The Oklahoma City Thunder are back inside Paycom Center for their final home preseason game, and the biggest storyline is the same one that followed Indiana into town: Tyrese Haliburton.
This NBA Finals rematch brings Haliburton back to Oklahoma City for the first time since the Pacers’ Game 7 loss, when he suffered a torn Achilles that kept him out of the entire 2025-26 campaign. He did not make the trip to Bricktown during the regular season because he wasn’t mentally up for it, but now the Pacers’ star is back on the floor and trying to reestablish himself among the league’s top 15 players.
Haliburton was a full participant in training camp practice on Monday, though there was still no confirmation he would suit up for this game. Before tipoff, fans who arrived early at Paycom Center got a look at him warming up as they waited for the final word on his status.
Oklahoma City, meanwhile, is keeping several key names on the sideline. All-NBA big man Chet Holmgren is out with a quad contusion, Jaylin Williams is sitting with heel soreness, and Ajay Mitchell is out for rest. Nikola Topic and Thomas Sorber are also unavailable as they continue with injury management.
The timing makes this a notable preseason stop for both sides. The Thunder get one more home exhibition before finishing the preseason on the road Thursday against the Houston Rockets.
After that, Oklahoma City will have four days off before opening the season in San Antonio on Tuesday, Oct. 20.
That opener will send the Thunder into a matchup with Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs, a rematch of last year’s Western Conference Finals, when San Antonio knocked off Oklahoma City in seven games. The Thunder will be looking to make a statement against a team that gave them trouble a year ago.
In Other News...
Thunder Rookies Are Giving OKC Fans Something Real To Debate
The Thunders preseason trip to Atlanta gave Oklahoma City another reminder that the young talent is already part of the conversation, even if the results are still coming up short. In a 113-110 loss to the Hawks, the Thunder fell to 0-3 in the preseason, but the bigger takeaway for fans was how much the rookies kept showing up in the box score. Bennett Stirtz and Aday Mara were among the young players driving the offense and filling up other categories, giving the night a different feel than a routine October loss.
For a team with plenty of eyes on its developmental pipeline, performances like this can turn a preseason game into an early debate about who is ready now and who is still a little further away. Oklahoma City will get another chance to sort through those impressions in its next preseason game, a home matchup against Indiana, where the rookies should have another opportunity to make the case that they belong in the mix. [Read more 🡒]
Thunder Fans Just Got A Clearer Look At Daigneaults Roster Role
Mark Daigneaults place in the Thunders front office puzzle got a little clearer this week, and it helps explain how Oklahoma City has managed to keep so much continuity while still making aggressive roster moves. The head coach said his input matters in the conversation, but the final calls on personnel still belong to Sam Presti, which is the kind of arrangement that makes sense for a franchise trying to balance coaching perspective with a long-view roster plan.
Daigneaults comments arrive at a time when the league keeps offering reminders of how much the human side of roster building matters, from locker-room fit to players choosing stability over a fresh start. For the Thunder, the bigger takeaway is not just who gets brought in or moved out, but how the organization sorts through those decisions with a coach who is clearly part of the discussion without being the one holding the pen. [Read more 🡒]
Thunder's Unexpected Skid Is Testing Patience Even Before Opening Night
The Thunder have spent the months since their playoff run doing something they never wanted to carry into October: losing, and losing often. The skid has stretched across the end of the postseason, Summer League and preseason, with Oklahoma City dropped into an awkward run of results even as the roster has mostly been without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren.
Mark Daigneault has leaned into the teaching side of it, because the minutes have gone to younger and less experienced players who are trying to learn on the fly. The latest preseason loss fit that mold, and while the record has been ugly, the staff is treating these games less as a referendum on the Thunders ceiling and more as a chance to sort through the edges before opening night arrives. [Read more 🡒]