Aaron Wiggins solidified himself as a key cog to the OKC Thunder rotation

The Oklahoma City Thunder used a flyer on Aaron Wiggins with the 55th overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, and it has paid off for Sam Presti. The wing out of Maryland had an eye-brow rising rookie year that saw Wiggins work his way from a two-way contract to a standard NBA pact spanning multiple years.

However, that deal was a Presti special, featuring outs in the contract at every turn if Wiggins failed to produce. With a lot riding on the 2022-23 NBA season for the wing and roster spots at a premium, he solidified himself as a vital cog of the Thunder rotation.

Aaron Wiggins posts a career year as a Sophomore, earning himself a bright NBA future as a rotational piece.

In 70 games this season, Aaron Wiggins posted six points, three rebounds, and an assist per game while 0.8 STOCKS on 18 minutes per tilt. His shooting splits were eye-popping, 51/39/83, while stroking non-corner triples at a 46 percent clip.

A three-level scorer that dominated in transition to the tune of 1.231 points per possession while working defenders on cuts in the 62nd percentile and ranking in the 89th percentile coming off screens (1.200 points per possession).

The most interesting aspect of his offensive game was his extremely small sample size as a pick-and-roll roll man, where he scored 70 percent of the time. Given his ability to score at the cup, it either frees up Wiggins or gives the ball handler an advantageous switch.

Aaron Wiggins is under contract through the 2024-25 season, which features a non-guarantee for the 2023-34 season (1.8 million) and a team option for the 2024-25 campaign (1.9 million) before hitting unrestricted free agency in 2025-26.

Along with his offense, Wiggins has shown an ability to be a point-of-attack defender, including his jaw-dropping isolation defense that ranks in the 69th percentile, only allowing 0.857 points per possession. Additionally, Aaron Wiggins ranks in the 79th percentile on overall man defense.

In his 14 starts, Wiggins helped propel the Thunder to an 11-3 record in those contests. In games he played, OKC was an above .500 team, 37-33. Still, Mark Daigneault did not give Wiggins a consistent role in the rotation, with 13 games that saw ten or fewer minutes played and 24 games with under 20 minutes logged.

Next season, the Maryland product comes into the season as one of the best bench weapons at Mark Daigneault’s disposal and should be solidified into the rotation.