OKC Thunder stock report: Ajay Mitchell, Jared McCain soaring in NBA Playoffs
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Another round, another sweep, another week off for the Thunder.
Who said defending a title was hard?
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As the Thunder awaits either the Spurs or Timberwolves in Round 3, let’s take stock of where OKC stands after sweeping the Lakers in Round 2.
Stock up: Ajay Mitchell
Mitchell’s stock rose after Round 1. Now it’s soaring, but buy in if you still can.
The Jalen Brunson comps are almost too easy to make. Mitchell is playing like a guy who could have his own team. Don’t kill me for this comp, but there are shades of James Harden in both his game and role with the Thunder.
The big difference: Harden was a No. 3 pick. Mitchell was a No. 38 pick.
It’s also evident that Mitchell has been an observant understudy of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The downhill nature of their games. The ways in which they play slow, yet always seem to blow by defenders. Their knack for mid-range jumpers. Their herky-jerky’ness. Their touch around the rim. Their cool composure.
I’m not saying Mitchell is going to be an MVP on par with Gilgeous-Alexander or Harden. But if you set the line at 0.5 All-Star appearances, give me the over.
He just averaged 22 points on 56% shooting in a four-game sweep of the Lakers. He shot 67% from inside the arc and 88% from the foul line. He dished 24 assists against four turnovers.
That’s star-level stuff.
And when Jalen Williams (another guy who could run his own team) comes back, Mitchell is likely to come off the bench.
The talent on this team is staggering.
Stock up: Jared McCain
Daryl Morey’s quote about the Sixers “selling high” on Jared McCain is becoming more infamous by the day.
I have little room to talk. I thought McCain was a good buy-low for the Thunder from a long-term standpoint. I did not, however, envision him having much of a role in the playoffs.
But after shooting 12 of 19 from 3-point range (a cool 63%) in the Lakers series, it’s time for me to admit defeat for that take.
McCain is an A+ 3-point shooter, but there’s more to his game than that. He plays with an all-around verve that seems to energize his teammates and certainly the home crowd.
McCain scored 12 points in 22 minutes in Round 1. In the same number of games, he scored 48 points in 56 minutes in Round 2.
Stock down: Isaiah Joe
Isaiah Joe had the best season of his career. He leveled up as a movement 3-point shooter. He got even feistier defensively.
But McCain’s rise correlated with Joe’s fall. That was true in the Lakers series, at least. Of course it could flip in the West Finals.
Joe averaged nine more minutes per game than McCain in Round 1. McCain averaged three more minutes than Joe in Round 2.
And it’s not like Joe was stacking bricks. He shot 5 of 12 from deep against the Lakers.
In the regular season, there was room for both Joe and McCain. It’s starting to feel like an either/or situation in the playoffs given their overlapping skillsets. Both are elite 3-point shooters, but McCain has a little more wiggle to his offensive game. Joe is less of a defensive liability.
Stock up: Rust’s hold on SGA
He said it himself in his walk-off interview after Game 4.
“The rust has been taking its toll on me.”
SGA has gotten off to slow starts (by his standards) in both series, and rust is a viable explanation. The Thunder had a week off between the end of the regular season and the start of Round 1. And then another week off between the end of Round 1 and the start of Round 2.
And OKC is about to have another week off before it faces either Minnesota or San Antonio in the conference finals.
But don’t cry for the Thunder. If OKC wants less rest, and therefore less rust, it should’ve lost a game or two by now. Now that doesn’t sound like a good strategy. No, no it doesn’t.
By the way, SGA is averaging 29.1 points on 51% shooting in these playoffs. His turnovers are up (3.0 per game), but so are his assists (7.1).
Rust is a relative term.
Stock down: Thunder officiating conspiracies
The Thunder swept the Lakers, just as the league wanted. Commissioner Adam Silver loves him some middle America. Especially at the expense of LeBron and LA.
I thought Game 2 was officiated poorly from both sides. Other than that, I had no issues with how the series was called. That didn’t stop Lakers fans and Thunder fans from accusing the other of war crimes … but alas.
Personal fouls in the series: Thunder 81, Lakers 80.
Free throws attempted: Lakers 86, Thunder 72.
Please for the love of everything holy can everybody (I’m looking at you too, Thunder fans) shut up about the officiating?
Stock up: Chet Holmgren
Chet Holmgren is the Thunder’s second-best player. No, Jalen Williams is the Thunder’s second-best player. No, it’s Holmgren.
I keep flipping back and forth, not that it matters. They’re both great.
But Holmgren has stepped up as needed with J-Dub out. Could a case be made that Holmgren, and not SGA, has been the Thunder’s best player in the playoffs? I’d listen.
Holmgren averaged 20 points on 61/39/87 shooting splits against the Lakers all while denying LA anything easy.
Stock down: Game 5s
Who needs them anyway?
The Thunder became the eighth team to start the playoffs 8-0.
The last to do it was the 2016-17 Warriors, who went 16-1 en route to an NBA title.
Joe Mussatto is a sports columnist for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Joe? Email him at [email protected]. Support Joe's work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Ajay Mitchell, Jared McCain's stock soaring after Thunder sweep Lakers