Mussatto: How Aaron Wiggins, Thunder bench fueled Game 1 rout of Mavericks in NBA playoffs
Isaiah Joe splashed a 30-footer from the green Paycom logo. Money. Aaron Wiggins, whose engine forever revs, hit a pair of 3-pointers in his first minute of play. Then there was rookie guard Cason Wallace, who hit a pair of triples all while pestering Kyrie Irving for 94 feet.
Who says depth doesn’t matter in the playoffs?
The Thunder’s stars showed up Tuesday night in a Game 1 win against the Mavericks, but the Thunder’s reserves made it a 117-95 runaway.
Bench points: Oklahoma City 42, Dallas 23.
Reserves accounted for 36% of the Thunder’s points.
Wiggins had 12 points in the first half. So did Luka Doncic.
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Wiggins averaged 5.8 points in the Thunder’s first round series against the Pelicans. He scored 16 points Tuesday — a mark he reached just five times in 78 regular-season games.
With Wiggins, though, it’s never about the scoring. He’s mastered the little things — timely cuts and fighting for loose balls — which has made the former 55th pick indispensable. Wiggins averaged 15.7 minutes in the regular season. Thunder coach Mark Daigneault entrusted him with 23 Tuesday night.
Wallace matched Wiggins with 23 minutes. Twenty-three minutes for a 20-year-old rookie in the Western Conference semifinals.
He must have to pinch himself, right? To be guarding a future hall of famer in Irving in a playoff game.
“Not at all,” Wallace said. “I dreamed of these moments, so it’s time to actually do it in real life.”
Wallace said it without cracking a smile. He was as serious as can be.
“He may be a rookie,” Joe said, “but he doesn’t have the rookie mentality.”
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The Thunder was a plus-18 with Wiggins on the floor, a plus-13 with Wallace and a plus-12 with Joe.
Then there was Jaylin Williams, who had 11 points and nine rebounds in 17 minutes.
The game flipped the Thunder’s way at the seven-minute mark of the third quarter.
After an Irving 3-pointer cut OKC’s lead to one point, Daigneault called a timeout.
Out came Josh Giddey (it wasn’t a Giddey game), and in came Joe, who promptly knocked down a 3-pointer.
The Thunder was 1 of 10 in the third quarter before Joe stoked the fire. Lu Dort, Chet Holmgren and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander all got in on the 3-point party. Then Joe made another one, the one from the logo.
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“I didn’t realize how deep it was,” Joe said.
The Thunder shot 5 of 16 (31%) from 3-point range in the first half. In the second half, 11 of 19 (58%).
The Irving 3-pointer early in the third wasn’t the start of a Mavericks comeback. It ignited the Thunder on its way to a rout.
SGA was the best player on the court, Chet Holmgren had a terrific two-way game and Jalen Williams turned closer in the fourth quarter. And Doncic got Dorted.
Those are enough reasons to explain the Thunder’s win.
But the blowout? Credit the Thunder’s bench for that.
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Joe Mussatto is a sports columnist for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Joe? Email him at jmussatto@oklahoman.com. Support Joe's work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Aaron Wiggins, Isaiah Joe, Cason Wallace key in Thunder's win vs. Mavs
