Overview
- The rookie produced 12 points, nine rebounds, three assists and three blocks in 18 minutes while going 5-for-5 from the field in Oklahoma City's preseason game Tuesday.
- Head coach Mark Daigneault said Mara made marked progress from summer league to training camp and credited his conditioning, mobility, size and rim protection for the early impact.
- Mara started with a lineup of bench and younger players while many regulars were rested, and he registered those numbers against a New Orleans squad that featured NBA talent such as Zion Williamson.
- The performance has driven strong fan and media reaction and raised questions about how Mara might match up with elite centers like Victor Wembanyama, but analysts caution one preseason game is a limited sample.
- A 2026 first-round pick out of Michigan with experience playing for Spain, Mara now gives the Thunder an additional large rim protector to test in camp and early-season rotations behind Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein.