Thunders Cason Wallace Makes History as Youngest NBA Finals Starter Since 2020

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — On Thursday night, Cason Wallace received the nod to begin Game 1 of the NBA Finals for the Oklahoma City Thunder, stepping in for Isaiah Hartenstein.

Throughout their 16-game journey in the Western Conference playoffs, the Thunder had relied on a consistent starting lineup featuring Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Lu Dort, Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren, and Hartenstein.

At just 21 years and seven months, Wallace becomes the youngest player to start an NBA Finals game since Miami’s Tyler Herro, who was approximately 20 years and nine months old when he took the court for the Heat during their series in the NBA bubble against the Los Angeles Lakers back in 2020.

During the regular season, Wallace started in 43 games for the Thunder. He participated in 26 playoff games in his first two seasons with Oklahoma City, but Thursday marked his inaugural start in the playoffs against the Indiana Pacers.

In the regular season, Wallace averaged 8.4 points per game, while his playoff performance leading into the Finals saw him average 5.4 points.