The Thunder star is traveling at record averages and the guard is becoming indispensable in coach Daigneault’s game to aim for the second consecutive title
Reigning champions, roster confirmed, already firmly at the top of the league. The Oklahoma City Thunder have definitely picked up where they left off last year, with their foot firmly on the accelerator. The not-so-concealed goal is to become the new dynasty of the NBA: something that hasn’t been seen for seven years, with Curry and Durant’s Warriors winning two titles in a row in 2017 and 2018. The 12-1 record, with the only defeat coming in a rather daring way in Portland, suggests a new triumphal ride, and there is a player who is silently climbing the ranks at the start of the season. hierarchies, taking important minutes and putting together considerable statistics. We’re talking about Ajay Mitchell, who until a few months ago was one of the last rotation elements of Daigneault’s long bench, while today he has numbers that haven’t been seen in OKC since James Harden in the 2011/12 season, in which Barba won the Sixth Man of the Year award. It’s too early to say it out loud, but Sam Presti may have picked another pearl, yet another, from the series of draft picks that have made the present (and future) of the Thunder so brilliant.
shai’s trust
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On October 24, after the rings ceremony and the victory in double overtime against the Houston Rockets, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander posted a carousel recap of that night on his Instagram profile. And among the various photos, the MVP included a screenshot from the Thunder store website, about to purchase an Ajay Mitchell tank top. A certificate of esteem, because Mitchell was decisive on the pitch: 16 points in 14 minutes played, third best scorer for the Thunder behind SGA and Holmgren. He would then repeat the following evening in Indiana, in the rematch of the Finals, with 26 points in 38′ on the pitch, and the best plus/minus figure of the team (+12). An impact that perhaps only the most optimistic could have expected, and Mitchell has ridden the wave of confidence, earning space on the cover also thanks to the injuries that are affecting OKC’s roster at this start: Jalen Williams, for example, has not yet played a match, while Dort and Aaron Wiggins have recently been added to the infirmary. His impact in this first part of the season speaks for itself: he plays 28 minutes per game (in the last five he started in the starting five), with averages of 17 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.8 steals.
from Belgium
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Where does this young guard come from, though? Ajay Mitchell was born on June 25, 2002 in Ans, Belgium, where he grew up watching his father Barry play. For him, learning basketball was like learning a native language, and one of his first coaches (Raymond Westphalen) talked about how Ajay “felt the game differently from others, with a feeling that can’t be taught: either you have it or you don’t.” After a brief period in France, in which he shared some training with Wembanyama, he returned to his homeland before making the big leap overseas in 2021. The chosen destination is UC Santa Barbara, in the Big West Conference, to grow without too many spotlights on him, in line with that calm and maturity that he also seems to demonstrate on the pitch. In the third year he put together important numbers (20 points on average with 50% from the field and 39% from 3), which however were not enough to guarantee him a first round pick. There are those who considered him too light (1.93 meters for 86 kg) as a guard in today’s NBA, others believed that at 22 years old he was already too “old” to be a rookie: the result is that Sam Presti secured him, through a trade with the New York Knicks, at the 38th pick. In OKC he entered the rotation well, but was slowed down by a broken toe in January 2025, and upon his return, with the Thunder immersed in the title race, his use in the playoffs was minimal.
injury and growth
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So how did we arrive at this year’s exploit? Mitchell’s characteristics seem to fit perfectly with OKC’s system: he is aggressive in defense and intelligent in reading passing lines, but above all he is calm and cynical in attack. He had a year to adapt to the rhythms of the league, and as he himself declared: “In the NBA the offensive spacing is greater than in college, it’s easier to move.” And speaking of moves, he can learn every day from Gilgeous-Alexander, absorbing his smooth way of attacking the rim. Ajay, in fact, is currently the Thunder’s main play creator when SGA is on the bench: he makes the right choices when playing the pick and roll, he is surgical from mid-range with his left hand, and the worrying fact for the opponents is that, up to now, he has not yet fully clicked from 3 (34.7%). Now there is already talk of Sixth Man of the Year for him, if not – even – Most Improved Player (an award that is unlikely to be awarded to a sophomore), but Mitchell seems to only be interested in team success. A team that, as mentioned, seems headed towards another dominant season. Shai is replicating last year’s numbers, and the fact that he is averaging nearly 33 points without playing in the fourth quarter in seven out of thirteen games says a lot about the strength of this group. These Thunder could even jeopardize the record of victories in the regular season established by Golden State in 2016, which however cost the Warriors dearly in terms of wear and tear at the Finals. The variables and unexpected events over the course of a season can be many, but the Thunder seem certain of one thing – at the moment: with Ajay Mitchell, they have added another, very sharp arrow to their bow.
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