Although the Oklahoma City Thunder lost to the Detroit Pistons last night, it’s hard not to be impressed with their resiliency of late.
Despite being down essentially five of their six best players, and losing Isaiah Joe and Branden Carlson mid-way through the game, the Thunder put up a strong fight against one of the most formidable teams in the league.
Obviously Jaylin Williams, who posted a career-high 30 points and sunk 5 of his 10 attempts from 3-point range, was the headline of the game. But another strong performance from Cason Wallace put a punctuation mark on an impressive month for the third-year guard.
With Wallace becoming extension-eligible this offseason, every impressive outing has major implications for the Thunder’s financial future.
Wallace’s recent play, moreover, has drawn a tantalizing comparison to championship guard Jrue Holiday. When you think about it, it’s hard not to see the parallels, leaving Oklahoma City no choice but to bring Wallace back no matter how much he inflates his value over the remainder of the season.
Cason Wallace has all the makings of the Thunder’s next championship player
In Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Ajay Mitchell’s absence, Wallace has stepped up as one of Oklahoma City’s primary ball-handlers, flashing his offensive value in a way that has gone underrated through much of his career. Over his last 11 games he’s averaged 4.9 assists, highlighted by his 10-assist performance against the Cleveland Cavaliers over the weekend.
The Holiday parallels don’t stop at just his playmaking, however. According to Jason Timpf on the recent episode of The All-NBA Podcast, there is a number of reasons to draw comparisons between the two players.
“Cason Wallace is that next guy in line… He’s got a lot of that Jrue Holiday-esque; plays a lot bigger than he is, can work in the mid-range, has great touch from a lot of different spots on the floor.”
Jason Timpf
On the offensive end, Wallace plays with physicality, getting low to the floor and using his core strength to turn the corner on his defender. This routinely opens up driving lanes and passing opportunities for the Thunder.
On the defensive end, his capabilities on-ball and his disruptive abilities in passing lanes are the highlights of his skill-set. If Wallace continues to develop as a two-way player, he could truly enter star territory in the near future.
Fans of the NBA will remember how important Holiday was to the Boston Celtics’ 2024 championship run. He gave them an exceedingly capable point-of-attack defender in addition to a dynamic ball-handler to fill out their offense.
Wallace’s next deal could fall close to $30 million annually. With Chet Holmgren’s and Jalen Williams’ extensions kicking in this offseason, that will be a tough pill to swallow for the Thunder. But Timpf’s comparison is just the latest reminder of how important Wallace can be for the Thunder, especially as they continue to cycle out their role players over the next few seasons.