Thunder Roll Out Bizarre Starting Five Around SGA for Monday Night

The Oklahoma City Thunder are rolling out a starting five on Monday that looks like it was pulled out of a random name generator, but you cannot argue with the results. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jared McCain, Davion Mitchell, Kenrich Williams, and Isaiah Hartenstein are getting the nod against the Phoenix Suns.

If you are holding tickets on Thunder player props, it is time to adjust your math. This is the kind of lineup announcement that sends fantasy managers scrambling to the waiver wire and makes oddsmakers sweat over usage rates.

"Underdog NBA reported the starting lineup of Gilgeous-Alexander, McCain, Mitchell, Williams, and Hartenstein."

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the only normal part of this equation. Since Chet Holmgren went down with an injury, SGA has been operating on a different planet, dropping 33.3 points and six assists a night while dragging Oklahoma City to a 16-4 record in that 20-game stretch. He is basically carrying the offense like a guy trying to bring all the groceries inside in one trip.

Then you have the supporting cast. Jared McCain is stepping into the starting unit after a rocky injury history that included a recent thumb setback and a knee issue that derailed his rookie campaign. Meanwhile, Davion Mitchell is somehow in this mix, which is wild considering he was just logging heavy minutes and a 22-point double-double for the Miami Heat a couple of days ago before apparently teleporting to the Thunder roster.

Throw in Kenrich Williams and Isaiah Hartenstein to do the dirty work, and you have a starting five that feels less like a cohesive basketball unit and more like a group of guys who just met at a YMCA open gym. But when you have an MVP candidate running the show, the other four guys just need to hit open shots and play defense.

Oklahoma City hosts the Phoenix Suns on Monday night, and all eyes will be on how this patchwork group holds up. If McCain can find his stroke and Mitchell brings his usual point-of-attack pressure, the Thunder might just keep this bizarre train rolling right through the Western Conference.