Embarking on a rebuild, you’re due for a few misses. When you add new layers of young prospects every year, some are bound to slip through the cracks. Perhaps nobody better exemplifies that for the Oklahoma City Thunder than Tre Mann.

The NBA champion’s rebuild was relatively short. They only turned in three seasons where they missed the playoffs before returning at the top of the class. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren were all franchise-altering developmental success stories that eventually landed a Larry O’Brien trophy.

Advertisement

But the downside of blue-chip prospects and a successful developmental system is that not everybody gets a fair chance to prosper in OKC. You saw that happen with Mann. After being taken with the No. 18 pick of the 2021 NBA draft, he spent most of his first three seasons with the Thunder.

Mann was viewed as a talented go-to scorer. He had a killer handle and could hunt his own buckets in isolation. The outside shooter was also a threat off the ball. Even though he showed flashes as a Sixth Man scorer, he never found consistency in OKC.

Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault recalled Mann’s time in OKC before their 135-114 preseason win over the Hornets. He spoke glowingly about it and was impressed with his ability to make the best of a bad situation for him, as he was stuck behind a guard logjam.

“What stuck out most was towards the end of his time with us, his playing time had declined pretty significantly compared to where it was early on, and his commitment to the team when he’s a young player, he’s on his first contract,” Daigneault said. “There’s probably days where it wasn’t going exactly the way he wanted it to go, and yet he stayed so committed to the team and inside the team that I just gained a ton of respect for him.”

Advertisement

Entering an important third season, Mann was on the outside of the rotation. Instead of mentally checking out, the soft-spoken player remained engaged and a supportive teammate. He was finally given a chance to start fresh elsewhere when he was traded to the Charlotte Hornets at the 2024 NBA trade deadline.

“It’s one thing when you’re playing the minutes you want to play and having flickers of success, which he obviously had with us and has had here, but it’s quite another when you’re not getting your expectations met,” Daigneault said. “For him to like I said commit to the team in the way that he did, I think said a lot about his personal character, and he has carved out a place inside of our program’s consciousness that not everybody has.”

Usually, players in Mann’s situation request a trade and are eventually moved. But not every player leaves on the best of terms at their previous stop. It’s obvious that wasn’t the case with him. In fact, when Gilgeous-Alexander was asked in Feb. 2024 if he’d watch his former teammate’s Hornets debut, his usual calm demeanor broke with eyes that sparked up. He even asked what time the game was to ensure he’d tune in.

A few months later, Mann made a surprise appearance at the Thunder’s first home playoff game in the Gilgeous-Alexander era. It was in 2024 against the New Orleans Pelicans. That’s despite being on a new team and having enough time to get situated.

Advertisement

“I mean, he’s one of the guys still. We had Wiggins’s jersey retirement last year he came down for that. The guys love him, love seeing him, and when he has success, the guys talk about it,” Daigneault said. “When he started hot last year, the guys were talking about it. When he signed his contract over the summer, he’s just somebody that we collectively root for, and it’s the way that he handled himself while he was here, and a really good player.”

Since the trade, Mann has made the most of his situation. It looked like he was due for a breakout season last year before a nagging back injury sidelined him for most of the 2024-25 season. Despite that, the Hornets remain believers as they signed him to a three-year, $24 million contract extension this past offseason.

Now, it’s about having a healthy and career season. Everything has lined up for Mann to have a breakout scoring season. He could be Charlotte’s top bench scorer. While it didn’t work out on the Thunder, there’s still a pathway for him to carve out a lengthy NBA career. Count Daigneault and company part of his personal fans.

This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Why OKC Thunder still root for Tre Mann: ‘He’s one of the guys still’