Can struggling Thunder forward Chet Holmgren bounce back in Game 7?
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OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Chet Holmgren hasn’t quite been himself on offense during the NBA Finals.
The Oklahoma City Thunder's versatile 7-foot-1 forward averaged 18 points per game on 57% shooting from the field in the Western Conference finals against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Those totals have dropped to 11.3 points on 35.3% shooting against the Indiana Pacers.
In Game 6 of the finals, Holmgren scored just four points on 2-for-9 shooting as the Pacers rolled to a 108-91 win. He acknowledged afterward that he’ll need to improve in the decisive Game 7 on Sunday in Oklahoma City.
“I personally, myself, could be better trying to help us get things going in the right way,” he said after Game 6.
Holmgren hasn't panicked. He said a balanced approach to handling difficult games has served him well throughout his career.
“You can’t obsess over it to the point where it has a negative effect,” he said. “But you also can’t just completely detach from it to the point where you don’t care about it."
Holmgren has made just 11.8% of his 3-pointers against Indiana. He said he doesn't worry about numbers as much as he focuses on effort and mentality.
“I do everything I can — good or bad, win or loss — I do everything I can to be better and improve after each game,” he said. “That doesn’t guarantee anything, but that’s kind of just the process that I’ve always had.”
Pacers coach Rick Carlisle knows Holmgren is capable of doing damage. Holmgren had 20 points and 10 rebounds in Game 4 and 14 points and 15 rebounds in Game 5.
“He is a great young player, and he has had a lot of stretches where we have not dealt with him well,” Carlisle said.
Bouncing back from a few bad games is nothing compared with recovering from a foot injury that cost him his entire first season in 2022-23 and a pelvic injury that cost him 50 games this season.
“I wouldn’t say I enjoyed the injuries, but other than that, I’ve pretty much enjoyed the whole ride,” Holmgren said. “It’s a beautiful thing, the easy parts, the hard parts, good parts, the bad parts, it’s all part of it. I would say I enjoy it all.”
After all that, he’s one win from an NBA title in his second season of action. He is thankful to be in this position given how his season started. He’s trying not to overthink the situation heading into Game 7.
“You have to take the emotions out of it, even though it’s everything you dreamed of, and you just have to try and do what you can to continue to prepare how you’ve prepared all year," he said.
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