Thunder rookie agrees to second 10-day contract

The Oklahoma City Thunder signed rookie Branden Carlson to a new 10-day contract. The undrafted Utah product has been a significant spark off the bench in the absence of forward Chet Holmgren and center Isaiah Hartenstein. Thunder head coach Marc Daigneault praised Carlson for his work ethic as a bridge to extended playing time of late, answering the call amid Oklahoma City’s recent three games.

Thunder announced news via press release.

The Oklahoma City Thunder have signed center Branden Carlson to a second 10-day contract, executive vice president and general manager Sam Presti announced today, the Thunder announced.

Carlson scored a game-high 11 points in the Thunder’s 134-114 win over the Cleveland Cavs. He’s also made a combined 9-for-17 three-pointers over the past six games, including 3-for-6 from deep against the Cavs.

After the victory, Daigneault mentioned how Carlson has impressed him since Branden’s first week with the Thunder. This eventually led to, unbeknownst to Branden, first quarter minutes against the best team in the NBA.

“I didn’t tell him, no,” Daigneault said. “(With) Hartenstein, that’s the first thing. So that frees up thirty minutes. And then, I give a ton of credit to Branden. All the invisible things that you guys don’t see and most people don’t see, the high-intensity drills, the small-minute group, his Blue minutes, the way he approaches practice and then, these late-game minutes, when it’s a blowout. It plays the same way on all those platforms. And he executes.”

After checking in the first quarter of the Thunder’s win against the Cavs, Carlson drained two 3-pointers in a 30-2 run.

“I remember it was his first week, and he’s out there getting minutes like that, and he knew the whole book,” Daigneault added. “And I was like, man, this guy is on it. For him to be so focused right away. So when they’re doing that consistently across all those platforms, then you can assume that’s how they’re going to operate in the first quarter.

Daigneault and the Thunder’s 30-2 run led to a great victory.

Branden Carlson is getting a second 10-day contract with the Thunder

In his first NBA season, Oklahoma City Thunder rookie Branden Carlson approached his time with the Thunder like a seasoned veteran, making the most of his opportunity, whether with the Oklahoma City Blue, Oklahoma City’s G League affiliate, or the Thunder.

The Thunder signed Karlsson non-guaranteed in December after several injuries to the frontcourt, including starting forward Chet Holmgren, Isaiah Hartenstein and Jaylin Williams, hit the roster.