Moving to the left corner, Payton Sandfort can finally cross off a huge bucket-list item. Aaron Wiggins found the two-way rookie for the momentumal moment. He knocked down the outside jumper to secure his first NBA points.

The Oklahoma City Thunder helped out the Brooklyn Nets’ lottery odds with a 121-92 win. They led by as many as 42 points. The reigning NBA champions limited the rebuilding squad to an eye-popping 24 points in the first half. That allowed the second half to be skippable.

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Added to a two-way deal on Mar. 2, Sandfort finally had the chance to play some meaningful NBA minutes. It was quite the journey for him to reach that point. He played four collegiate seasons at Iowa from 2021-25. He went undrafted this past summer.

Despite being signed by the Thunder as an undrafted free agent, it would take another six months before he could suit up. He had double shoulder surgery in the offseason to repair a torn labrum. That sidelined him for all of the 2025 Summer League and preseason.

After playing a handful of games with the G League’s OKC Blue, the Thunder added Sandfort with their last two-way spot. A couple of weeks later, he scored his first NBA bucket. Wiggins was pumped to be the guy who fed him the bucket. He can relate to him as he started in OKC on a two-way deal, as well.

“That was awesome, man. I’ve been talking to him in and out of practices, at games, on the bench. Just telling him that it’s going to come,” Wiggins said. “We’ve had some games where we had leads and they got shrunk. He’s waited for that opportunity. I just told him that it’s going to happen. Stay with it. Be ready to go. I was happy to be the guy he assisted.”

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Sandfort went home with a memento. The Thunder ensured he was gifted the game ball. Afterward, he continued OKC’s tradition of a postgame bark — something every newbie has done over the years.

If all that wasn’t enough, Sandfort darted back on a flight to get to OKC. Fate had his younger brother, Pryce, at Paycom Center — the Thunder’s home gym. On Thursday afternoon, he scored 23 points to lead Nebraska to its first March Madness win in program history over Troy.

In the stands was Sandfort. He surprised his little brother with his appearance. The Thunder two-way rookie talked to Hurrdat Sports about his adventurous 18 hours to go from Brooklyn back to OKC — with a few events in between.

“We were at a team dinner until 1 a.m. and then had a 3 a.m. taxi. Took a flight at 6 a.m. and here I am,” Sandfort said. “It worked out. I’m happy I could be here.”

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The NBA schedule-makers did Sandfort a solid, as well. The Thunder are amid another two-day break on a season-long five-game road trip. They’re set to play the Washington Wizards on Saturday. The basketball stars really aligned for all of this to happen.

“It was awesome. Last night was pretty special. Just the way all of the guys have treated me. Now being able to be here,” Sandfort said. “Hopefully just a special 24 hours.”

This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Payton Sandfort recounts wild 18 hours from first NBA points to March Madness