At the end of shootaround every game day morning, you can guarantee that one of the last players left on the court is Nikola Topic. The 19-year-old recently reached the anniversary of his partially torn ACL that helped the Oklahoma City Thunder add him with the No. 12 pick of the 2024 NBA draft.

As the Thunder are four wins away from a championship in their 2025 NBA Finals matchup against the Indiana Pacers, let’s not forget about their redshirt lottery pick. Before his knee injury, Topic was viewed as a possible top-five selection. The 6-foot-6 playmaker gives OKC a redo on the Josh Giddey archetype but with more promising shooting touch.

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While the Thunder have ruled Topic out for the season, he’s reached the point in his long-term recovery process where he can ramp up the physicality level. Whether they celebrate a championship, he will be the talk of the town during the 2025 summer league.

Preparing for the NBA Finals, Lu Dort had a slip of the tongue moment. He was asked about Topic and his firsthand experience of seeing him spend the year rehabbing the background of a title contender. The 19-year-old has reached a point where he can play alongside his teammates.

“He’s been doing a lot of his recovery stuff but you can see the talent and how much more comfortable with the ball. Recently, he started playing with us and be a little more active with us,” Dort said. “He’s still getting back from his injury but I can see just how comfortable with the ball and the type of player he’s going to be.”

The Thunder have a nearly flawless roster. The one hole you can poke at is the lack of a bench playmaker. While Ajay Mitchell was sufficient in that role before his toe sprain, that was still a spot the title contender could’ve targeted at the trade deadline to add.

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In comes Topic. He could be the long-term answer. If he can be a bench ball-handler and get to the basket, that’ll be another solid role player to add to the Thunder’s stupidly rich depth already. Don’t even get started on what he could look like if his outside shot falls.

This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Lu Dort on Nikola Topic’s recovery: ‘You can see the talent’