An Oklahoma City Thunder player is dealing with an ailment that he would probably much rather not be.
The Thunder announced on Monday that guard Nikola Topic underwent a testicular procedure earlier in the day. Topic is set to be re-evaluated in the next 4-to-6 weeks as a result.
With Oklahoma City scheduled to begin the regular season on Oct. 21, Topic could potentially miss the first month of the 2025-26 campaign. A return in mid-to-late November would probably be realistic for him with that timetable, which would have him missing about a dozen or more games.
Topic, still only 20 years old, hails from Serbia and was a lottery pick by the Thunder in 2024 (No. 12 overall). But he has yet to get his NBA career off the ground after missing his entire rookie season due to a torn ACL that he suffered while playing in Europe almost a year-and-a-half ago (video here).
During Topic’s last full season of play in 2023-24, he averaged 18.4 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 7.1 assists per game on 52/26/86 shooting splits for Serbian side KK Mega Basket. At 6-foot-6 with strong ball-handling ability, Topic is likely to eventually provide a contribution to the Thunder as a backup to their reigning league MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander at point guard.
But for now, Oklahoma City will have to wait out Topic until doctors clear him to return.
