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Thunder Exercise Options on Jared McCain and Thomas Sorber, Decline Option on Nikola Topic
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- Thunder Exercise Options on Jared McCain and Thomas Sorber, Decline Option on Nikola Topic
(Daniel Dunn-Imagn Images)
The Oklahoma City Thunder took care of a few contract decisions on Sunday evening that will help shape the future of their roster.
Thunder Executive Vice President and General Manager announced that OKC exercised the fourth year contract option on combo guard Jared McCain and the third year contract option on big man Thomas Sorber. The team did not exercise the fourth year contract option on point guard Nikola Topic.
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The Philadelphia 76ers selected McCain at #16 overall in the 2024 NBA Draft. He was the early favorite for Rookie of the Year before an injury derailed his promising first season. Oklahoma City made a 2026 trade deadline deal for the sharpshooting former Duke Blue Devil and he instantly became a fan favorite. McCain earned a prominent role during OKC's run to the Western Conference Finals and has remained a key rotation player early this season. The 22 year old has appeared in 96 career NBA games. McCain has averaged 10.2 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 19.8 minutes per game so far in his career.
Oklahoma City selected Sorber at #15 overall in the 2025 NBA Draft. The former Georgetown Hoya unfortunately tore his ACL before his first training camp and missed his first NBA season. The 20 year old big man is currently recovering from an arthroscopic knee procedure he had over the summer but is expected to make his NBA debut sometime relatively soon. Though he has yet to play a single minute in the league, OKC picking up Sorber's option shows they believe he has real potential. The Thunder could use another versatile paint protector while Chet Holmgren rehabs and recovers.
Oklahoma City selected Topic at #12 overall in the 2024 NBA Draft. The jumbo sized Serbian playmaker has had an ill-fated run of health related setbacks to start his NBA career. Topic was considered a top 3 talent in his draft class until he tore his ACL. That's the only reason OKC was able to select him in the first place. After missing his first season, he received a shocking diagnosis of testicular cancer. The young man in a foreign country battled through three bouts of chemotherapy and made his way onto an NBA court in February of this year. It was one of the great inspiring stories of the season. Topic is now recovering from an offseason back surgery and has yet to play in the early goings of the year. There is no doubt that he has NBA talent. Here's hoping he has a chance to showcase his skills and earns a second contract, either in OKC or with another team.
