The Oklahoma City Thunder declined to pick up the $7.4 million option on 2024 lottery pick Nikola Topic for next season, making him a pending unrestricted free agent.
The Thunder also picked up options on the contracts of Jared McCain and Thomas Sorber.
Topic, the 12th pick in the 2024 NBA draft, has appeared in only 10 games for Oklahoma City over the past three seasons. He is still recovering from back surgery he underwent this summer and has no timetable to return.
A Difficult Path to the Court
Topic missed his entire rookie season because of a knee injury he suffered before he was drafted. He then missed a large chunk of last season after receiving a testicular cancer diagnosis during the preseason.
He had a procedure to address the cancer in October 2025, then underwent chemotherapy and worked his way back into shape. He made his NBA debut on Feb. 12 and appeared in 10 games.