Let's start by acknowledging that the Oklahoma City Thunder's showing in the Salt Lake City Summer League and the 2K26 NBA Summer League has been less than impressive.
They've routinely gotten blown out of the water by their opponents, and this year's most exciting prospects— Aday Mara and Bennett Stirtz— haven't shown a ton of flashes through the four games they've played so far.
Of course, summer league performances don't hold a ton of weight. These teams have little to no cohesion on either end of the court, and almost every single player is adjusting to a new style or structure on a day-to-day basis. In short, don't freak out about Mara's lack of interior physicality until we see him on the NBA court in the regular season.
But summer league also affords opportunities, especially to players on two-way contracts, to show advancements in their games and ingratiate themselves with their coaching staffs. That opportunity was there for Otega Oweh and Josh Dix, both of whom have already secured two-way spots on Oklahoma City's roster for 2026-27.
But with Oweh likely out for the remainder of summer league, that opportunity now falls to Dix— who has a chance to make a real impression as an offensively potent wing over the Thunder's three remaining summer league matchups.
Josh Dix needs to seize his moment as Thunder's Summer League schedule rounds into the home stretch
Neither Oweh nor Dix is likely to receive much playing time this season. Even with the departures of Aaron Wiggins and Isaiah Joe, the Thunder's roster is deep enough that they likely won't have many minutes to distribute to their two-way players. But in terms of skill-set, both Oweh and Dix are solid fits in Oklahoma City's scheme.
Oweh is a voracious on-ball defender, with the wingspan and the lateral athleticism to work himself immediately into the Thunder's switch-heavy defensive attack. He's also a formidable downhill driver, able to gain an edge on his defenders and work his way to the basket consistently. The primary question for Oweh centers around whether he can hit his 3-point shot consistently. If he can, there's room for him to quickly develop into an NBA-caliber wing.
Dix, meanwhile, profiles as nearly the opposite. He's a lethal catch-and-shoot threat from beyond the arc, but his lack of pure strength and lateral athleticism compromise him defensively. Out of the two, Oweh has the clearer path toward playing time with the Thunder as a rookie.
But Oweh suffered an ankle injury in Oklahoma City's matchup with the Atlanta Hawks, and that opens the door for Dix to show flashes of his offensive skill-set over the Thunder's three remaining summer league matchups. To this point, Dix has not accomplished that. His 16 points, four rebounds, and two assists against the Utah Jazz was impressive, but he still needs to show some more aggression in collapsing the defense and hitting his shots on the interior.
If he's able to do that, especially with Oweh out, he could put himself in an infinitely better position than he was at the start of Summer League. He simply needs to seize the opportunity.
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