Once it was announced that Nikola Topic would be shelved for the rest of training camp and likely through the early stages of the 2025-26 regular season, concern started to grow regarding what this could mean for his role within the OKC Thunder scheme.
After missing all of last year with a partially torn ACL, it was already believed that the point guard would be facing an uphill battle trying to carve out a consistent spot within coach Mark Daigneault's already battle-tested rotation.
Now, while some may have held faith that his well-documented ability to distribute and play-make for others would help reserve a spot for him within the lineup once he's cleared to return, based on the way Cason Wallace was both used and played in Thursday night's matchup against Charlotte, it appears that banking on this ideology is far from logical.