UPDATE: The Thunder have elected to rest Chet Holmgren on Friday night.
ORIGINAL STORY: We might not have to wait long for Wiseman vs. Holmgren.
On Thursday, Draymond Green responded to 95.7 The Game’s Damon Bruce for saying that “Chet Holmgren is already 50 times the player that James Wiseman is." On Friday night, the pair of No. 2 overall picks could go head-to-head in Las Vegas, as the Warriors will play against the Oklahoma City Thunder at 4 PT on ESPN.
Anthony Slater of The Athletic reported that Wiseman and Jonathan Kuminga will play for the Warriors, though the Thunder are yet to announce if Holmgren will be available, as some teams have opted to hold out their top draft picks in Summer League action. Slater also reported that Moses Moody’s status is up in the air after he took a spill Tuesday night.
Golden State selected Wiseman with the No. 2 overall pick in 2019. He played in 39 seasons in a stop-and-go rookie campaign before tearing the meniscus in his right knee in April 2021. His entire second season was wiped out as he recovered, as Wiseman has been limited to just three G League games and two Summer League contests this year.
Wiseman has averaged 8.5 points and 4.5 rebounds through his first two games. Bruce initially called out Wiseman for his two-rebound performance in his Summer League debut.
Holmgren made a memorable pro debut, meanwhile, recording 23 points, seven rebounds, four assists and a Summer League-record six blocks in 24 minutes of action. He has followed it up with a couple more double-doubles and looks like a star in the making.
Bruce took it a step further when discussing Wiseman and Holmgren on Thursday.
“Russell vs. Chamberlain Part 2, here we go again,” Bruce said. “The reason why I think Chet Holmgren is incredibly exciting is because – unlike James Wiseman – he’s yet to miss a single game in his career, and he hasn’t had any knee surgeries yet. That’s part of my evaluation in it too about value."
“Yes, he’s played 100 percent of the two games he’s been available,” co-host Ray Ratto quipped.
OK, so Holmgren has actually played four of five games in Summer League since the Thunder drafted him last month. Clearly, Bruce thinks highly of Holmgren from what he’s seen.
“I really wasn’t comparing,” Bruce said of his initial comment Holmgren and Wiseman. “I was sort of speaking extemporaneously. But I guarantee you if the Oklahoma City Thunder right called (Warriors general manager) Bob Myers and said Wiseman for Holmgren, Bob Myers makes that deal at the speed of light.”
The profile of a big man is changing around the NBA.
The Warriors hope they have their center of the future in Wiseman, who is listed at 7-foot, 240 pounds but has shown great flashes of athleticism on both ends of the floor. Listed at 7-foot, 195 pounds, the lanky Holmgren is drawing Kevin Durant comparisons with his ability to handle the ball and stretch the floor with his shooting.
Wiseman is 21 and Holmgren is 20. If they both play Tuesday night, it could just be the preview of a longstanding duel in the Western Conference. There’s no guarantee that the two players would be matched up with one another Friday, as Holmgren often gets involved above the 3-point line.
