The Oklahoma City Thunder should give Aday Mara meaningful minutes against Nikola Jokić on Thursday night, even if the rookie struggles. That might sound unnecessarily harsh after Mara’s encouraging NBA debut. The 7-foot-3 center scored seven points in 12 minutes during Oklahoma City’s 116-104 victory over San Antonio. He also produced the moment everyone will remember, blocking Victor Wembanyama’s alley-oop attempt near the rim.
Mara passed his first challenge. His reward should be receiving a much harder one.
Jokić is unlike any center Mara faced during college or preseason. He manipulates defensive positioning, punishes late rotations and turns small mistakes into open shots before inexperienced defenders understand what happened. There is a chance Mara looks overwhelmed during portions of this matchup. That is exactly why Mark Daigneault should play him.
Oklahoma City did not select Mara with the 12th overall pick simply to protect him from uncomfortable situations. The Thunder drafted him because his size, passing and developing skill set could eventually provide something their championship roster lacked. Reaching that ceiling requires experience against opponents capable of exposing every weakness.
Nobody should expect Mara to stop Jokić. Isaiah Hartenstein and Chet Holmgren will receive the primary responsibility, while Oklahoma City will likely use multiple coverages to prevent Denver’s offense from becoming predictable. However, giving Mara several honest minutes would show the rookie where his conditioning, positioning and decision-making must improve.
Those lessons could become more valuable than another efficient box score. The Thunder are talented enough to survive developmental possessions during the regular season. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Holmgren can erase plenty of rookie mistakes, particularly when Oklahoma City surrounds Mara with experienced defenders. That luxury should be used to accelerate his growth rather than hide his limitations.
Mara’s debut against Wembanyama showed that he is not afraid of elite size. Thursday can determine how he responds to elite intelligence.
There will be nights when Mara loses defensive assignments, commits avoidable fouls or makes the wrong read. Those mistakes should not immediately return him to the end of the bench. They should become film that Oklahoma City can use to prepare him for meaningful playoff basketball.
The Thunder already know Hartenstein and Holmgren can help them win now. Mara represents a possible answer to what this team may need later.
Letting him succeed against ordinary competition would build confidence. Letting him struggle against Jokić could build an NBA center.