Following a four-game absence due to a left knee contusion, Isaiah Joe made his return to the OKC Thunder on Thursday night in quite an impressive fashion, as he performed as if he hadn't missed a beat during his 22 minutes of action against the LA Clippers.
Referred to by Alex Caruso as an "anomaly for our team with spacing" earlier in the day, the two guard has proven to be exactly that for Oklahoma City, as he poured in four triples on six attempts to lead all players.
Though he may only be playing through the early stages of his fourth year in the Sooner State, I-Joe has already established himself as one of the club's all-time great marksmen.
So much so, in fact, that his efforts during the Thunder's 122-101 win over Los Angeles have him ahead of Russell Westbrook on the list of most games in franchise history with four or more three-pointers made in a game, placing him fourth with 48.
Isaiah Joe is quickly becoming an all-time shooter in Thunder lore
Since he made his season debut on October 30 after dealing with another knee contusion sustained during preseason play, Joe has been a true godsend for Oklahoma City's long-range game.
During the early stages of the campaign, the Thunder were truly abysmal from beyond the arc, as they found themselves ranking second to last in long-range percentage with a success rate of just 28.8 without the 26-year-old in tow.
After making his first appearance against the Washington Wizards, however, OKC has seemingly pulled a 180 in this area of play, as they rank third in the association throughout this span with a conversion rate of 39.7 percent.
Along the way, Joe finds himself ranking third on the team (minimum 15 games) in three-point percentage at 43.1, a career-best mark, while pouring in 12.9 points per game.
It should come as no surprise that, with the wing off the floor, the Thunder are producing at their lowest rate from downtown this year.
With his 18 games played so far into 2025-26, not only has Joe passed Westbrook for fourth on the four-plus three-pointers list, but, with 555 total makes while donning the blue, orange, and yellow threads, he's on pace to enter into the top 10 in franchise history by year's end.
He may not be a star in a technical sense, but Isaiah Joe is a star in his role and has played a major role in OKC's successes over the years.
Fortunately for both him and the Thunder, there appear to be no signs of slowing down anytime soon.