2024-25 Thunder player grades: Branden Carlson

USA Today

2 days ago

The calendar has flipped to August, which means we've officially hit the low point of the NBA cycle. The next couple of months are the driest part of the year. Everybody has headed to vacation and awaits training camp to kick off the 2025-26 season.
The Oklahoma City Thunder continue to enjoy their NBA championship. They had a historic 68-14 regular-season campaign that eventually led to the franchise's first title with a 2025 NBA Finals Game 7 win. They'll enter next season as a favorite to be a rare repeat winner.
To reflect on their title run, Thunder Wire will conduct 2024-25 season grades for all 19 players who suited up for the squad at one point during the year. Fifteenth up is Branden Carlson, who had a standout season as a two-way player:
2024-25 statistics:
Advanced stats:
Significant Percentile Finishes:
Contract:
Thoughts:
Among last year's two-way player group, only Carlson earned a second year back on the Thunder. Easy to see why. The 26-year-old showed the most among the bottom of the depth chart. He had his moments during his rookie season and dominated in the G League.
The Thunder managed to steal Carlson away from the Toronto Raptors. He was also a two-way player there. He was signed to a standard contract after being waived. OKC badly needed the seven-footer as its center position was depleted with injuries. A couple of 10-day deals later, he was finally added to a two-way spot.
In his limited time, Carlson showed out. Of course, everybody remembers what he did against the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Thunder's eye-popping blowout win. He also managed to play 32 games as OKC blew teams out left and right in its historic season that set the NBA record for point differential.
Carlson could stretch the floor. He shot the ball well from deep. The seven-footer also had great size and could rebound. He might've been slow on his feet, but the Thunder could afford that. The 26-year-old helped right away when given the chance.
In the G League, Carlson was a double-double machine that could rack up blocks. His stat lines popped out. You love to see a two-way player dominate at that level. It shows he's closer to being an NBA talent than not. The OKC Blue allowed him to stay active despite being buried on the Thunder's depth chart.
You have to like what you saw from Carlson in his first season. Especially considering his circumstances. He went undrafted after five seasons at Utah. Most players with similar college careers don't even sniff the NBA. But his combination of size and shooting makes him an intriguing project, even at his older age.
Moving Forward:
The Thunder hope Carlson can make strides in his second season. It was a bit of a surprise to see him brought back. Considering what he did in his limited playing time, surely another team could offer him a standard roster spot. The NBA champions had the league's full attention in their entire playoff run, which meant more eyes on him in garbage time.
Nope. Instead, the Thunder tendered Carlson a two-way qualifying offer. That locked him in OKC. They must've liked what they saw in his first year. Another season under their development system could help him carve out an NBA career after an unceremonious start.
At 26 years old, Carlson is who he is. Perhaps his shooting and size can carry him into more NBA contracts. But if he makes it into the league, it's because of those two skills. There's always a need for stretch bigs. He fits that textbook definition.
If Carlson wants to lengthen his career, he must be better at the other areas of basketball. You can't simply be somebody who hovers around the perimeter and hopes to receive a kick-out pass. The rebound numbers have to be better. The playmaking is pretty nonexistent. Maybe the seven-footer can turn into a better pick-and-roll partner, too.
Aside from that, Carlson is worth the flyer to bring back on a two-way deal. The Thunder have a history of second-round and undrafted gems. He still has a long way to go to join that group, but he's off to a good start, as somebody who showed flashes in the regular season and stuffed the stat sheet in the G League.
Final Grade: B