On Sunday night, it was announced by the Oklahoma City Thunder that the team will pick up options for both Jared McCain and Thomas Sorber, but will be declining Nikola Topic’s fourth-year option.

The decisions come amid what’s been a disastrous season on the injury front so far for OKC. All of Jalen Williams, Cason Wallace, Chet Holmgren, Alex Caruso, Topic and Sorber are currently listed, with the team having suffered back-to-back blowout losses in wake of injury.

The re-signing of McCain and Sorber for their fourth and third seasons, respectively, is an easy decision. McCain has proven himself as a spark-plug guard alongside Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and co., and will now be able to continue to offer his services in OKC on a cost-controlled deal.

Sorber has yet to play for OKC, though that’s reason enough to sign on the dotted line for another potential frontcourt contributor.

The decision to decline Topic is an interesting one on the Thunder’s part, given they’re usually simply picking up options on rookies that have hit the ground running. That hasn’t necessarily been the case for Topic so far.

Topic, drafted in 2024, was always seen as a project guard, having suffered a major knee injury in the pre-draft process. Teams weren’t fully expecting him to slide in the 2024 draft, and the Thunder scooped him up at No. 12.

Despite his talent level, Topic has seen a run of bad luck at the professional level. He suffered the knee injury, was diagnosed with testicular cancer — which he eventually made his return from — and underwent a back surgery last offseason. He’s played in just 10 games in three seasons, averaging 5.2 points and 4.4 assists in just 16.0 minutes per.

Sorber despite being drafted one season later, has seen a similar career trajectory so far. Taken at No. 15, Sorber was also drafted having already suffered an injury, missing out on the second half of his freshman season with Georgetown due to a foot injury. Once with OKC, Sorber then suffered an ACL injury prior to his debut season, and underwent a scope last offseason that’s kept him out of the 2026-27 season so far.

Still, Sorber has more runway, playing at a position of need for Oklahoma City while potentially still being able to fit into the NBA from an athletic standpoint.

Topic will now enter unrestricted free agency at the end of the season, meaning he’s free to sign with whatever suitors. That could still be Oklahoma City, if the two can agree on a more cost-effective deal, though there’s a chance teams league-wide could value Topic as a formerly high-ranked prospect with plenty to add in the ways of play-making. If that’s the case, OKC will be able to re-allocate the money saved from this move for the rest of its roster.

In terms of the future, OKC has now locked down one bonafide contributor, signed a project forward on for one more season, and cleared up money that can be re-allocated as needed. It won't affect much in the short-term, but does seem to be the correct decisions across the board given with the Thunder are currently at.