OKC Thunder’s Cason Wallace Proving His Status as a Playoff Riser

Oklahoma City entered uncharted territory on Sunday afternoon, as this new-era Thunder squad embarked on its first Game 7 opportunity. The stakes were high and the lights were bright, taking on a former MVP in Nikola Jokic and his championship-winning squad.

The Thunder answered the call, calming any concerns surrounding this team’s youth and inexperience. Oklahoma City looked like a historically good team from the second quarter on, which is what we’ve come to expect from this squad. Despite a few rough stretches throughout the series, the data from the regular season stood tall — this team was built to last. 

Games, and moments, like Sunday afternoon are needed for the Thunder to see what they have in certain players, too. The immediate reaction is that Cason Wallace is one of those players.

All series long, Wallace was thrown into the fire, guarding an All-Star caliber player in Jamal Murray and switching onto Denver’s massive bigs. He continued to come up big time and time again, but his biggest moments came on the biggest stage. Wallace was a shining star during Game 7, and gave Oklahoma City the edge while cementing himself as a playoff riser.

Wallace got a playoff-high 29 minutes and Oklahoma City benefitted from every single second. Although he went 3-of-10 from the floor, Wallace was a +38 on the floor. He totaled seven points, five assists, three rebounds, and two steals. The second-year guard did it all for this squad, and helped inspire a massive second half run. 

After another rock solid defensive possession, Wallace caught the ball in transition and delivered a left-handed sledgehammer over Nikola Jokic that brought the house down. His highlight slam ended up being one of Oklahoma City’s most impactful plays of the series.

Even when his shot wasn’t falling, it felt like Wallace was always doing something good on the floor. He is the perfect role player for a team with championship aspirations, and his skillset was on full display Sunday afternoon. He has quite the mentor in Alex Caruso, too.

Wallace’s heroics were much needed on Sunday, but it doesn’t get any easier from here. His ability to be a playoff riser must extend to the Western Conference Finals now.