After his season-high 26-point performance, it’s easy to focus on the offensive side of Oklahoma City Thunder guard Jared McCain.
Heading into Saturday’s road matchup with the Washington Wizards, however, Oklahoma City coach Mark Daigneault is focusing more on the defensive side of McCain’s game since he was acquired in a Feb. 4 trade with the Philadelphia 76ers.
“I don’t know how much he’s developed but he’s definitely integrated well. He’s learning his teammates, he’s learning our system, the fundamentals that we emphasize,” Daigneault said. “… He’s done a really good job of committing to our fundamentals and the things that we need to do on the defensive end of the floor.
“Obviously he’s a very potent offensive player, but he gives up some size and needs to be really fundamental and feisty (defensively) and he’s done that, especially lately.”
The Thunder are 15-3 since acquiring McCain after going 11-7 in their 18 games prior to the trade.
McCain has been particularly important to Oklahoma City during the absence of Jalen Williams, who along with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is one of the Thunder’s primary ballhandlers.
Williams hasn’t played since Feb. 11 as he recovers from a hamstring strain.
Oklahoma City (55-15) comes into the Saturday game on a 10-game winning streak and is working to hold off San Antonio for the top seed in the Western Conference.
The Thunder come into the contest with the Wizards three games ahead of the Spurs.
The Saturday game is the last of two between the Wizards and Thunder this season.
Oklahoma City won the first meeting by 19 on Oct. 30 in the third of what became a 14-game losing streak for the Wizards.
Washington is once again on a 14-game losing streak, with their last win coming Feb. 20. The Wizards have lost by an average of nearly 15 points per game during the streak.
The Thunder lead the NBA in net rating, outscoring opponents by 10.9 points per 100 possessions, while the Wizards are last at minus-11.1.
Oklahoma City is holding opponents to a league-low 43.4% from the field.
In the earlier meeting, the Thunder scored 26 points on Washington’s 23 turnovers while Oklahoma City turned the ball over just six times for five Wizards’ points.
In Thursday’s 117-95 loss to Detroit, the Pistons scored 23 points on Washington’s 19 turnovers for a plus-10 advantage off turnovers.
Much like Daigneault when talking about McCain, Wizards coach Brian Keefe has been pleased with the recent defensive growth from third-year reserve center Tristan Vukcevic, who has had the two best offensive games of his career over the past four games.
“He’s one of the better bigs in the league in terms of disruptions — disrupting the ball, getting his hands on things,” Keefe said.
The Wizards remain short-handed, with Anthony Davis still yet to make his D.C. debut after not playing since early January. Additionally, Trae Young has missed the last two games with a quadriceps contusion and has played in just five since being acquired from Atlanta in February.
In an update Friday, the Wizards announced Davis continues to progress, but that he would remain out at least until being evaluated later in the month. On Saturday, the team said Young has a right quadriceps contusion and lower back irritation and the “injuries are being treated conservatively.”
The Wizards said Young will not require surgery but gave no timeline for his return to the court.
–Field Level Media
