Thunder Head Coach Mark Diagneault announced to the media on Tuesday that guards Ty Jerome and Theo Maledon will not be available for tomorrow’s game vs. the Rockets, in Houston.
For Maledon, he has received an “excused absence for personal reasons.” Maledon was one of the teams biggest bright spots in the preseason, dropping averages of 15.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 2.0 assists in his two preseason games.
For Ty Jerome, he did not appear in any of the teams three preseason games. Jerome, the 6’5″ point guard out of Virginia, was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the package that sent Chris Paul to the Phoenix Suns.
With PG/SG Frank Jackson being waived on Monday, the expectation for both Maledon and Jerome is that they will receive immediate minutes once they return back to the active lineup.
For Wednesday’s game, the Thunder will be running a razor-thin lineup at the point guard position, with only Shae Gilgeous-Alexander and George Hill being active at the position. Expect to see players such as Darius Bazley take on ball-handling duties during the course of the game.