Could the Thunder Experiment With Isaiah Joe in the Starting Lineup?

Oklahoma City's franchise player seems to take his game to another level when Isaiah Joe is on the floor.

Oklahoma City is 6-4 through 10 games and playing good basketball. There's not necessarily a pressing need to make any big changes. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams seem to be developing as a duo with each passing game and Chet Holmgren hasn't slowed down a bit.

If the Thunder start to tinker with the starting lineup over the next few months, though, there are a few options. The most effective one, on paper at least, is inserting Isaiah Joe into the starting lineup and spacing the floor out even more for Gilgeous-Alexander.

Joe is off to another stellar start, shooting 39.7% from 3-point range and playing solid all-around defense. Teams are terrified to give him open looks and the floor spacing he provides is critical. With Gilgeous-Alexander and Williams on the floor creating and handling the ball, Joe doesn't need the ball in his hands to score.

As a matter of fact, 88.9% of his field goals made are assisted, meaning many of his makes are catch-and-shoot looks. It allows SGA to drive and frees up the lane for his takes to the rim.

Oklahoma City is a -1.2 in the plus-minus department when Joe is on the bench, and the only other player in the minus category is Gilgeous-Alexander.

SGA and Joe form the Thunder's most productive two-man lineup at plus-5.0 when on the floor together, per NBA.com. In nine games, the two-man duo is averaging 15 minutes per game together and scoring 37.4 points. It's a small sample size, but it has been wildly effective.

Josh Giddey would likely be the candidate to come off the bench in this scenario, but he could still certainly play starter-like minutes. He'd be able to operate freely in the second unit and have the ball in his hands at all times. The Thunder think very highly of Giddey and what he brings to the floor, so this scenario is unlikely, but it could jumpstart Giddey's slow start to the season.

Joe has been a spark off the bench for the Thunder in a big way, so changing what's working isn't always smart. But finding a way for Gilgeous-Alexander and Joe to share the court as much as possible will clearly benefit Oklahoma City this season.

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