Shai Gilgeous-Alexander may be the face of and overall best player on this world champion OKC Thunder team, but he's by no means the final piece to unlocking their full potential.
To Sam Vecenie of The Athletic, that person would be Chet Holmgren.
During a recent episode of the Game Theory Podcast, the Senior Writer took viewers back to the 2022 NBA Draft, when Oklahoma City opted to select Holmgren with the second overall pick over other top-billed prospects like Jabari Smith and Jaden Ivey.
Discussing the perceived reasoning behind their decision-making on the night, Vecenie shared that, if he were a betting man, he'd say that even if the Thunder had the top pick, they still would have coveted the Gonzaga product to, as he put it, assemble a lineup that's best suited to the style of play they wanted to implement.