Payton Sandfort was not a headline name entering this summer league. He was undrafted out of college. He spent most of last season with the Thunder’s G League affiliate in Oklahoma City. But on Monday, he was the best player on the floor.
The 6-foot-7 forward dropped 25 points on 6-of-10 shooting in the Thunder’s 82-77 loss to the Atlanta Hawks. He knocked down four threes and grabbed four boards. He also added a couple of assists. None of that looks like a guy who had to scratch and claw his way onto a two-way contract.
Sandfort earned that deal last season with the Oklahoma City Blue. By the time the regular season ended, he was getting real run with the big club. In the Thunder’s finale against Phoenix, he went off for a career-high 23 points on five made threes. That performance probably turned some heads in the front office. Monday’s outing is just more evidence that he belongs.
Aday Mara Keeps Showing Why the Thunder Drafted Him at No. 12
The Thunder’s other big story in summer league is Aday Mara. The 7-footer out of Spain was the 12th pick in the draft and he’s been exactly what the team hoped for so far. He finished with 10 points, nine rebounds, and four blocks against the Hawks. That’s two straight games where he’s looked comfortable and disruptive.
Mara is raw but his ceiling is obvious. The Thunder drafted him partly because he projects as a defender who can bother guys like Victor Wembanyama down low. That’s a tall order for any rookie but Mara has the size and timing to make it work eventually. He’ll learn behind Isaiah Hartenstein and Chet Holmgren, which is about as good a development setup as you can ask for.
After the game, Mara talked about the growing pains of playing with new teammates. He told The Oklahoman’s Justin Martinez that the adjustment goes both ways.
“It’s for everyone,” Mara said. “It’s for me too. I’m just trying to tell them on the defensive side, everything that goes through the paint, just let me get it. So we’re still trying to figure out that part. Same thing with the lobs. If you see me down there, you can just throw it, and I will catch it. Things like that. But it’s our fifth day together, so we’re just trying to figure it out.”
He had a similar stat line in his summer league debut: 10 points on 5-of-8 shooting, four assists, two blocks. Bennett Stirtz, the Thunder’s other first-round pick at No. 16, put up 10 points, four assists, and three steals in that game. Together they give Oklahoma City a young core that looks deeper than most people realize.
It’s early summer league stuff. None of it guarantees regular-season wins. But Sandfort and Mara are giving the Thunder something to think about, and that’s all you can ask from guys fighting for rotation spots.
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