How Long Will Chet Holmgren Be Out? Thunder Star Gets Heartbreaking Injury Update Amid Roster Woes

Chet Holmgren faces an uncertain absence as the Thunder deal with mounting injury concerns.© Instagram/ chet_holmgren

Chet Holmgren will miss eight to 10 weeks after the Oklahoma City Thunder confirmed a small patellar tendon tear in his right knee on Friday. The 7-footer had a “biological treatment” that day and is expected to make a full recovery. He will sit out a third straight game Saturday in Houston. The Thunder are 4-1, but the roster around him is thinning fast. Jalen Williams and Cason Wallace were hurt in the Oct. 25 win over the Clippers, the same night Holmgren first felt the knee flare up. Three starters are now out at once.

How Long Will Chet Holmgren Be Out With The Knee Injury?

Chet Holmgren felt mild discomfort in the knee after that Clippers game, and the team sent him to a series of specialists. The decision was a biological treatment on Friday to address what the Thunder called a “small” tear. Shams Charania was first to report the timeline.

“Oklahoma City Thunder's Chet Holmgren underwent treatment Friday to address a small patellar tendon tear and is expected to return to play in 8-to-10 weeks,” Charania wrote on X.

Counting from Friday, the return date lands around Christmas or early January.

The injury is a familiar story for the former No. 2 pick. A broken foot cost the 7-foot forward his entire 2022-23 rookie year. A fractured pelvis in November 2024 sidelined him for a few months, though he got back in time to play a big part in the 2025 title run. Last season, Holmgren averaged 17.1 points, 8.9 rebounds and 1.9 blocks and earned first-team All-Defensive and third-team All-NBA honors.

This season's sample is small but useful. In three games, he put up 12 points, 9.3 rebounds and three blocks in about 30 minutes a night.

Who Is Left On The Thunder Roster Right Now?

Holmgren is the third Thunder starter to go down in a week. Williams fractured his left fibula and dislocated his left ankle against the Clippers and had surgery Wednesday. Wallace tore the labrum in his left shoulder in the same game and had surgery Friday. Both will be re-evaluated before the regular season ends.

The injury list is longer than three names. Alex Caruso is out with a right ankle sprain. Nikola Topic is out after back surgery, and Thomas Sorber after right knee surgery. All six players are listed as out for Saturday's 7:30 p.m. CT game against the Rockets.

Only Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Isaiah Hartenstein are left from the season-opening starting five. Oklahoma City signed free agent guard Ochai Agbaji to fill a roster spot and is eligible for a hardship exception. Jared McCain, Ajay Mitchell and Kenrich Williams could see bigger roles in the coming weeks.

A 4-1 record says plenty about the depth the front office has built. Holmgren's absence is the first real test of how far it goes, and Houston on Saturday is the first look.