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At this stage of his career, Edgecombe might be better suited playing off the ball. But a Western Conference scout doesn’t have a problem with his desire to be a point guard. The scout noted that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Alex Caruso, and Cason Wallace shared point-guard duties for the NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA Finals against the Indiana Pacers. He thinks Edgecombe can play that role. The scout also pointed out that Jamal Murray is a point guard for the Denver Nuggets, and that De’Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle, and Dylan Harper will share ballhandling duties for the San Antonio Spurs.
Brandon Rahbar: Sam Presti on Alex Caruso's defensive style of reading and reacting: "He's Lawrence Taylor." Reminds me of when Mark Daigneault compared Cason Wallace to Ed Reed. I'll just throw this one out there: Chet Holmgren is Ed "Too Tall" Jones.
As to why he all of a sudden became a screener upon entering the NBA, he once told me, “This is how we play, and if you’re not bought into it, you’re not gonna play.” So Wallace adapted willingly. Now, he sets picks and rolls to the rim, facilitating from there, as do Alex Caruso, Wiggins and the rest of Oklahoma City’s guards and wings. The Thunder set 28 ball screens per 100 possessions with their guards during the regular season, according to Second Spectrum. No one else in the NBA averaged more than 18.
The Thunder reinserted center Isaiah Hartenstein as a starter over guard Cason Wallace, which gave Indiana a chance to play even faster against a two-big unit with Hartenstein and Holmgren to open the game. After trailing substantially in each opening frame heading into Friday’s game, the Pacers were up 20-12 through five minutes with the Thunder’s starters on the court (OKC used Hartenstein as a starter for its first 16 playoff games, so this wasn’t really a “new” lineup). For the first time in this series, Indiana led after the first quarter, 35-34.
Clemente Almanza: Mark Daigneault on starting Hartenstein over Wallace:
Mark Daigneault on starting Hartenstein over Wallace: pic.twitter.com/L1AFqRIKZs
— Clemente Almanza (@CAlmanza1007) June 14, 2025
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StatMuse: Fun Fact: Cason Wallace has the highest plus/minus (+140) by a bench player in a playoff run since Manu Ginobili in 2014. pic.x.com/eUYeVp7BtT
“Being a guard and the guy your whole life and then coming in and having to be a role player, you have to change your mindset,” Wallace told The Athletic. “But once you come in every day and you see everybody buys into their role, you find out that being a role player isn’t bad. You can be a high-level player, but as long as you do your job, then that’s what it takes to win.” He has examples in his immediate vicinity. Dort and Caruso have built lucrative, appreciated careers in that mold. Dort said the two have had conversations about that path. Wallace has taken notice. “Everybody can’t be the man,” Wallace said. “Whatever it takes to win is the mindset we all have. That winning mindset gets you paid.”
Mike Vorkunov: Thunder and Pacers have 1 top-5 pick on their rosters: Chet Holmgren SGA: No. 11 pick Haliburton: No. 12 Jalen Williams: No. 12 Siakam: No. 27 Highest drafted Pacers: Mathurin (6th), Toppin (8th by NYK), Walker (8th) Highest drafted Thunder: Chet (2nd), Cason Wallace (10th), Ousmane Dieng (11th)
Rylan Stiles: Cason Wallace on Tyrese Haliburton “He can score at all three levels…Can’t relax, have to make life difficult for him”
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Clemente Almanza: Cason Wallace: “The margin doesn’t matter. It’s a loss no matter how much we lose by. Watching film and seeing the way we lost definitely give us an edge tomorrow.”
Rylan Stiles: Isaiah Hartenstein lit up with a smile when asked about Cason Wallace’s passing/lobs said he went in the locker room post game and called Wallace “Magic Johnson” added “I’ve never seen him pass like that”
Law Murray: Thunder players that outscored entire Denver Nuggets bench by themselves: - Cason Wallace (11 points) - Aaron Wiggins (11 points) - Alex Caruso (10 points) Denver bench was 3/15 FGs with 11 fouls and 3 rebounds in Game 4
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