It was in early June that reports of Topic’s injury became quite a concern for many teams who worked out with him as it meant that there is a possibility for him to redshirt the incoming 2024-25 season. Oklahoma City seems to be prepared for this as they brought in Topic and have helped in his recovery after he underwent a successful surgery yesterday.

Surgery on his partially torn ACL was performed in Los Angeles by Dr. Neal ElAttrache. The Thunder already announced that he will be sitting out for the rest of the season. The Serbian point guard is essentially prepared to take on the redshirt role this season with the hopes of recovering well in the whole run.

This marks the second time that OKC will have a player redshirted for a season, with Chet Holmgren, who was drafted in 2022 with the second overall pick. Holmgren went on to average 16.5 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks per contest while starting all 82 games for the Thunder after his redshirt season.

Another Redshirt Player for OKC

Believe it or not, Oklahoma City is well suited to take on a redshirt player among all the teams in the NBA. The same experience was a huge benefit for Holmgren as the latter finished second in the Rookie of the Year voting with such a promising upside in his game. The same is the expected result for Topic, who unlike Holmgren, would actually have more flexibility as he is not limited to a leg brace in his recovery.

OKC selected Topic with the 12th pick in the 2024 NBA Draft. He was clearly one of the hottest prospects in the draft class and would’ve ended up higher on the list had it not been for his injury. This is why many critics claim that the Thunder came up with a massive steal in the Draft, yet again with the no. 12 pick after they selected Jalen Williams with the same pick.

At the age of 18, Topic has enjoyed plenty of experience in Europe, playing for various teams such as the Crvena Zvezda, Slides, OKK Beograd, and Mega in just three years. He is a two-time ABA League champion, a Serbian League and Serbian Cup champion, as well as the FIBA U18 European Championship MVP in 2023.

Not Shocked with Topic

Topic’s redshirt was already expected as soon as the Thunder drafted him. It was clear that OKC was planning to have him sit out the rest of the season to recover, giving him the same opportunity that Chet Holmgren did in his first year with the Thunder. The difference is that OKC is already a stacked team at this point, and they can even win the championship without Topic playing a single minute.

Topic is a good selection for OKC, who just lost Josh Giddey in a trade for Alex Caruso. Topic brings in the same eye for passing that Giddey had for the Thunder, but what stands out is the fact that he has an impressive shooting percentage from three, something that Giddey did not offer for the Thunder over his first three years with the team.

Still, Topic is slated to earn a $4.9 million salary in the 2024-25 season as he recovers from his ACL surgery, along with $18.1 million for the next three years, with team options on the final two seasons of his contract.