Otega Oweh crumpled to the floor, grabbing the back of his right ankle after closing out on Braden Smith, and in that moment, any thrill from the Oklahoma City Thunder’s 114-112 overtime preseason win over the Indiana Pacers just evaporated. The 23-year-old Thunder guard sustained a scary non-contact injury that instantly silenced the quarter-filled OKC crowd, turning what should have been a celebratory win into a collective gasp of disbelief.
The Play That Zapped All Excitement
It was a tough scene. Oweh was trying for a rebound when his ankle just gave out, without any contact from another player. He immediately folded on the floor, and you just knew it was bad. He needed help to even get off the court, with a couple of his teammates having to carry him into the locker room. The energy in the arena totally died, and honestly, can you blame anyone? Watching a young player go down like that, especially in a preseason game that’s supposed to be low stakes, is brutal.
“It’s Really Tough.” And It Looked Like the Worst
You hate to speculate, but when you see a non-contact injury where a player grabs their Achilles and needs to be carried off, it screams “textbook torn Achilles tendon.” It’s the kind of injury that changes a player’s season, if not more. Even Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton, who knows that pain all too well after tearing his Achilles in Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals, was back in OKC for the first time since his own injury, adding a grim layer of familiarity to the situation. Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault didn’t have much to say, keeping it short, but his words carried the weight of the moment. “It’s really tough,” Daigneault stated. “Really tough. It’s tough for him.” It’s clear the vibes were completely sucked out of the building.
Oweh, a No. 41 pick in the 2026 NBA draft and currently on a two-way deal, was just starting his journey. Everyone’s holding their breath for an official injury update from the Thunder, hoping for anything but the worst, but that immediate visual was just gut-wrenching.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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