After his rookie season, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl looked like a potential long-term role player in Oklahoma City. He provided lineup versatility, played hard on the floor, and shot the ball well from 3-point range.
In year two, though, JRE ran into the sophomore slump. He dealt with an unfortunate ankle injury all season long, but when he was healthy and on the floor, the results weren’t great. The forward played in just 43 total games and averaged 6.8 points on 44.4% from the floor and 33.3% from behind the 3-point line.
It also didn’t help that the Thunder’s 2022 second round draft pick, Jaylin Williams, took over a starting spot and excelled next to Oklahoma City’s starters. He brought the mentality the Thunder were looking for. Williams took charge after charge on the defensive end and shot an impressive 40.7% from 3-point range. In 18 minutes, he averaged 5.9 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game. With Chet Holmgren in the lineup, Williams won’t be asked to play alone in the front court for any longer. What does that mean for Robinson-Earl, though?
Robinson-Earl was slated to take part in Summer League, and if he had played the whole time, he could’ve attempted to up his value like Tre Mann did. Mann appears to be on the right side of the roster crunch after an impressive stretch of scoring explosions. Robinson-Earl, however, was limited to just one game with another ankle sprain.
In that one game, he struggled mightily. Robinson-Earl totaled seven points and eight rebounds in 23 minutes, shooting 3-of-9 from the floor and missing multiple easy layups and dunks. One performance is not indicative of a player as a whole, but it would’ve been nice to see the third-year forward shine against mostly rookies.
The Thunder have to make a few tough decisions in the next couple of weeks, and Robinson-Earl’s spot on the roster could be one of them. After trading for both Usman Garuba and Davis Bertans, and drafting a hybrid wing/forward in Keyontae Johnson, Robinson-Earl might be the odd one out. He can change his fate with a strong training camp, but Oklahoma City found production in Williams down the stretch, making Robinson-Earl that much more expendable.
Only time will tell, and there are a handful of players squarely on the bubble of the Thunder’s roster crunch. If Robinson-Earl could find a way to stay fully healthy, it might be a different story.
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