How Ajay Mitchell’s hot start has changed the way teams approach him

From hunters to hunters, Oklahoma City Thunder Guard Ajay Mitchell is feeling the difference on a personal level in the 2025-26 season. Mitchell has one of the most surprising starts in the NBA this season. From third-string point guard to one of the Thunder’s primary facilitators, Ajayi’s rise has head coach Marc Daigneault telling reporters that the 2024 second-round pick has risen in scouting reports from opposing teams.

Amidst the Thunder’s 13-1 start, Mitchell has evolved as one of the critical players opposing teams focus on slowing down against the defending champions.

“He’s game-planned for now. And there’s a difference between being on the scouting report and being game-planned,” Daigneault explained. “Teams adapt to what makes him effective, and that’s how you get better as a player. First of all, you establish yourself as a good player, and then as teams try to take away certain things, you have to develop layers to your game. That’s what it takes.”

“He’s already done it, but we’re going to have to do it to keep improving, and we’re confident he will,” Daigneault concluded.

Mitchell finished with 14 points on 6-for-15 shooting, six rebounds, four assists, one block and one steal in Saturday’s 109-96 win over the Charlotte Hornets. He is averaging 16.7 points on 45.7% shooting, 4.0 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.8 steals in 28.3 minutes per game for the Thunder this season as Mitchell’s season continues.

For a player who averaged 6.5 points in 16.6 minutes in his rookie season, Mitchell has scored in double figures in 13 of 14 games, including a game-high 26 points in a 141-135 victory over the Indiana Pacers. He also scored 21 points twice in four days, including a career-high 10 assists in a 132-101 win against the Sacramento Kings.

The Thunder winning despite the injuries is a testament to the depth of the roster

Thunder guard Ajay Mitchell’s breakout start is a testament to the depth of the defending champions’ roster in the absence of All-Star Jalen Williams. The The Thunder remain near perfect during a historic startwhich NBA analyst Chris Mannix called the best start he’s ever seen.

Without defensive players like Lou Dort and Williams, the Thunder won, with young players such as Mitchell, who is in charge, Mannix said, of Open Floor: SI’s NBA Show.

“This is the most impressive start to the season I’ve ever seen because of the circumstances,” Mannix said. “I was wondering if this team was going to be able to match up. I knew they were going to get better organically, but they matched up at every level. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander looks a little bit better. Chet Holmgren looks a little bit better. Ajay Mitchell, we talked about him a little bit, it seems like there’s no best player.”

The Thunder will look to be 14-1 when they take on the Pelicans on Monday.