Tag: Cason Wallace

Thunder rookie Cason Wallace appreciative of NBA Rising Stars nod

Cason Wallace on Friday expressed his appreciation for getting voted to the NBA Rising Stars game after a strong campaign with the Thunder.

Cason Wallace on Friday expressed his appreciation for getting voted to the NBA Rising Stars game amid a strong rookie campaign with the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Wallace is among 11 first-year players selected to compete in the event on Friday in Indianapolis, Indiana. He is joined by rookie teammate Chet Holmgren and sophomore Jalen Williams, though he will play on separate teams in the competition.

The 10th pick is averaging 6.8 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.3 assists on 41.2% shooting from 3-point range in 54 games with the Thunder. He is 10th among rookies in steals (37) and previously led the league in 3-point percentage (50.0).

He was honored to be named to the Rising Stars game.

It feels good just knowing that everybody is seeing my game and knowing that I’m pretty good. I appreciate them for noticing that, you know? I’m kind of flying under the radar a little, but they notice.

Wallace has stepped in this season and provided the Thunder with another on-ball defender. He was highly touted out of Kentucky on the defensive end of the floor, with his size, strength and instincts to jump passing lanes and maneuver around screens.

The 20-year-old has filled various roles, from starting to contributing to the second unit. He previously earned praise from coach Mark Daigneault for his poise and maturity as a first-year player and credits that to his brother, Keaton, and father, Mike.

“My older brother and my dad (instilled in me) that I have to grow up and be a man about certain situations and take care of my business first,” Wallace said. “I feel like I got it from them.”

Wallace has impressed the team since early in training camp and has earned the trust of his teammates and coaching staff to play a large role this season. He has drawn some tough defensive assignments, and the team completely trusts him in those situations.

His overall numbers may not earn him a place on an All-Rookie team, but the guard is contributing at a high level nightly. The team knows Wallace will bring energy and effort every game, which will be needed throughout the year.

He is happy to be doing that on a winning team.

“It is great just being a part of a winning organization and seeing that we can win a game against some of the best teams in the league,” Wallace said. “We want to keep doing that.”

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2024 Rising Stars practice: What Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams and Cason Wallace said

2024 Rising Stars practice: What Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams and Cason Wallace said.

INDIANAPOLIS — The NBA held their 2024 Rising Stars challenge media availability on Friday.

During the event, the Oklahoma City Thunder had the most representatives among NBA teams with Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams and Cason Wallace.

The trio has been part of an impressive Thunder (37-17) that sits a game back from first place in the Western Conference standings heading into the All-Star break.

Holmgren and Williams are part of the same squad with Jalen Rose while Wallace will be on Pau Gasol’s team. The full explanation and rosters of the four-team single-elimination tournament can be read here.

Here’s a quick recap of what Holmgren, Williams and Wallace had to say as they prepare for the weekend festivities.

2024 Rising Stars: Rosters, broadcast info and how the 4-team tournament works

2024 Rising Stars: Rosters, broadcast info and how the 4-team tournament works.

INDIANAPOLIS — The 2024 Rising Stars challenge will be held on Friday, Feb. 16 at 8 p.m. CT in Gainbridge Fieldhouse on TNT.

The four-team single-elimination tournament features seven-player rosters. Twenty-one players are NBA rookies and second-year players while the remaining seven are G League players and two-way players.

The three NBA rosters were drafted by Paul Gasol, Jalen Rose and Tamika Catchings. The G League roster will be coached by Detlef Schrempf.

The Oklahoma City Thunder had three players represented for the event — the most for any team. Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams are on the same squad for Rose while Wallace is on Gasol’s squad.

The semifinals will be played to a target score of 40 points. The final will be played to a target score of 25 points. The semifinal matchups are Rose vs. Catchings and Gasol vs. Schrempf.

Injury replacements include Vince Williams Jr., who is taking Dyson Daniel’s spot; Jeremy Sochan, who is taking Shaedon Sharpe’s spot; and Emoni Bates, who is taking Ron Holland’s spot.

Let’s look at all 28 participants and who they’ll play for.

Player grades: Thunder suffer 146-111 blowout loss to Mavericks

Player grades for the Thunder’s 146-111 loss to the Mavericks.

DALLAS — Stationed in the corner, Josh Giddey received the ball and shot a corner 3-point attempt with ample space. This same sequence transpired often as Dallas welcomed the attempts. Several of his looks resulted in a resounding ‘clank’ with the mic’d rims.

The Oklahoma City Thunder never looked comfortable in their 146-111 blowout loss to the Dallas Mavericks. OKC trailed the entire way in its worst defeat of the season.

“They shot it well early, but that’s where some of the transition — like straight-up fastbreak plays — really hurt you,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said on the loss. “Because when you’re giving up easy ones and they’re making shots, then that’s how the 47 (points) can happen in the first quarter… They were clearly the better team today.”

The Mavericks quickly built a 20-7 lead in the opening minutes. Multiple timeouts didn’t solve the issue as OKC trailed, 47-30, following the first quarter.

The Thunder managed to eat into the deficit with a 32-point second frame. At halftime, OKC miraculously only trailed by nine points to Dallas, 71-62.

But any hopes of a comeback were quickly evaporated in the third quarter though, as the Mavericks scored 39 points to enter the final frame leading by 21 points. After three quarters, Dallas’ high-octane offense totaled 110 points.

It wasn’t OKC’s best day on offense as it shot 39% from the field and went 17-of-47 (36.2%). Only four Thunder players scored double-digit points and none of the starters exceeded 29 minutes in this blowout loss.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the way with 25 points but didn’t see action in the final frame as the outcome was already decided. Chet Holmgren had 13 points and 12 rebounds.

Meanwhile, the Mavericks welcomed their new additions with one of their best offensive outings of the season. Everything was clicking for Dallas as it eerily looked like Lob City with highlight dunk after highlight dunk.

Overall, the Mavericks shot a ridiculous 58% from the field and went a red-hot 15-of-38 (39.5%) from 3. They also went 25-of-33 from the free-throw line. Dallas made it look easy as OKC had no answer to stopping it.

The Mavericks’ star duo led the way for them in the lopsided contest. Luke Doncic finished with 32 points, nine assists and eight rebounds; Kyrie Irving totaled 25 points, eight assists and six rebounds.

The newest members of the Mavericks also had excellent first impressions. Off the bench, Daniel Gafford had 19 points and nine rebounds while P.J. Washington tallied 14 points and five rebounds.

“They were just the better team tonight, from start to finish,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “Just chalk it up to that. They played better, played harder, more sense of urgency. They deserved to win.”

After a rare three-day break, the Thunder looked out of sorts in this one-sided affair. OKC will need to quickly move on from this loss and prepare to play the Sacramento Kings on the second day of this road-and-home back-to-back.

“They just had a little more juice today,” Daigneault said. “Which is a bit uncharacteristic for us, we’re over 50 games in here and we’ve had only a handful of games where you can say that about us.

“We can’t overreact to it. We certainly have to learn from it. We don’t want to be happy with it or content with it or numb to it either. We also need to be able to put in perspective.”

Let’s look at Thunder player grades.

2024 Rising Stars challenge: Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams, Cason Wallace rosters revealed

2024 Rising Stars challenge: Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams, Cason Wallace rosters revealed.

The 2024 Rising Stars challenge rosters were drafted on Tuesday by head coaches Pau Gasol, Jalen Rose and Tamika Catchings.

The 21-player pool consisted of rookies and second-year players was divided by seven per three rosters. An additional seven-player roster will be involved with a fourth team made up of G League players.

The Oklahoma City Thunder had three players make the pool in Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams and Cason Wallace — the most for a single team.

Holmgren and Williams will remain on the same squad as Rose drafted them with the No. 3 and No. 4 picks respectively in the snake draft format.

Meanwhile, Wallace was drafted with the No. 18 pick by Gasol. The full rosters can be viewed below:

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The Rising Stars challenge will be part of the NBA’s weekend festivities in Indiana from Feb. 16-18. The tournament will take place on Friday, Feb. 16.

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NBA Rising Stars 2024: Full rosters revealed in draft announcement

The NBA on Tuesday unveiled the four seven-player teams for the 2024 NBA Rising Stars game.

The NBA on Tuesday unveiled the four seven-player teams for the 2024 NBA Rising Stars game on Feb. 16 as part of All-Star Weekend in Indianapolis, Indiana.

The event will feature four seven-player teams competing in a three-game tournament for the third straight year. The two semifinal games will be played to a target score of 40. The championship game will be played to a target score of 25.

The pool of players for the game consists of 11 rookies, 10 second-year players and seven players from the G League. The 21 players in the NBA will be drafted onto three teams. The seven players in the G League will comprise the fourth team.

The players from the NBA were selected by assistant coaches. The players from the G League were selected by the league office. Each team submitted a rookie ballot and a sophomore ballot featuring four frontcourt players, four guards and two additional players of any position.

