Mark Daigneault praises “dedicated” Cason Wallace after career day against Nuggets

After a 121-111 win against the Denver Nuggets, Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault asked the guard Cason Wallace hit a career-high seven 3-pointers to reach a career-best 27 points in Sunday’s victory. Thunder, come down a 123-111 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolveswhere Shai Gilgeous-Alexander questioned his team’s game plan against one of the better teams in the Western Conference, he responded well.

Wallace made seven of the Thunder’s 19 3-pointers, which helped keep the Nuggets at bay when Cason went 4-for-7 in the second half and finished with 27 points on 9-of-14 shooting, including 7-of-11 from deep, six rebounds and two steals. After the victory, Daigneault discussed Wallace’s impact on the Nuggets.

“He’s one of a lot of guys on our team that plays his role very well on, obviously, a very good team,” Daigneault said. “His winning percentage as a pro is crazy when you look at Cason Wallace’s winning percentage. But one of the things that comes with playing on a team at this level as a young player is that your role can sometimes be narrowed compared to your peers.”

“If he wasn’t on this good of a team, he could probably do a lot more and his role would be a little bit wider. So when you have a guy that’s committed to that role, if he’s committed to winning, and team success, when you have a night like tonight, everybody’s happy for him.”

While Wallace’s role has changed week-to-week due to the Thunder’s long list of injuries, he’s making the most of his opportunities.

“He shows up – he takes the minutes he gets. Sometimes he starts, sometimes he doesn’t. Some nights he gets a few shots and doesn’t get his ‘cracks,'” Daigneault added. “So the night he did, and when he delivered, everybody’s excited for him.”

Thunder teammates celebrate Cason Wallace’s career night

Thunder teammates celebrated Cason Wallace’s career-high 27 points, including seven three-pointers, by dousing him with water moments after the final buzzer. Starting with Thunder All-Star Chet Holmgren, who tried to get smooth before Wallace ran awayand the others all swarmed the archer of the night.

7 career triples?

That’s worth a bottle of water celebration for Cason Wallace 👏 https://t.co/TkikcGucj0 pic.twitter.com/KAD506Nivg

— NBA (@NBA) February 2, 2026

After the win, Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault explained how Wallace’s elite shooting opened up opportunities for the rest of his teammates in Sunday’s win against the Nuggets.

“I thought the way we played offense benefited everybody tonight. We had some good looks against them. Most of our offense was really suited to the way we were guarded,” Daigneault said. “We just took what the defense gave us and finished a lot of plays. Obviously, we shot the ball well.”

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 34 points on 11-for-16 shooting, 13 assists, five rebounds and two steals. Chet Holmgren added 14 points, four rebounds and three blocks.