Latest news with #CasonWallace
Yahoo
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Young Thunder Star Has Message After NBA Finals Berth
Young Thunder Star Has Message After NBA Finals Berth originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The Oklahoma City Thunder are going to the NBA Finals for just the second time in their young history. It will be the first time since 2012, when they took on the LeBron James-led Miami Heat. Advertisement Many Thunder fans thought that the trio of Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden could challenge the big three of James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh, especially after the Thunder took Game 1 of that NBA Finals. It proved to be false hope, though, as the Heat went on to win the next four games and secure the championship. Young Thunder star has message after NBA Finals berth This Thunder team feels vastly different than the one that made the Finals back in 2012. While they're led by a superstar Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who took home the league's Most Valuable Player award, the team is more built on tenacious defense and depth. Advertisement Gilgeous-Alexander has displayed the ability to figure out just how defenses are adjusting to him and still burns them night in and night out. But it's the contributions they get from their bench that make them so dangerous. Players like Cason Wallace and Alex Caruso, providing sparks off the bench, have been a tremendous boost for this Thunder team. Ahead of the Finals, Wallace celebrated by posting some shots of him on his Instagram account with the caption "2x in his 2nd year just need 4 more." The "2x" refers to his nickname of Caso 2x and that him and the Thunder need just four more wins for an NBA Championship. Advertisement Oddsmakers heavily believe that the Thunder will defeat the Indiana Pacers in the NBA Finals, as the Thunder are -700 to win, an implied probability of 87.5%. If the Thunder continue to display the dominance they've shown throughout these playoffs, this series could be a short one. This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 1, 2025, where it first appeared.
Forbes
3 days ago
- Business
- Forbes
Why Cason Wallace Will Be The Next Breakout Star The Thunder Produce
OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA - MAY 18: Cason Wallace #22 of the Oklahoma City Thunder finishes a slam ... More dunk during the first half of game seven of the Western Conference semifinals against the Denver Nuggets at Paycom Center on May 18, 2025 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by) The Oklahoma City Thunder are in the midst of a dominant march to the NBA Finals, posting the best net rating by a Finals team since the superteam 2016-17 Golden State Warriors. And if you thought the Thunder were too much to handle right now, this postseason has proved that they still have another future star waiting to burst onto the scene. Cason Wallace didn't amaze anyone with his playoff debut last season. However, he was just a rookie, and he's bounced back in an incredible way this go around. Despite the Thunder adding Alex Caruso this offseason (a move that would figure to cut into Wallace's minutes), Wallace has played more minutes per game this postseason (22.4) than he did last (19.8). Wallace is one of the many formidable perimeter defenders on the Thunder's roster. During the regular season, he placed in the 92nd percentile in Defensive Estimated Plus-Minus (per Dunks & Threes). In their second round matchup against the Denver Nuggets, Wallace did nearly as good of a job guarding Jamal Murray as his All-Defensive Team mentor, Luguentz Dort. According to matchup data, Murray shot 38.1% from the floor on field goals where Dort was his primary defender and 40.7% on ones where Wallace was shadowing him. The difference is Wallace is a much better offensive player. So, it is harder for defenses to ignore him on the other side of the ball than it is with Dort. Wallace has a better pedigree as a shooter – he's a career 38.9% 3-point shooter (Dort is only at 36%). Wallace is also a better passer and more capable of putting the ball on the floor and attacking the rim (see chart below). Wallace's ability to defend at a high level while also still providing value on the offensive end makes him an immensely valuable player to this current iteration of the Thunder, as evidenced by his being first on the team (by a mile) in playoff on-off rating (+18.3 per 100 possessions). Whether it be Kevin Durant, James Harden, Russell Westbrook, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, or Chet Holmgren, the Thunder have a history of acquiring (mainly via the draft) and developing star players under the watchful eye of general manager Sam Presti. Drafted tenth overall in the 2023 NBA Draft, Wallace has (in my opinion) the best chance of all of the Thunder's current young talent at being next in this lineage of success. Between his blend of quickness and strength on defense, his promising shooting indicators, and his untapped potential (Wallace is only 21) as an independent scorer and playmaker, Wallace has drawn comparisons to Jrue Holiday – a six-time All-Defense selection and two-time All-Star. More than his personal accolades (which he should probably have more of, by the way), Holiday has a long-standing history of making whatever team he's on way better when he's on the floor. Last season, his first season with the Boston Celtics, Holiday had an on-off rating of +10.8 per 100 en route to the 2024 NBA Championship. During Holiday's championship run with the Milwaukee Bucks in 2021, his team was +14.8 points better per 100 when he was on the floor than when he was on the bench. For reference, those marks are higher than the on-off splits from Jayson Tatum and Giannis Antetokounmpo during those two respective runs. That's how impactful Holiday's two-way value was to his teams. Even if he doesn't reach the heights Holiday did in his prime, I could easily see Wallace following in the footsteps of Andrew Nembhard (an incredible perimeter defender who consistently makes winning plays and provides secondary creation) – another plus-minus God. In any event, these playoffs have shown us just how good Wallace is right now and how he can be even better in the future.