Hall of Famer Pau Gasol will return as one of the four honorary head coaches for the event. Joining Gasol are Indiana Fever legend Tamika Catchings and former Indiana Pacers standouts Jalen Rose and Detlef Schrempf, who will lead the G League team.

Here are the rosters drafted by Gasol, Catchings and Rose.

Player grades: Thunder swat Hornets in 126-106 win

Player grades for the Thunder’s 126-106 win over the Hornets.

OKLAHOMA CITY — Sidestepping for the 3-pointer, Aaron Wiggins knocked down the outside shot in the waning seconds of the third quarter to give OKC a 33-point lead.

No funny business was involved in the Oklahoma City Thunder’s 126-106 blowout win over the Charlotte Hornets.

“We don’t take a win for granted,” Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault said. “I thought we went out there, really earned the game. Especially in the first half to build that type of lead.”

Entering the contest, the Thunder were heavy favorites as the Hornets were on the complete opposite side of the competitive spectrum — OKC is a contender while Charlotte eyes lottery odds.

In the Thunder’s wire-to-wire win, they quickly built a 39-19 lead following the first quarter. A 34-point second frame saw OKC enter halftime with a comfortable 73-42 lead.

The second half was much of the same story as a 32-point third quarter saw OKC enter the final frame with a decisive 33-point lead. None of the starters played in the fourth quarter as the result of the contest was well-known by then. In total, the Thunder led by as many as 35 points.

In one of their best offensive outings of the season, the Thunder shot 59% from the field and went 17-of-36 (47.2%) from 3. They had a busy night at the free-throw line, going 21-of-27. OKC dished out 31 assists on 44 baskets.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander tallied 31 points in three quarters. Chet Holmgren had 16 points and six rebounds. Five Thunder players scored double-digit points.

Meanwhile, the Hornets — who were without LaMelo Ball — were limited to 45% shooting from the field and 14-of-31 (45.2%) from 3. A 34-point final frame helped make the shooting splits look prettier for Charlotte.

“I thought the stuff they got was earned and contested,” Daigneault said. “Especially early on. It was a team defense. We did a good job cleaning up the glass in the first half as well. And that set the tone for our offense.”

Rookie standout Brandon Miller led the way for the Hornets with 28 points on 11-of-19 shooting and 5-of-8 from 3. Miles Bridges — Charlotte’s healthy lead scorer — was limited to nine points on 3-of-16 shooting.

After an awful loss to the Detroit Pistons less than a week ago, the Thunder rebounded and handled business against a basement dweller. OKC’s first three quarters afforded it the luxury to sit out the starters in the final frame.

“We came out with a lot of respect for this specific game and the opponent,” Holmgren said. “Knowing this is the NBA and there are a lot of great teams in the league. We couldn’t take anybody lightly.”

Let’s look at Thunder player grades.

NBA Rising Stars 2024: Player pool revealed for annual showcase at All-Star Weekend

The NBA on Tuesday unveiled the list of 28 players set to participate in the annual Rising Stars game on Feb. 16 at All-Star Weekend.

The NBA on Tuesday unveiled the list of 28 players set to participate in the annual Rising Stars game on Feb. 16 as part of All-Star Weekend in Indianapolis, Indiana.

The event will feature four seven-player teams competing in a three-game tournament for the third straight year. The two semifinal games will be played to a target score of 40. The championship game will be played to a target score of 25.

The pool of players for the game consists of 11 rookies, 10 second-year players and seven players from the G League. The 21 players in the NBA will be drafted onto three teams and the seven players in the G League will comprise the fourth team.

The players from the NBA were selected by assistant coaches. The players from the G League were selected by the league office. Each team submitted a rookie ballot and a sophomore ballot featuring four frontcourt players, four guards and two additional players of any position.

Hall of Famer Pau Gasol will return as one of the four honorary head coaches for the event. Joining Gasol are Indiana Fever legend Tamika Catchings and former Indiana Pacers standouts Jalen Rose and Detlef Schrempf, who will lead the G League team.

Assistant coaches from the NBA All-Star Game coaching staffs will join the honorary head coaches in coaching the Rising Stars teams. The NBA All-Star Game coaching staffs for both the Eastern and Western Conferences have yet to be determined.

TNT will televise the competition beginning at 9 p.m. EST.

3 OKC Thunder players to participate in 2024 Rising Stars challenge

Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams, Cason Wallace to participate in 2024 Rising Stars challenge.

The NBA announced its 2024 Rising Stars participants, and the Oklahoma City Thunder will have three representatives.

