Sunday saw the Charlotte Hornets take on the Oklahoma City Thunder and it was time for some reunions, as Davis Bertans, Tre Mann, Vasilije Micic, and Aleksej Pokusevski were facing their former teammates. After the game, some Thunder players were seen coming together to take a picture with Mann, but they seemed to not want Bertans to be a part of it.
The clip spread like wildfire on social media and a fan brought it to the attention of Thunder forward Jalen Williams. Williams clarified that Bertans himself didn't want to be a part of the picture, as Mann had been with the Thunder for a lot longer than him.
"He said he didn’t actually wanna be in it because Tre was here for so long."
Mann had, in some ways, grown up with that core after being drafted by the Thunder with the 18th pick of the 2021 NBA Draft. Bertans, meanwhile, had been traded to the team this past offseason by the Dallas Mavericks and had only played 15 games for the Thunder.
Bertans wanted it to just be their special moment and you can respect that. The two of them and Micic had been traded to the Hornets on deadline day as part of the package for Gordon Hayward, and all three put in solid performances here.
Bertans had 12 points, 2 rebounds, 2 steals, and 1 block to his name off the bench while Micic recorded 17 points, 1 rebound, 10 assists, and 1 steal. Mann perhaps had the best game of the three, as he finished with 18 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists, 4 steals, and 2 blocks. He was 7-7 from the field and 3-3 from beyond the arc.
As for the man they were traded for, Hayward missed the game due to a left Posterior Tibialis Strain. It was a low-risk move for the Thunder to acquire the veteran, but he hasn't quite had the impact they would have hoped thus far.
Despite Hayward, Williams, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander being out for this one, the Thunder still came away with a 121-118 win. They had lost three in a row coming into the clash and it was a much-needed victory that saw them improve to 53-25 on the season.
Jalen Williams' Impressive Sophomore Season
While much of the talk about the Thunder this season has revolved around Gilgeous-Alexander and Chet Holmgren, Williams has had a fine campaign of his own. After finishing second in Rookie of the Year voting in 2023, the 22-year-old certainly hasn't suffered a sophomore slump.
Williams has averaged 19.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, 4.6 assists, 1.1 steals, and 0.6 blocks per game in this 2023-24 season. He has been very impactful on both ends of the floor and has solidified himself as one of the key pieces for the present and the future for the Thunder.
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