Training camp has officially kicked off, and still, Cason Wallace and the OKC Thunder have yet to agree on a new rookie-scale extension.
During Monday's media day, the point guard outwardly seemed to stress that he's not all that worried about how negotiations could ultimately play out, telling reporters that the situation is "between my agent and Sam [Presti]," and that, at this point in time, "I'm not even thinking about it."
Now, while this reaction to the matter may have one believing that a new deal is genuinely not on Wallace's mind, his "shout-out" of Keyonte George and his recent extension agreement may subliminally suggest he at least has a certain salary figure in mind.
When discussing the Jazz guard's newly inked five-year, $157.5 million deal, Wallace described it as "a big contract" and said he was "excited" for his longtime friend to land such a bag.
Whenever a new player from the 2023 NBA Draft has signed a new extension this offseason, the potential salary the Thunder guard is believed to be worthy of receiving tends to shift.
Among his fellow top performers in this class, the range spans from Ausar Thompson's $155 million payday with the Pistons to Victor Wembanyama's $252 million max signed with San Antonio. With his point of emphasis on George's new contract, perhaps somewhere in the area of $157.5 million is what Wallace is gunning for in his own negotiations.
Thunder not publicly commiting to Cason Wallace as their starter
Despite all the talk about how they have the utmost faith and trust in Wallace as a player, with Sam Presti recently hammering this point home during his media availability by saying trading someone like Lu Dort is "the greatest sign of respect" they could possibly have given him, the Thunder are still not committing to the 22-year-old as their full-time starting two guard.
At Monday's media day, coach Mark Daigneault was notably noncommittal when discussing whether Wallace will serve as the heir apparent to Dort in the first five unit moving forward.
Despite the headman's coy response, it's widely believed that Wallace is the top choice to take over as the starting shooting guard beside Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
After all, he started 58 regular season games last season, posting averages of 9.3 points, 3.1 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and 2.1 steals while shooting 36.4 percent from deep, and as Daigneault pointed out, he already has built-in experience filling in as a starter in the high-stakes NBA Finals.
All things considered, Wallace has been serving as Dort's understudy since he initially joined the Thunder four years ago, which only makes the idea of him becoming his successor all the more likely.
Still, considering the immense talent OKC has at the position, it's not surprising they're seemingly willing to have somewhat of an open battle heading into camp before officially naming a starter.
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