Dec. 24—Following a strong finish to his rookie season, expectations were skyhigh for Tre Mann entering this year.

In his final 24 games last season, the Oklahoma City Thunder guard averaged 15.3 points and shot 35.8 percent from three on nearly seven attempts. The impressive run was highlighted by a 35-point performance against the eventual Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics.

However, nine months after a career night against the Celtics, Mann was assigned to the Thunder’s G League team, the Oklahoma City Blue, last week.

Why? He hasn’t had the same opportunities this season compared to the end of last year.

By April of last season, it felt like Mann finally gained a rhythm in the NBA. Possessions opened up for Mann following injuries to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Josh Giddey post-All-Star break that saw the duo barely play.

With neither of them on the floor for most of the second half of the season, Mann’s role increased significantly, which resulted in him getting a lot more shot attempts to gain confidence and a rhythm.

With both Gilgeous-Alexander and Giddey being relatively healthy this season, along with the addition of Jalen Williams and Isaiah Joe, Mann’s opportunities have drastically reduced.

Just take a look at the numbers.

In October, Mann averaged 27.3 minutes and 13.2 shot attempts per game. In November, that decreased to 20.5 minutes and 8.2. In December, that reduced even further to just 13.4 minutes and 5.8 shots.

After the Thunder’s win over the Memphis Grizzlies this past Saturday, the team assigned him to the Blue in hopes that playing more minutes against inferior talent would be a confidence booster for Mann.

“Looking forward to it. I’m ready to go to the Blue,” Mann said after the game. “Compete, get better, just grow. That’s my mindset.”

It looks like the move paid off well. In two games at the G League’s Winter Showcase in Las Vegas, Nevada, Mann totaled 75 points on 25-of-44 (56.8 percent) shooting. From outside, Mann shot 13-of-24 (54.2 percent) on 3s. Mann was named to the All-Showcase team and was recalled from the Blue on Friday.

It’s easy to view G League assignments as a demotion. But the Thunder have done an excellent job at easing the transition by using the Blue as a development program.

The franchise prides itself in running the same systems and playing in similar ways with both the Thunder and Blue. The organization has spent the last couple of seasons building synergy between both teams as a way to make call-ups and call-downs as seamless as possible.

Of the 17 players currently on the Thunder roster, nine spent a considerable amount of time with the Blue at some point in their careers.

The biggest examples are Lu Dort and Aleksej Pokusevski. Both spent significant time in the infant stages of their NBA careers playing in the G League. After working through that, they are now two key rotation pieces for the Thunder with one being awarded a massive extension and the other heading down that road.

Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault believes Mann is a rhythm player, and it’s hard for players like Mann to find a rhythm with inconsistent minutes. His stint with the Blue appeared to help, as Mann was called back up to the Thunder prior to Friday’s game against New Orleans, scoring nine points on 3-of-5 shooting from the 3-point line in 14 minutes.

With how he played in the 2022 Winter Showcase, it looks like Mann has gained a rhythm. The Thunder now hopes it translates over to the NBA.

“I’ve made this mistake with him — I think if you coach him too hard to shoot every ball, he’s shooting out of compliance instead of out of rhythm,” Daigneault said prior to Mann’s G League assignment. “I think you’ve got to give him space a little bit to shoot when he’s in rhythm and to keep a play moving when he’s not. He’s obviously really good when he’s in rhythm and us giving him space to do that is important. It’s what gives us the best version of him.”