The Thunder have exercised their 2025/26 rookie scale team options on four second- and third-year players, the team announced today in a press release.
All four players were already on guaranteed contracts for 2024/25 and have now had their salaries locked in for the following season too. Those players – and their ’25/26 salaries – are as follows:
- Chet Holmgren, C (fourth year, $13,731,368)
- Ousmane Dieng, F (fourth year, $6,670,882)
- Jalen Williams, F (fourth year, $6,580,997)
- Cason Wallace, G (third year, $5,820,240)
Holmgren and Williams were full-time starters in the frontcourt last season for a Thunder team that won 57 games, claimed the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference, and won a playoff series.
The runner-up in Rookie of the Year voting, Holmgren played all 82 regular season games and averaged 16.5 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 2.3 blocks in just 29.4 minutes per contest. The 22-year-old also posted a strong shooting line of .530/.370/.793.
Williams, 23, took a significant step forward across the board after finishing second in Rookie of the Year voting in 2023. The former No. 12 overall pick registered averages of 19.1 PPG, 4.5 APG, and 4.0 RPG on .540/.427/.814 shooting in 71 games (31.3 MPG) in his second NBA season.
Wallace, 20, immediately emerged as a rotation player for Oklahoma City as a rookie, earning regular minutes with his strong perimeter defense. Like Holmgren, he appeared in all 82 games during the regular season, averaging 6.8 PPG, 2.3 RPG, and 1.5 APG with a .491/.419/.784 shooting line in 20.6 MPG.
Dieng, 21, is the only one of these four players whose option decision wasn’t a mortal lock. The 6’10” forward, who was drafted 11th overall in 2022, has yet to emerge as a regular contributor in OKC, having appeared in just 33 games off the bench last season. However, the Thunder remain encouraged by Dieng’s play in the G League, where he averaged 17.2 PPG, 7.6 RPG, and 5.4 APG in 33 Showcase Cup and regular season outings in 2023/24.
Holmgren, Dieng, and Williams will now be eligible for rookie scale extensions in the 2025 offseason, and it’s safe to assume the Thunder will make an effort to lock up at least Holmgren and Williams at that time. The team’s decision on Wallace’s fourth-year option for 2026/27 will be due next fall.
Next Thursday (October 31) is the deadline for teams to exercise rookie scale options for 2025/26. We’re tracking those decisions right here.