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While Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault awaits for first-round pick Nikola Topic to recover from a partially torn ACL, he got his first glimpse at Oklahoma City's 26th overall pick, Dillon Jones, on the opening day of training camp. Many believe the Thunder drafted Josh Giddy's replacement in Topic at No. 12, calling it one of the many steals of the 2024 NBA Draft despite the fact Topic will miss the 2024-25 campaign. However, coach Daigneault sees plenty of upside in Jones, the late first-round pick whose potential as a wing defender shows one day into Thunder's training camp.
“He's a hard-playing guy. He's a really unique physique. He's strong, a low center of gravity. He's got to learn how to leverage that defensively with his physicality because he's got a chance to become a pretty impactful defender because of his strength and just how low to the ground he is,” Daigneault said. “But, he's really gotta learn how to do that.”
On the opposite end of the floor, the Thunder head coach sees Jones as a dynamic offensive player in the beginning stages of his rookie season.
“Offensively, he's a pretty complete player. He can make a shot. He's a good ball-handler, a good passer. He's learning the system and the offense,” Daigneault added. “So, things, I think, are moving quickly for him as well as anybody else that's new. But it's a good start out of him.”
Ahead of 2024-25, Daigneault has plenty of reasons to be excited for the upcoming season.
Chet Holmgren assists Nikola Topic's road to recovery for Thunder
Oklahoma City Thunder's No. 12 overall pick, Nikola Topic, will undergo a lengthy rehabilitation process before making his NBA debut. After averaging 18.4 points, 7.1 assists, and 3.4 rebounds in 12 games in the Serbian league, he drew Josh Giddy comparisons for his knack of stuffing the stat sheets. However, the 19-year-old prospect has more offensive potential than Giddy and, for Mark Daigneault and the Thunder, is worth the wait of a redshirt rookie season. Topic has also received a hand from Chet Holmgren, who sat his rookie season after suffering a Lisfranc fracture in his foot in 2022.
Two years removed from the seat Topic is currently in, Holmgren has taken the youngster under his wing, per Athlon Sports.
“We all talk very often about basketball and some other things — life in general. They're really helpful. Especially Chet, who had the same situation [as] me, and we've been talking pretty often,” Topic said in his Media Day interview. “He's been helping a lot.”
Perhaps observing from the sidelines his rookie season will yield similar results we saw in Holmgren's first active season with the Thunder. In the meantime, rookie Dillon Jones will continue his development.
