Thomas Sorber’s Injury Hurts, But He Has the Ideal Support Group in OKC Thunder

Another start to the season, another devastating offseason injury for Oklahoma City. It has been an unfortunate theme over the last few seasons, but the Thunder will be without its first round pick once again. Thomas Sorber suffered an ACL tear during an offseason workout, and the Thunder will now be without his services for the entire season.

After experiencing crushing injury news with Chet Holmgren during his rookie season when the team looked prime to make a big leap, and then last season with Nikola Topic spending the entire season rehabbing, the Thunder will once again be without its top draft pick during their rookie season.

Coming off of an NBA championship and keeping the roster entirely intact, it's not as big of a blow to the team's goals as an injury like Holmgren's was. But it's still incredibly unfortunate and stings for the Thunder, as this team was excited to get Sorber acclimated to life in the NBA and life in Oklahoma City.

There's hardly ever a silver lining to an injury like this suffered by such a promising young player, but one thing is clear: Sorber is in the right organization for a situation like this.

Oklahoma City's organization has been, first and foremost, one of the NBA's best for development. Nearly every impactful player throughout the Thunder's lineup has been by way of internal development. The coaching staff also puts the players in place to succeed and provides a clear runway to potential success.

But also, Oklahoma City's staff has serious experience with nursing injuries and a plan for young players to return to play. The Thunder's patient staff has been able to rehab injuries successfully and find a way to help these guys return to the court and play at the highest level.

Holmgren's injury felt like a dark day for the Thunder after gunning for the lottery two years in a row. Knowing he would miss the entirety of his rookie season was hard to stomach. But in the end, it gave him time to adjust to life in the NBA, add strength in the weight room, and really work on his jump shot in time. He was bound for greatness in the NBA regardless, but his readiness to jump in and play was a big reason why OKC won a championship.

While Sorber won't be able to learn on the court through trial and error, he has the perfect teammate to lean on in Holmgren. Someone who has been through the exact same thing that he will go through this season. Holmgren has gone through the pain of missing serious time, and has found a way to still contribute to the team in the locker room and grow as a professional.

He'll also have a year to soak up bits and pieces from other talented centers on the roster, too, like Isaiah Hartenstein. He knows how to identify his role and play it to the best of his ability, something that Sorber will have to do down the road.

It's a brutal injury, and there's no real silver lining. But Sorber, in Oklahoma City, is in the perfect place to bounce back for a multitude of reasons.