One of Oklahoma City’s top artists is back, and his return comes at the perfect time.
On Sunday night, the Thunder won 123-115 in Portland against the only team to beat them 20-1 this season. As one of only a few teams in league history to get off to such a strong start to the season, the Thunder have done nothing wrong for them so far.
While Jalen Williams’ return stole all the headlines on Friday night, the Thunder also got Aaron Wiggins back for Sunday’s matchup against the Blazers, his first action since the Thunder’s loss to Portland in early November.
Wiggins appeared to be hitting his stride, scoring a season-high 27 points in that loss, before an adductor strain kept him out for the next 11 contests. While the Thunder didn’t make a difference without Wiggins on the field, his presence will certainly be felt on Tuesday night when the Thunder face the Golden State Warriors.
With Lou Dort, Isaiah Hartenstein and Alex Caruso sidelined for the West Coast matchup, Wiggins could be an obvious candidate to secure a spot in the starting five and get back to his normal ways. After being out of action for a few weeks, it makes sense for Wiggins to be rusty and trying to get back into game shape, but he could also be ready to give Oklahoma City some explosiveness, which it will need to walk out of Chase Center with its 13th consecutive win.
While Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren will likely carry the load offensively as usual, the fourth contributor spot belongs to Wiggins, especially with Hartenstein sidelined. With Cason Wallace likely to take on the tougher defensive duties with Dort or Caruso unavailable, Wiggins’ offense could be the key to not having to do everything for the Thunder’s stars.
As another player who can create his own shot and get to his spots around the floor, Wiggins could easily take advantage of a Golden State team with weak perimeter defense and no rim protection, especially if Steve Kerr prioritizes getting the ball out of Gilgeous-Alexander’s hands.
Through 10 games this season, Wiggins is averaging a career-best 13.8 points while shooting 41.8% from deep, so there’s no doubt he could have a chance to have a big night once he gets his feet back in Portland.
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