The Oklahoma City Thunder have been the best team in the NBA through the first half of the season, and their lineup is about to get even stronger.
Chet Holmgren has been removed from the Thunder’s injury report and is set to return on Friday against the Toronto Raptors. The 7-foot-1 center shared a video on Instagram Thursday morning and captioned it “I’m back.”
Holmgren has not played since he suffered a right iliac wing fracture during Oklahoma City’s Nov. 10 loss to the Golden State Warriors. Holmgren landed hard on his right hip during that game while contesting a shot from Andrew Wiggins. You can see the play here.
The Thunder announced at the time that Holmgren was expected to return this season but would be held out for at least 8-10 weeks. It has been just over 12 weeks since Holmgren suffered the injury.
Holmgren had gotten off to a great start before getting hurt. The former No. 2 overall pick had been averaging 18.2 points, 9.2 rebounds and 2.9 blocks per game entering the contest in which he suffered the injury.
Isaiah Hartenstein has started 28 games for the Thunder in Holmgren’s absence. Hartenstein has played well with 11.4 points, 12.2 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game on the year.
The Thunder were 8-2 at the time Holmgren got hurt. It would be an understatement to say they have exceeded expectations in Holmgren’s absence.
Oklahoma City’s 40-9 record was the best in the NBA entering Thursday. They have not missed a beat without Holmgren, and they will now be even deeper with the 22-year-old back in the mix.
Holmgren also missed the entirety of his first NBA season due to a right foot injury. The Thunder are hoping he can remain healthy down the stretch.
