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Nikola Topic officially makes NBA debut to roaring ovation from Thunder fans
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- Nikola Topic officially makes NBA debut to roaring ovation from Thunder fans
Nikola Topic officially makes NBA debut to roaring ovation from Thunder fans appeared first on ClutchPoints . Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
Oklahoma City fans were proud to finally see Nikola Topic make his long-awaited NBA debut in the Thunder's matchup against the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday night.
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Topic entered the league when the Thunder selected him 12th overall in the 2024 NBA Draft. However, he has yet to make his debut due to serious injuries and ailments. He tore his ACL that kept him out of the 2024-25 campaign and dealt with testicular cancer treatment throughout a chunk of this ongoing season.
Fortunately for the talented prospect, he finally recovered as he stepped onto the Thunder court for the first regular-season debut in his career. Oklahoma City fans made sure to give him a huge round of applause for his resilience through the hardships he's experiences.
How Nikola Topic , Thunder played against Bucks
Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images
Nikola Topic scored his first points and even recorded a rebound and an assist in his debut. However, the Thunder entered the All-Star break with a 110-93 blowout loss to the Bucks.
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Oklahoma City was short-handed as the team was missing Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams due to injury. Milwaukee still took advantage as the visitors won all four quarters throughout the matchup.
Three players scored in double-digits for Oklahoma City in the loss. Isaiah Joe led the way with a stat line of 17 points, four rebounds and two assists. He shot 5-of-11 from the field, including 4-of-9 from beyond the arc, and 3-of-3 from the free-throw line. Chet Holmgren came next with 16 points and 13 rebounds, Jared McCain had 13 points and three rebounds, while Luguentz Dort , Kenrich Williams and Alex Caruso scored nine points each.
Oklahoma City fell to a 42-14 record on the season but maintain the top spot in the Western Conference standings. They are three games above the San Antonio Spurs and 6.5 games above the Denver Nuggets .
The Thunder are officially on rest mode due to the upcoming All-Star Weekend festivities in Los Angeles . They will resume next week when they host the Brooklyn Nets on Feb. 20 at 8 p.m. ET.
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Related: Thunder's Chet Holmgren gets real on reality of Nikola Topic's return from cancer diagnosis
Related: Mark Daigneault's heartfelt reaction to Nikola Topic's Thunder debut after chemotherapy
