Branden Carlson’s Big Night Showcases OKC Thunder’s Depth

Oklahoma City has had to tap into their depth much earlier than anyone expected this season. This team came into the season a bit worn down after the late summer run through the playoffs. There wasn’t enough time for rest and recovery, and Oklahoma City always stays on the side of caution — especially with this much talent on the roster. The team will be at full strength soon, and clearly it’s not worth risking any further injuries.

With a lineup missing multiple key players every night, Oklahoma City is off to a red hot 7-0 start. If this were the playoffs and the stakes were sky high for these games, it feels like a few from the injured group would give it a go. But the Thunder have the luxury of letting everyone have more than enough time to get healthy, especially considering their deep bench and depth of the roster.

It feels like every night, Oklahoma City gets production from a different player down the bench. From Ajay Mitchell’s rise to a Sixth Man of the Year candidate, to Brooks Barnhizer and Chris Youngblood playing real minutes most nights, Oklahoma City has found quality minutes from a lot of different places.

On Saturday night against New Orleans, it was Branden Carlson’s turn to get in on the action. Carlson flashed a season ago, and it resulted in a two-way contract this summer. He was always ready to play when his number was called a season ago, and that’s was once again the case in Saturday’s win, where he was asked to play nearly 20 minutes off the bench. 

“I think we just have a really good system,” Carlson said. “And great coaching staff and players to do it with, where it doesn’t matter what position you are on the floor. I think everyone knows the system and a lot of just comes down to the basics. The system of what we run, spacing wise, how to make sure you’re in the right places at the right time.”

Carlson added 11 points, five rebounds, and an assist while shooting 5-of-8 from the floor and burying a triple. The sample size is small, but Carlson is shooting 70% from the floor and 40% from 3-point range in 

“It’s always great to play, always be ready when coach calls your name. Tonight was one of those nights. Everyone puts in the work, so for myself to be able to go out there and have that pay off when you put in the work during practices and the offseason is great."

Carlson is yet another example of the Thunder's deep bench, and another player that Mark Daigneault can deploy on any given night.