What to watch for in Chet Holmgren's matchup against Nikola Jokic

Although Chet Holmgren began his rookie season under close scrutiny and high expectations, he responded to that pressure with an impeccable debut season despite returning from injury and being thrust onto a team with rebounding problems. He was the one who took the blame when the rebounding disadvantage became large and impacted the team's success.

So the Thunder picked up Isaiah Hartenstein in the offseason to ease that burden and more, leaving Holmgren and the duo to handle some of that pressure. But Hartenstein's broken left hand in the preseason has resulted in the roster essentially being rebuilt are at levels from a year ago in terms of the number of big players they can beat down low – the number is back to one, and it's Holmgren.

The season opener against the Nuggets will show what strength Holmgren can develop as a rebounder, how he sets the perspectives and simply knows where he has to be and where he doesn't have to be.

In four games against the Nuggets a year ago, Holmgren's 19.5 points, 8.5 boards and 3.8 blocks while shooting 56.9% from the field told a story. This rookie should be a force down the line, and now in his second season, he will be hungry and ready to mentally match the MVP level of Jokic. He might not make it in the stats or physical battle, but mentally you could bet his confidence is there heading into his second season in the league.

Against Hartenstein, Holmgren must hold the fort and overcome a duo of Jokic and Aaron Gordon in depth, a difficult task on the first night of the season in Oklahoma City.