Al Jazeera
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Al Jazeera
Thunder rout Timberwolves in Game 5, storm into NBA Finals
Even before the basket went in, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander spread his arms wide to his side in celebration. Cason Wallace left his right arm high in the air, just waiting for the ball to drop through the basket. Soon enough, inevitably, it did. Wallace's corner 3-pointer at the buzzer was the exclamation point on a dominant first quarter for Gilgeous-Alexander and the Oklahoma City Thunder, who rode the hot start to a 124-94 home win that ended the Western Conference finals in Game 5 on Wednesday. Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 34 points, eight assists and seven rebounds as the Thunder closed out the best-of-seven series. 'I didn't want to go back to Minnesota travel-wise and I wanted the fans to enjoy the moment with us,' Gilgeous-Alexander said. The Thunder are headed to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2012 and the fifth time in franchise history. The first three appearances came when the club was based in Seattle. Oklahoma City will host Game 1 of the Finals against either the Indiana Pacers or the New York Knicks on June 5. 'Happy for this moment, but this isn't our goal,' Gilgeous-Alexander said. 'This isn't the end of our road.' The Wednesday outcome was evident early, as the Thunder buried the Timberwolves under the weight of a stifling defense and playmaking by Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren. Oklahoma City put the game away quickly, leading by 17 after the first quarter and 33 at halftime. The Timberwolves saw their season end in the Western Conference finals for the second consecutive year. 'I'm going to work my butt off this summer,' Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards said. 'Nobody's going to work harder than me this summer, I'll tell you that much.' Gilgeous-Alexander dished out five of his assists in the opening quarter as he again showed why he was selected the NBA's Most Valuable Player (MVP). After the Timberwolves scored the game's first hoop, Gilgeous-Alexander had a hand in all five Oklahoma City baskets during an 11-0 run that started the Thunder's march toward the blowout. In that stretch, Gilgeous-Alexander had four assists – three on Holmgren buckets – and drained a finger roll to start the separation. On Monday, the Timberwolves started Game 4 red hot from the field but ultimately fell 128-126. On Wednesday, Minnesota struggled on offense from the start, going just 1-for-11 from the field over the first five minutes. Gilgeous-Alexander outscored Minnesota in the first quarter 12-9 and scored or assisted on 24 of the Thunder's 26 first-quarter points. Minnesota had more turnovers in the first half (14) than it did field goals (12). The Timberwolves finished with 21 turnovers. Holmgren amassed 22 points and seven rebounds while Williams had 19 points, eight rebounds and five assists. 'These guys really make me feel like I'm a kid playing AAU basketball, like I'm 15 years old again,' Gilgeous-Alexander said. 'It's just fun. That's what makes us really good. We have so much fun being out there together.' Julius Randle led the Timberwolves with 24 points while Edwards scored 19 on 7-of-18 shooting. 'They dominated the game from the tip,' Edwards said. 'Can't do nothing but tip my hat to those guys. They came ready.'