Unsurprisingly, Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams and Cason Wallace were included among the 21 rookies and second-year players involved.

In 44 games, Williams is averaging 18.7 points on 53.9% shooting, 4.5 assists and four rebounds. He’s shooting 45% from 3 on 3.2 attempts.

The second-year wing has blossomed into OKC’s second-best scorer. The 22-year-old participated in the Rising Stars challenge last season during his rookie season.

In 47 games, Holmgren is averaging 16.7 points on 53.3% shooting, 7.5 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 2.6 blocks. He’s shooting 37.4% from 3 on 4.1 attempts.

The 21-year-old has had a phenomenal rookie campaign after missing all of last season recovering from a Lisfranc injury.

Meanwhile, Wallace has served a key role for the Thunder as one of their top bench options and someone who receives spot starts when needed.

In 47 games, the 20-year-old has averaged 6.7 points on 51.5% shooting, 2.3 rebounds and 1.4 assists. He’s shooting 42.3% from on 2.6 attempts.

Holmgren, Williams and Wallace will join Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who was named an All-Star starter, for the weekend festivities. Keyontae Johnson will participate in the G League’s tournament.

The 2024 Rising Stars challenge is set to be played on Saturday, Feb. 17 in Indiana.

The full 28 players involved — 21 in the NBA and seven in the G League:

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Player grades: Thunder’s fourth quarter helps collect 107-83 win over Pelicans

Player grades for the Thunder’s 107-83 win over the Pelicans.

Facing a double, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander swung it out to Jalen Williams for the left-wing 3-pointer. The bucket gave OKC a 23-point lead with a little over three minutes left and was a neat way to tie a bow on this one.

The Oklahoma City Thunder used a strong fourth quarter to grind out a 107-83 win over the New Orleans Pelicans. The Thunder extended their winning streak to five.

“We did a great job defensively, obviously, and it was pretty consistent throughout the game,” Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault said on the win. “I thought we set a really good tone of physicality early. Both teams it was a really physical game, first quarter, first half.

“We were able to sustain a really high level defensively throughout. There wasn’t much that they got that was easy.”

The final score is a bit deceptive as the Thunder and Pelicans failed to generate any offensive rhythm for the first three quarters, which resulted in a low-scoring affair. Neither team created much distance on the scoreboard.

Following the first quarter, the Thunder trailed, 24-22. A 28-point second quarter by OKC helped flip the score as it entered halftime with a 50-41 lead over New Orleans.

A 27-point third frame by the Thunder built a 77-64 lead to enter the fourth quarter. To start the final frame, OKC’s 17-12 run ballooned its lead to 18 points with a little over six minutes left.

The Thunder continued to add to their advantage as they quickly created a game-high 26-point lead. Both teams cleared their benches with a little over three minutes left. By the final buzzer, OKC outscored New Orleans, 30-19, in the fourth quarter.

After initially struggling to score, the Thunder suddenly snapped out of their offensive funk. Overall, OKC shot 48% from the field and went 10-of-33 (30.3%) from 3. It collected 22 assists on 42 baskets.

“Our poise to stay with it even when the shots weren’t falling and we weren’t really moving the scoreboard a ton was impressive,” Daigneault said. “It didn’t impact our attacks on offense and it certainly didn’t impact our intensity on defense.”

Gilgeous-Alexander led the way with 31 points and five assists. Williams totaled 15 points and seven assists — with nine points in the final frame. Chet Holmgren had 20 points and 13 rebounds.

Meanwhile, the Pelicans’ offensive outing matched its court and uniform combo. They shot an ugly 39% from the field and went 9-of-36 (25%) from 3. New Orleans committed 20 turnovers, which led to 22 points for OKC.

The Pelicans — who were without Zion Williamson as he recovers from a foot bruise — failed to record a single 15-plus-point scorer.

Jonas Valanciunas had 14 points and nine rebounds; Herb Jones had 14 points and four rebounds; Brandon Ingram was limited to 12 points, nine assists and four rebounds; CJ McCollum was held to 12 points on 4-of-15 shooting.

Considering the Pelicans were fresh off of a franchise-record 153-point outing with two days of rest, this was a masterful defensive job by the Thunder to hold New Orleans to a measly 83 points.

“I think we did a really good job as a team,” Holmgren said on the defensive outing. “I don’t think there was too many missed assignments. We were all really keyed in on that end — helping the help guy… Overall, just a great team effort and kinda focus on that end.”

The Thunder continue to keep pace for the first seed and add to their league-best 15-8 road record with an impressive away victory.

Let’s look at Thunder player grades.