Second tenant announced for new Northwestern's Ryan Field
On June 30, Oklahoma City general manager Sam Presti introduced Brooks Barnhizer as the newest member of the Thunder. That came with an admission.
When Presti spoke about Barnhizer, he originally said he had made a trip to Northwestern to scout another player. Barnhizer stole the show.
"Within the game, I found myself watching him more than the person I was supposed to be watching," Presti said in a press conference on June 30. "We put his name down, and made sure we kept tabs on him from that point on."
The Thunder brought it all full circle in the 2025 NBA Draft when they selected Barnhizer No. 44 overall. Now, he's joining the team that won an NBA title just a few weeks ago as the first Wildcat to be selected in the NBA Draft since 1999 when Evan Eschmeyer was selected with the 34th pick by the New Jersey Nets.
On paper, of course Barnhizer would be ecstatic about joining the Thunder. But he sees the Thunder as a perfect fit.
Big picture view:
Barnhizer, a Lafayette, Indiana, native, could only watch as the Thunder bounced his home-state Pacers in the Finals. What makes OKC a special team is what won them a championship.
The reigning NBA Champions made their way to the mountain top on the heels of player development, with no example better than NBA MVP and NBA Finals MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. This stood out to Barnhizer, and the Thunder reinforced that in their conversations with the Northwestern star.
"They have a good track record of guys like me being successful," Barnhizer said. "They draft people and develop players after that. That’s what they really saw in me."
What the Thunder saw was a player who bided his time in Evanston until he earned a starting spot in his junior year. Barnhizer was a key contributor to an NCAA Tournament team in the 2022-2023 season and was a major catalyst in helping the 'Cats earn a program-first consecutive NCAA Tournament berth in the 2023-2024 season.
In his first year as a starter, Barnhizer scored just over 14.6 points per game, but established himself as a two-way player by recording 7.5 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.8 steals in 36.7 minutes per game.
Although his final season at Northwestern was cut short with a foot injury, he upped his averages to 17.1 points, 8.8 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 2.3 steals and 1.1 blocks per game. Even as he missed the second half of his final season, Barnhizer said there was a silver lining to that missed time. It allowed him to heal completely, and it also stoked a competitive fire in him as he longed to just get back on the court.
"I hadn’t played in a long time, I was really eager to get back out there," he said. "Every time I get to go into these workouts, I can really compete."
He also said sitting and watching from the sidelines changed helped him understand how to affect the game from off the court. In Oklahoma City, he can hone in on what he considers to be the key parts of his game: his defense, his skills as a teammate and his ability to show up defensively with steals, blocks and rebounds/
The Thunder noted this in pre-draft meetings and led to their trust in him.
"This is a really great place to be who I am," Barnhizer said.
EVANSTON, ILLINOIS - JANUARY 22: Brooks Barnhizer #13 of the Northwestern Wildcats celebrates against the Indiana Hoosiers during the first half at Welsh-Ryan Arena on January 22, 2025 in Evanston, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
What's next:
Barnhizer said the Thunder stressed there are no real expectations heading into the summer.
Oklahoma City just wants Barnhizer to play in the NBA Summer League and have fun. Summer League only happens once or twice for a player, so going out and building rapport with the coaching staff is the best way to start.
Barnhizer has a head start when building chemistry, too. He had four years of lessons in how to factor in as a teammate in Evanston.
"There's no better place than Northwestern to go in terms of that chemistry," Barnhizer said.
If this past NBA season proved anything, it's there will always be a need for 3-and-D players like Barnhizer. Alex Caruso, who NU head coach Chris Collins compared Barnhizer to on Chicago sports radio this week, joined the Thunder and helped them win their title.
Once Barnhizer gets out of Summer League, he'll have a full developmental schedule in the Thunder's training camp. He'll be ready for it because of what he was able to do at Northwestern: be patient and learn.
"That’s my second home," Barnhizer said.
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