Khaleej Times
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Khaleej Times
Thunder thrash Wolves in Game 5, storm into NBA Finals
Even before the basket went in, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander spread his arms wide to his side in celebration. Cason Wallace left his right arm high in the air, just waiting for the ball to drop through the basket. Soon enough, inevitably, it did. Wallace's corner 3-pointer at the buzzer was the exclamation point on a dominant first quarter for Gilgeous-Alexander and the Oklahoma City Thunder, who rode the hot start to a 124-94 home win that ended the Western Conference finals in Game 5 on Wednesday. Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 34 points, eight assists and seven rebounds as the Thunder closed out the best-of-seven series. "I didn't want to go back to Minnesota travel-wise and I wanted the fans to enjoy the moment with us," Gilgeous-Alexander said. The Thunder are headed to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2012 and the fifth time in franchise history. The first three appearances came when the club was based in Seattle. Oklahoma City will host Game 1 of the Finals against either the Indiana Pacers or the New York Knicks on June 5. "Happy for this moment, but this isn't our goal," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "This isn't the end of our road." The Wednesday outcome was evident early, as the Thunder buried the Timberwolves under the weight of a stifling defense and playmaking by Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren. Oklahoma City put the game away quickly, leading by 17 after the first quarter and 33 at halftime. The Timberwolves saw their season end in the Western Conference finals for the second consecutive year. "I'm going to work my socks off this summer," Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards said. "Nobody's going to work harder than me this summer, I'll tell you that much." Gilgeous-Alexander dished out five of his assists in the opening quarter as he again showed why he was selected the NBA's Most Valuable Player. After the Timberwolves scored the game's first hoop, Gilgeous-Alexander had a hand in all five Oklahoma City baskets during an 11-0 run that started the Thunder's march toward the blowout. In that stretch, Gilgeous-Alexander had four assists -- three on Holmgren buckets -- and drained a finger roll to start the separation. On Monday, the Timberwolves started Game 4 red hot from the field but ultimately fell 128-126. On Wednesday, Minnesota struggled on offense from the start, going just 1-for-11 from the field over the first five minutes. Gilgeous-Alexander outscored Minnesota in the first quarter 12-9 and scored or assisted on 24 of the Thunder's 26 first-quarter points. Minnesota had more turnovers in the first half (14) than it did field goals (12). The Timberwolves finished with 21 turnovers. Holmgren amassed 22 points and seven rebounds while Williams had 19 points, eight rebounds and five assists. "These guys really make me feel like I'm a kid playing AAU basketball, like I'm 15 years old again," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "It's just fun. That's what makes us really good. We have so much fun being out there together." Julius Randle led the Timberwolves with 24 points while Edwards scored 19 on 7-of-18 shooting. "They dominated the game from the tip," Edwards said. "Can't do nothing but tip my hat to those guys. They came ready."
Newsweek
26-05-2025
- Sport
- Newsweek
How to Watch Thunder vs Timberwolves: Live Stream Western Conference Finals Game 4, TV Channel
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. The Oklahoma Thunder head into Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals with a 2-1 series lead over the Minnesota Timberwolves. Can the Wolves even the series in Game 4, or will the Thunder take a 3-1 lead, putting the team on the brink of an NBA Finals trip? Tune into ESPN on Memorial Day to catch the action. Anthony Edwards #5 of the Minnesota Timberwolves passes the ball against Cason Wallace #22 of the Oklahoma City Thunder during the first quarter in Game One of the Western Conference Finals of the 2025 NBA... Anthony Edwards #5 of the Minnesota Timberwolves passes the ball against Cason Wallace #22 of the Oklahoma City Thunder during the first quarter in Game One of the Western Conference Finals of the 2025 NBA Playoffs at Paycom Center on May 20, 2025 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. More Photo byHow to Watch Thunder vs Timberwolves, Game 4: Date: Monday, May 26, 2025 Time: 8:30 PM ET Channel: ESPN, ESPN2 (InsightCast), ESPN Deportes Stream: Fubo (Try for free) The Thunder took a 2-0 lead in this series, winning 114-88 in Game 1 and 118-103 in Game 2, but when the series shifted to Minnesota, the Timberwolves' offense came alive, taking a 143-101 win in Saturday's Game 3. Anthony Edwards led the team in scoring with 30 points. He also added nine rebounds and six assists. Meanwhile, Julius Randle had a big game, scoring 24 points in the victory. Five other Timberwolves scored in double figures: Terrence Shannon Jr. (15), Nickeil Alexander-Walker (12), Leonard Miller (11), Jaden McDaniels (10), and Naz Reid (10). Meanwhile, the Thunder's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander only managed 14 points for OKC, sharing the team lead with Ajay Mitchell. Jalen Williams added 13 points in the defeat while Chet Holmgren and Dillon Jones each had 10 points. Can Minnesota's offense put together another big showing, or will we see the Thunder bounce back to go up 3-1? Tune in Monday night to ESPN to find out. Live stream the Western Conference Finals Game 4 on Fubo: Start your free trial now! Regional restrictions may apply. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation.
