Former Alabama forward scores his first NBA basket for the Thunder

After playing in 124 games at Alabama, Alex Reese took a year off from basketball. After working as a bartender and a furniture mover, he returned to the game in the 2022-23 season, and on Sunday night, the former Pelham High School standout made his only shot in his NBA debut.

“It was a dream come true, honestly,” Reese said. “Never thought I would be here. Shoutout to Duke for the pass. That was a pass.”

Reese put in a layup off an offensive rebound with 1:03 to play in the Oklahoma City Thunder’s 128-104 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday night at Paycom Center in OKC.

In search of his first NBA points, fellow rookie Alex Ducas overshot the basket on a 3-pointer from the corner. But Reese was on the spot for the putback.

After the contest, Thunder All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander made sure to get the game ball for Reese, and after scoring 20 points, Oklahoma City guard Jalen Williams brought Reese to his press conference so he could talk about his first NBA bucket.

Reese did not play in the Thunder’s first two games this season and was on the court for the final 1:53 against the Hawks.

Reese averaged 6.1 points and 3.3 rebounds at Alabama. He returned from his year out of basketball by averaging 23.7 points in the Luxembourg Basketball League in the 2022-23 campaign.

A 6-foot-9 forward, Reese averaged 11.5 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.2 blocked shots in 43 games with the Rip City Remix of the NBA Gatorade League last season. He then averaged 7.6 points per game playing for the Portland Trail Blazers’ entry in the NBA 2K25 Summer League in Las Vegas in July.

Signed by the Thunder for training camp, Reese had seven points, six rebounds, three assists, one steal and one blocked shot in three preseason games when Oklahoma City waived him on Oct. 16.

Three days later, the Thunder signed Reese again. Oklahoma City did a U-turn when 7-footer Isaiah Hartenstein fractured his left hand. The Thunder signed Hartenstein to a three-year, $87 million contract as a free agent this summer after he averaged 7.8 points, 8.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.1 blocks for the New York Knicks last season.