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Players such as Chet Holmgren, Chris Paul, Kyrie Irving and NBPA president Fred VanVleet all provided feedback that helped bring the renovated space together. “I’m excited to be a part of shaping the PLYRS UNTD Performance Center to meet the unique demands of the brotherhood,” said Holmgren, a forward/center for the Oklahoma City Thunder. “As professional athletes, there is so much work and preparation that goes on behind the scenes to perform at our best. Our new LA facility is equipped with the wellness, recovery, and training resources we need in the offseason and beyond.”
Chet Holmgren, an All-Star big man set to enter his fourth season with the Thunder, offered best wishes to Luguentz Dort, Aaron Wiggins and Isaiah Joe, who left Oklahoma City in separate offseason trades. Dort, a perimeter stopper and longtime starter, and Wiggins, a reserve wing, will join the Atlanta Hawks. Joe, a backup shooting specialist, was sent to the Detroit Pistons. "That's how the business of this game goes," Holmgren said at a USA Basketball Foundation charity event in Southern California. "No team, all 17 guys, sticks together forever. But it doesn't make it hurt less when you see guys go. At the same time, I'm excited for [Dort and Wiggins] and the opportunity they're going to have in Atlanta. I'm happy for whatever major milestones they reach over there."
"I have complete trust in our team and the moves they make," Holmgren said. "I trust what they're doing is to get it right. It's my job to be in the gym all summer to get my stuff right."
Holmgren, 24, averaged 17.1 points, 8.9 rebounds and 1.9 blocks to earn his first All-Star selection last season, but he struggled against the Spurs in the playoffs and finished with just four points and four rebounds in the Game 7 loss. "We learned the same lesson [in 2026] as the year that we won it: It was almost more of a reminder of just how hard it is to accomplish, and how much goes into it," Holmgren said. "There is no guarantee. You can put in all the work and still come up short. At the end of the day, you have to be okay with putting in the work with no guaranteed outcome. We came up short this year. That doesn't change the process."
The primary reason the Lakers likely chose Kessler over offering a max deal to Detroit Pistons restricted free agent Jalen Duren is that Kessler is one of the NBA’s best rim protectors. He’s the kind of interior presence a team needs if it’s going to employ Dončić and Reaves on the perimeter as primary playmakers. In 2024-25, Kessler’s last full(ish) season, he contested 7.5 shots per game at the rim, according to NBA.com, which tied for the fifth-most in the league. On those shots, he allowed opponents to shoot just 54.8 percent. Among the 16 players in the league to contest at least six shots per game that season, that percentage ranked third behind only Victor Wembanyama and Chet Holmgren, who were the top two finalists for Defensive Player of the Year this season. In the three full seasons he has played, Kessler has blocked at least 2.3 shots per game.
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NBA Courtside: Jay Willams says OKC and the Spurs won the draft: “They continue to put their chokehold on the NBA. What did we talk about a lot with OKC? How did Chet Holmgren play in the NBA finals? What’s going on with Isaiah Hartenstein when he had go against Wemby? That got a guy named Aday Mara who has a 7’4 wingspan, super talented can give you depth off the bench and give you an extra body to go against Wemby. How about for San Antonio for Wembanyama we talked a lot about who’s the enforcer when Kornet played in that series, now you bring a guy that brings a lot of physicality played for Dan Hurley at UConn a absolute beast on the glass.”
Brandon Rahbar: Thunder are absolutely huge. Mara 7'3 Chet 7'1 Hartenstein 7'0 Sorber 7'6 wingspan
Kevin Garnett on Victor Wembanyama: One thing I want to speak on is just Wemby's development. If I'm him, I’m working on core strength because when… Paul will tell you, I'm not the biggest guy, right? But he'll tell you when I sit down and post up, can you move me? Paul Pierce: No, he's strong. Garnett: I'm probably one of the strongest people you could ever run up on and look like how I look, but when it came down there to setting up on that block and then pitching and getting it off down there, yeah, I was the best at that. I would love to work with Big Fella, but this generation has a preference on how they want to work out. And I have to respect that. But yeah, I'm open to all… Listen, I'm looking for big years from not just Wemby. I'm looking for big years from Chet Holmgren. I'm looking for a big summer from Zion Williamson. I'm looking for a big summer from Kyrie Irving. I'm looking for Jayson Tatum to have a big summer.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have received calls from rival teams with trade interest in Chet Holmgren. The Thunder have let those teams know that Holmgren is not available. Holmgren is starting a five-year, $239 million rookie scale extension this coming season. His first-year salary projects to be $41.25 million. This extension mirrors that of Jalen Williams, who deal looks exactly the same as Holmgren's in terms of annual salary.
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NBA Base: Chris Finch calls out NBA media and fans for "overreactions" on Julius Randle and Chet Holmgren: "Julius was really good for us in the Denver series... Now we see Chet Holmgren is no good. I can't stand these overreactions... I turn my TV off in the morning during the playoffs. I don't want to hear it."
Joel Lorenzi: Sam Presti on Chet Holmgren: “Chet’s one of our guys. He’s been so impactful, he drives winning on so many different levels for us. … He didn’t have a great series. As I was saying, if you go back and look at some of the greatest players, they all have these moments where they run into defeat and struggle. He’s an underdog. We’ve seen that everywhere. He’s been questioned every time. That’s why he fits here so well. This is a guy that is intrinsically motivated. He doesn’t need things on the internet to drive his improvement.”
Joel Lorenzi: Sam Presti says his players had every reason to reference injuries in exit meetings — notes OKC's playoff starters from last season played 11 games together, and that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren played 27 games together. "Not one guy raised that as an issue that they wanted to reflect on."
The Oklahoma City Thunder certainly face some difficult roster decisions over the next few weeks as they weigh the team options they hold for Hartenstein, Dort and Williams, but sources insist that trading Chet Holmgren is not part of the plan. As one close observer to the playoff exit of last season's champions put it to The Stein Line: "He's the best defensive player in the league ... aside from one."
