Nikola Topic Shines in G League, Thunder Fans Abuzz

0:00This is Corey with NBA News Today, powered by the Daily News Now. Subscribe for daily updates on your team. The Oklahoma City Thunder head into their game against the Golden State Warriors seriously shorthanded. Key players like All-Star Chad Hongrin, Jaylen Williams, Isaiah Hartenstein, Alex Caruso, and a Jay Mitchell are all out. The Warriors are hurting too, missing Steph Curry and Jimmy Butler for the season. Amid all this, the Thunder just recalled promising rookie Nicola Topic from their G lead team, the Oklahoma City Blue. This afternoon, Topic led the Blue in a loss to the Texas Legends. He scored 28 points on 11 of 15 shooting, hit 3 of 5 from beyond the arc, grabbed 6 rebounds, dished 6 assists, snagged, 2 steals, and blocked a shot all in just 28 minutes. That came right after Wednesday's game at the Pay Com Center, where he dropped 29 points, 9 assists, and 4 rebounds on only 8 misses.

1:00In a loss to the South Bay Lakers, fans are buzzing about his quick rise and smooth skills. The Thunder and Blue share the same arena, so their schedules often overlap, eegies like on this double header day. Coach Mark Daynall has a history of using young two-way players and back-to-backs, sparking talk about Topic suiting up tonight. The team must complete the official recall process for him to even sit on the bench. Either way, his strong G lead play has everyone watching his next steps closely with the Thunder. This episode is brought to you by our sponsor, See the episode description. If earbuds fall out when you sleep, this is for you, a pillow with built-in sound, S-O-L-I, solely pillow.com.