After finishing his pregame warmups, Ousmane Dieng casually walked to the Thunder’s side of the court. Typically, NBA players hate to be interrupted so close to the start of a game. After all, they are creatures of habit. Chet Holmgren has no problem breaking out of his routine when practicing his wrist moves.
Dion tapped Holmgren. Soon after, he did the same thing to Ludot. Then there are Thunder assistants David Akinyooye and Kam Woods. The 21-year-old even went around the perimeter of the court to shake hands with ball boys.
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Just one week after being traded, Dieng returned to his first home in the NBA. He enjoyed sweet revenge when the Oklahoma City Thunder lost 110-93 to the Milwaukee Bucks in the All-Star Game.
Dieng leads the way in a shorthanded game with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Giannis Antetokounmpo sidelined with injuries. He had 19 points, 11 rebounds, 6 assists and 4 blocks. He made 3 of 6 three-pointers.
As the Bucks endured a miserable season with Antetokounmpo trade rumors poisoning the locker room, Dieng’s arrival quickly lifted spirits. The 22-year-old took advantage of his first consistent playing time in four seasons.
As part of the NBA trade deadline circus, Dieng was moved multiple times. First, the Thunder traded him to the Charlotte Hornets for a salary cut. He was subsequently included in a package included in the Coby White trade. Eventually, he was transferred to Milwaukee to provide some fresh energy to a team hungry for youth.
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Before Dieng enjoyed the experience against his old club, he spoke of the chaos of the past week, which feels like it’s been a year.
NBA trade deadline Paloosa
“It’s crazy. A lot of travel. I was in San Antonio. I got traded to the Hornets,” Dieng told The Thunder. “I was in the room for four hours and then went to Chicago when the trade happened. I was supposed to play in Toronto with Chicago.”
I don’t think anyone would be surprised that Dieng was traded. As he entered the 2025-26 regular season without an extension, the writing was on the wall. With his $6.7 million salary expiring, he had a hunch a move was inevitable — both because he recognized a pattern of behavior from Sam Presti over the years and because he had transparent conversations with the Thunder general manager.
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“I knew it was possible,” Dieng said. “Sam called me before he was traded to Charlotte.”
Dieng bids farewell to Thunder
While it makes sense for Dieng to move to Milwaukee from a basketball perspective, it’s hard not to get emotional when the trade happens. After all, he spent more than three seasons with the Thunder. They were so taken with his intangibles that they traded a bunch of first-round picks to sign him with the No. 11 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft.
Unfortunately, Dieng proved to be a textbook example of joining an NBA team at the wrong time. The Thunder quickly went from rebuilding to NBA championship in three years. This puts the development project in an awkward position, unable to learn on the job like the likes of Aleksej Pokusevski and Theo Maledon.
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“Obviously, I’m a little sad. Having spent four years with these guys. Obviously a little sad, but at the same time, I’m excited to get a new opportunity,” Dieng said. “(Mark Daigneault) thanked me and I thanked him for the four years.”
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Dieng’s quick thunder return took a backseat. The story of the night — the entire NBA on the eve of the All-Star break — was Nikola talk. He finally made his debut after a three-month battle with testicular cancer. The 20-year-old completed three rounds of chemotherapy to get to this point.
The Thunder added to the conversation with the 12th overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft. He missed the 2024-25 season with a torn ACL. After playing in several summer league and preseason games, the 20-year-old’s basketball ambitions took a back seat when he was diagnosed with testicular cancer in October 2025.
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From there, he slowly checked a few boxes, eventually recording an NBA stat. He was dominant in two G-League games last week. That was enough to get him activated for the first time since joining the Thunder. Dieng was happy to see his old teammate finally overcome so much and suit up.
“It was great to see him play. Watched a little bit of the D-League game three days ago,” Dieng said. “The last two years have been hard for him. He’s a really great guy. So I’m really happy for him.”
This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Exclusive: Ousmane Dieng reflects on chaotic NBA trade deadline
