Otega Oweh’s latest setback arrived late in the Oklahoma City Thunder’s preseason win over the Indiana Pacers, and it came with all the hallmarks of a serious scare.
The rookie guard went down in overtime of Tuesday’s 114-112 victory and did not return. On the play, Oweh planted his right foot on defense, tried to drive off it, and then collapsed to the floor. He was seen holding the back of his right ankle before needing help to get to the locker room for further evaluation.
There has not been an official diagnosis yet, but the way the injury happened is often associated with a torn Achilles. Tyrese Haliburton suffered that injury in Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals at Paycom Center, and the source material notes that other players around the league have dealt with similar injuries as well.
“It’s really tough,” Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault said after the game. “Really tough. It’s tough for him.”
For Oweh, this is already the second injury interruption since Oklahoma City took him with the No. 41 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. He previously left the opening game of Summer League with a left foot injury and missed the Thunder’s final seven games there.
“Any time you see somebody get hurt, whatever it may be, it’s never good,” fellow two-way player Brooks Barnhizer said. “But with the kind of kid Otega is, regardless of what it is, he’s going to be OK.
He’s such a lively person. Whenever he walks into the room, he puts a smile on everybody’s face.
… He’s an amazing human being. So, whatever it may be, he’s going to be OK.”
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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 🡒]
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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 🡒]