Aaron Wiggins’ Game is Reaching New Heights for OKC Thunder

Aaron Wiggins has always been a productive member of the Oklahoma City Thunder. Even during the days where the Thunder lost many more games than they won, Wiggins was always a bright spot. 

Even into the 2022-23 play-in season and beyond, it felt like Oklahoma City would always throw out different lineups with young prospects simply because they knew what they had with Wiggins. They knew he was a rock solid player.

Now, his production simply can’t be ignored. As Oklahoma City has risen through the ranks, Wiggins has worked on his craft to make sure he never falls out of the rotation again. And it’s starting to reach new heights. Instead of just being a rock solid contributor off the bench, or even a knockdown 3-point shooters, or even a fill-in starter… Wiggins is looking like a player talented enough to be a second option.

That’s not necessarily to say Wiggins is Oklahoma City’s No. 2 scoring option right now, that spot belongs to Jalen Williams in the stat-book. But Wiggins has risen to a level where he’s scoring at an unbelievable level, and not to mention, his production is happening on one of the best NBA teams in recent memory. It’s not empty stats whatsoever.

Since February 1st, Wiggins is averaging 18.5 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists. He has a true shooting percentage of 65.2%. He’s also shooting 46% from behind the 3-point line and has been Oklahoma City’s most reliable outside shooter.

On a bad team, where Wiggins could have free rein over the offense, his numbers could honestly look like a less efficient version of this 17-game sample size. It’s starting to look like this is who he is as a player.

The good thing about Oklahoma City this season, is that the second option tends to be a game by game thing. Chet Holmgren, Williams, Wiggins, and a handful of others have had massive individual performances this season. 

But all in all, Wiggins is rising to a different category as a player. His ceiling is no longer a reliable bench piece. He’ll have a chance to prove it on the biggest stage, too.