Aaron Wiggins Capitalizes on Summer League Opportunity

The Thunder's second year wing stood out in a star-packed environment.

With Oklahoma City’s impending roster cuts on the horizon, changes have already started to be made. Isaiah Roby and JaMychal Green were the first two names to go, but the Thunder still have a few more spots to free up soon.

Summer league was a prime opportunity for guys on the roster bubble to make a lasting impact on the organization’s decision makers. Year-two veterans, especially, had a lot to prove to secure their status on the team.

One player who made the most of court time is second year wing Aaron Wiggins. Not only did he secure a roster spot, but he might’ve secured a rotation spot too.

The Maryland product did what he does best, which is produce consistently. Wiggins always seems to be in the right spot, doing the right thing and contributing to winning basketball. He displayed strong body control on drives to the hoop, as well as a silky smooth 3-point jumper. It was hard to find anything wrong with Wiggins’ two weeks in Vegas.

The do-it-all wing averaged 11.3 points on 54.2% from the floor and 42.9% from long range. Wiggins did most of his damage as a slasher, but has really grown in his isolation play over the last few months. His role was heavily increased when Josh Giddey and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander missed time down the stretch, allowing him to gain valuable experience.

His efficiency and versatility will be a huge help for the Thunder, as Oklahoma City will be a young team with a lack of veteran talent. While Wiggins is no veteran in age, he plays like a veteran on the court. His style of mistake-free basketball could be key offensively next season when the Thunder start to struggle with turnovers. He will always provide insurance in the corners for OKC’s space-creating guards. With all of the high-look 3-pointers he’s going to get, it wouldn’t be surprising if Wiggins was one of the team’s best long range shooters.

Whatever his role is moving forward, he strengthened his standing over the summer. Wiggins displayed enough promise and consistency to lock him into future plans.

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