Branden Carlson
Branden Carlson is an American professional basketball player for the Oklahoma City Thunder of the National Basketball Association, on a two-way contract with the Oklahoma City Blue of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the Utah Utes.
Early life and high school career
Carlson grew up in South Jordan, Utah and attended Bingham High School. carlsen was a consensus four star recruit. He committed to play college basketball at Utah over offers from UCLA, Stanford, BYU, UNLV, Utah State, UC Davis, Santa Clara, and Weber State.College career
After serving a two-year mission for the [Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints], Carlson enrolled at Utah before the start of the 2019–2020 season. Carlson played in 30 games with 29 starts during his freshman season and averaged 7.0 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks per game. He averaged 9.4 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 1.7 blocks as a sophomore. Carlson averaged 13.6 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 1.6 blocks and was named second-team All-Pac-12 Conference men's [basketball">List of All-Pac-12 Conference men's basketball teams">All-Pac-12 Conference men's [basketball teams|All-Pac-12 Conference] as a junior. He averaged 16.4 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 2.0 blocks per game as a senior and was named first-team All-Pac-12. Carlson considered entering the 2023 NBA draft, but ultimately decided to utilize the extra year of eligibility granted to college athletes who played in the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic and return to Utah for a fifth season. In his final year, he averaged 17.0 points, 6.6 rebounds, 1.6 assists, and 1.5 blocks per game, and made the First-team All-Pac-12 for the second time. Carlson became the all-time blocks leader for Utah during a home loss to 2023–24 [Arizona State Sun Devils men's basketball team|Arizona State], eventually finishing the season with 241 blocks. In that year's NIT, Carlson averaged 16.8 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.8 blocks over four tournament games, with Utah eventually falling in the semifinals to 2023–24 [Indiana State Sycamores men's basketball team|Indiana State].Professional career
Raptors 905 (2024)
After going undrafted in the 2024 NBA draft, Carlson signed a two-way contract with the Toronto Raptors on July 4, 2024, joining former Ute Jakob Pöltl. However, he was waived on October 19, 2024. On October 28, he joined Raptors 905. Carlson played four preseason games with the Raptors, averaging 5.3 minutes per game. He recorded 1.8 points, 1.3 rebounds, and 0.5 assists per game.Oklahoma City Thunder / Blue (2024–present)
On November 16, 2024, after the injuries of Isaiah Hartenstein, Chet Holmgren, and Jaylin Williams, Carlson signed with the Oklahoma City Thunder. Throughout his rookie season, he was assigned several times to the Oklahoma City Blue. On January 7, 2025, he was waived by the Thunder. Three days later, he signed a 10-day contract with the Thunder. Against the Cleveland Cavaliers season|Cleveland Cavaliers] on January 16, Carlson recorded 11 points and 4 rebounds, making 3 three-pointers off the bench in a blowout win. On January 22, he signed another 10-day contract with the Thunder. On February 6, he signed a two-way contract with the Thunder and the Blue. In Oklahoma City's final regular season game against the New Orleans Pelicans season|New Orleans Pelicans], Carlson recorded a season-high 26 points, 10 rebounds, and 3 blocks in a double-digit win. Carlson finished his rookie season an NBA champion when the Thunder defeated the Indiana Pacers in seven games in the 2025 NBA Finals.On July 8, 2025, Carlson re-signed with Oklahoma City on a two-way contract.
Personal life
Carlson is a member of The [Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]. He served a two-year mission for the church in Manchester, England.Carlson married Maddy Woolf in the summer of 2020. His father, Bryan Carlson, played basketball at Chico State, and his brother, Devin Carlson, plays forward for Salt Lake Community College's basketball team.