Oklahoma City lets Kenrich Williams walk and moves on from Jaylin Williams, they're still set to enter next offseason with 12 players under contract. That, theoretically, makes room to keep all three of their first-round picks if they don't make any external additions in free agency. But it also crystallizes a need in the frontcourt that neither Stirtz nor Topic can fill.
Here's where the crux of the issue is. Stirtz proved himself as a capable ball-handler and a lead guard during his time in college, averaging 19.8 points, 2.6 rebounds, and 4.4 assists while shooting 35.8% from 3-point range during his final season at Iowa. But he hasn't shown enough as an off-ball floor spacer and potential wing player to firmly project that as his future at the NBA level.
It's likely the Thunder will try to develop him there, especially considering the fact that Isaiah Joe and Aaron Wiggins are now off the roster. But depending on how the roster unfolds for next season, Topic likely takes priority over Stirtz as a pure lead guard in this team's backcourt.
If Stirtz can show some upside as a wing, his spot on the roster is relatively safe. But with the Thunder's looming Topic decision comes a healthy degree of pressure for the rookie—at least if he's able to get on the court during his first NBA season.
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