
The Oklahoma City Thunder are in the middle of one of their most injury-riddled stretches of the season. Against the San Antonio Spurs, 10 names were present on the injury report.
Those 10 names included multiple key players who have to deal with multi-game issues. Superstar Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, star Jalen Williams and Rising Star Ajay Mitchell have missed and will miss more time with their injuries.
Especially with Gilgeous-Alexander being sidelined through the All-Star break, production from other sources will be crucial for the Thunder to continue their success. Against the Spurs, Thunder wing Aaron Wiggins played great as the first option for his shorthanded team.
Oklahoma City called on Wiggins to take the duties in the team's clutch-time loss and the Maryland product responded to the task. He scored 20 points on 7-for-14 shooting and added four rebounds, six assists and five steals to his totals.
Wiggins knocked down four triples on seven attempts, spreading the floor on offense. On defense, the wing took matchups with poise, defending physically throughout the night.
The Thunder will need Wiggins to continue to step up in a big way on offense for the remainder of this stretch without multiple key players. Last season, he stepped up around this time of the season as well.
In Feb. 2025, Wiggins dominated, averaging 18.7 points per game while shooting a fiery 45.1% from three-point range. He added 5.4 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game to his averages, with a true shooting percentage of 66.7%.
On Feb 1, 2025, Wiggins scored a career-high 41 points against the Sacramento Kings, setting the way for him to continue to put up solid offensive performances throughout the month, proving that he has the talent to lead an offense. Looking back on his February performances a year ago is important, as the Thunder will look to count on him to take some of the load that Gilgeous-Alexander's absence leaves open.
Wiggins, throughout his career, has been a talented offensive player with and without the ball in his hands, but when his creation skills pop out on the ball, the Thunder's offense opens up. To garner consistent offense without a top-two scorer in the league, Wiggins will have to ramp up his on-ball scoring.
With four games remaining before the All-Star break, the Thunder have difficult matchups against three 30-plus-win teams. To continue to rack up wins, Wiggins needs to step up on the offensive end.
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