Chet Holmgren Looked Every Bit Of A 7ft Basketball Unicorn After He Dominated In His Summer League Debut

Alex Goodlett. Getty Images.

On one hand, the logical side of your brain says you should never overreact to Summer League performances. On the other hand, this is no time to be logical. This is a time to fill your cup to the brim with hype and you chug that shit like your life depends on it. As I said earlier, the #1 rule of Summer League is that anything good that happens you can take to the bank as being real and something that will translate into the regular season. You know you shouldn't get overly excited but sometimes you just get lost in the sauce and I'm here to tell you that's OK. Especially if you're a Thunder fan and you just watched Chet Holmgren dominate in such a way that your brain immediately goes to dangerous places

That's a 7ft unicorn. I know one when I see one and it's impossible to miss it watching Chet play. The skill is impressive and the length is insane. That goes without saying. But what stood out most to me was just how calm he was. Everything looked fluid, nothing forced. Even if this isn't anywhere close to actual NBA level competition, it's still the highest level he's ever faced and I'd say this was a pretty good first look at it. He always looked to be in rhythm and didn't try and do too much which can often happen when the #2 pick is making his debut. I'm sure his nerves were going crazy but you'd never tell by how he played. 

Was that a Dirk one legger I saw in there? Sure looked like it. These Thunder man, lord knows what they're trying to do in terms of roster construction but what I do know is this team is LOADED with young intriguing talent and they play a fun ass style of basketball. Look at Poku! Remember Poku?!?

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Add in SGA, Dort, Chet, Giddey, Mann etc, this team may lose a shit ton in the short team because they're young, but man all these dudes are showing signs of being real players. It shouldn't shock anyone if the Thunder are competitive quicker than you might think once these guys get more NBA miles on their legs. 

But back to Chet for a second, let me just ask you something. What's the plan for a 7fter who is a 3 level scorer and a plus passer who also happens to bring elite rim protection? Obviously, his frame is a concern, but he's been in the NBA for about 3 weeks. That will come. You want to talk about a matchup nightmare, well isn't that what those highlights just showed? When it was all said and done Chet finished with 23/7/4 on 7-9 (4-6 shooting) and 6 blocks doing shit like this

Remember, this is the worst he's ever going to be too. Just think about that for a second. Imagine what he'll look like with even a year in an NBA weight program. Even if he never truly puts on crazy size like Giannis, it's still worked out decent for someone like KD. I'm not saying that's who Chet is going to be but then again that's the whole point of Summer League. You see a debut like that and everything is on the table.

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For how much losing the Thunder have experienced these last few years, it's good to see all that tanking might actually pay off. Josh Giddey for example had 14/5/11 in this game. Not terrible for someone who is still 19 years old and will turn 20 right before the season starts. Jalen Williams? Their 12th overall pick a few weeks ago? He finished with 14/5 on 7-10 shooting too. 

I know people will hate on Presti for what he's trying to do, and time will tell if it ultimately works out and who knows how long that takes. But after one game I think we can all agree that Chet looks like a slam dunk pick.