Sept. 6, 2026, 3:10 p.m. CT
The Oklahoma City Thunder — along with the rest of the NBA — will start their 2026-27 training camp within the month. But from what we saw on Sunday, it looks like the entire frontcourt room has taken the initiative to get work in together beforehand.
Several Thunder players made the trip to Dallas, TX, to put in a workout and scrimmage together. Chet Holmgren, Jaylin Williams, Kenrich Williams, Aday Mara, Thomas Sorber, Bennett Stirtz and Brooks Barnhizer were in attendance. An Instagram post detailed the early Sept. meetup.
It was a frontcourt-oriented gathering. At the top was Holmgren. He’s fresh off an All-NBA season. Even with his disappointing playoff finish, he’s widely viewed as one of the league’s best players. His trophy case and advanced stats kinda back that up.
Elsewhere, Jaylin Williams could be due a huge year. He also enjoyed a breakout season last year. His decision to slim down paid dividends. He’s now one of the best backup centers in the league. Kenrich Williams is also back with OKC on a one-year deal. The veteran forward could be relied upon more often this upcoming year after a depth chart shakeup.
The other four are unknown quantities. The Thunder are going through a recast of characters around the complementary pieces. The hope is that at least one of Mara, Sorber, Stirtz and Barnhizer can help out from the jump. Mara and Sorber are OKC’s last two top draft picks. Both could provide a youthful jolt to a stacked frontcourt room.
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Meanwhile, Stirtz likely polished his pick-and-roll game with OKC’s centers. He’s projected to be another ball-handler who can help ease the insane workload of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander over the last few seasons. Building up some extra rapport now is an efficient way to create chemistry.
It’s good to see the Thunder link up for a player-run practice. You see that all the time in the summer months across the NBA. The 2026-27 regular season is right around the corner. OKC enters as a co-title favorite — alongside the San Antonio Spurs.