Thunder’s Chet Holmgren said he likes to play in Miami because their arena is ’empty’ – originally posted on Sportslens.com
At 57-25, the Oklahoma City Thunder finished first in the Western Conference. That was OKC’s best regular season record since 2013-14. The Thunder swept the Pelicans in the first round but lost in six games in the Conference semi-finals to Dallas. Despite not reaching their ultimate goal, OKC still has a ton of potential heading into 2024-25.
One of the key players on their roster of big man Chet Holmgren. The 22-year-old was the second overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft by the Thunder. Sadly, Holmgren missed his entire rookie season due to injury. He bounced back in 2023-24, playing and starting in all 82 games for the Thunder. Recently, Holmgren said that one arena he likes to play in is the Kaseya Center. Home of the Miami Heat. He said that he likes Miami because it’s “empty”.
Chet Holmgren took a shot at Miami Heat fans
Chet Holmgren says he loves playing in Miami because the arena is always empty
“I like Miami, because it’s just like empty… As the away team you just got to build that lead in the first three quarters and then it just stays quiet for the fourth.”
(Via @RoadTrippinPod / h/t… pic.twitter.com/yzV4gpsg4n
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) July 18, 2024
To be fair, Chet Holmgren has only played one road game against the Miami Heat. The Thunder took home a 128-120 victory back on Wednesday, January 10th. Chet Holmgren led the team with nine rebounds to lead OKC that game. He also added 23 points on the offensive end. MVP candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 28 points. According to reports from the Heat, they had a sellout crowd in the one game that Holmgren played in Miami.
They claim that 19,636 spectators were at the game. That’s hard to believe on a weeknight at the beginning of January. More often than not, teams end up inflating their numbers to make it seem as if more people attended a game. Thunder big man Chet Holmgren claims the Heat’s arena was “empty” when the OKC played there in January. Holmgren may have sparked a rivalry with Heat fans. Luckily for him, he’ll only play in Miami once a season and shouldn’t have to worry about being heckled.
“I like Miami, because it’s just like empty… As the away team, you just got to build that lead in the first three quarters and then it just stays quiet for the fourth.”
Chet Holmgren on his favorite NBA cities to play in
(via @RoadTrippinPod)
pic.twitter.com/zKxsBEGfRR— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) July 18, 2024
In his first professional season, Chet Holmgren put together a solid campaign with the Thunder. He averaged (16.5) points, (7.9) rebounds, (2.4) assists, and (2.3) blocks per game. Holmgren finished second in Rookie of the Year voting behind San Antonio’s Vicor Wembanyama. As a seven-footer, Holmgren has an exceptional touch from beyond the arc. He shot (.370) percent from deep as a rookie. The Thunder expect big things out of the former top 3 pick as he continues to develop.
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