Isaiah Joe Will Be Playoff Difference Maker for OKC Thunder

Isaiah Joe is playing the best basketball of his career.

Throughout the 2025-26 campaign, Joe is logging a career best 10.8 points, 2.6 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 0.8 stocks (steals + blocks) per game while shooting 44% from the floor, a career-high 42% from the 3-point line and 88% at the charity stripe where he has landed a career best 1.9 attempts per night through 49 games and four starts.

Though it is more than just the raw numbers that are shining through for Joe. It is also more than just this red-hot month for the Arkansas product who caught this scribe's eye back in December. The career year has continued since then, while doing so in sustainable ways when forecasting the Thunder's 2026 NBA Playoff run.

On catch-and-shoot looks Joe is converting at a 44% clip which ranks in the 90th percentile, a number that jumps to the 97th percentile on unguarded catch-and-shoot looks converting at a 57% clip.

While Joe has always been a catch-and-shoot marksman, not only is this the best of his career, but it goes deeper than that. The 26-year-old is shooting 47% in the mid-range, 51% on corner triples and 39% on non-corner 3s.

Even on off-the-dribble jumpers, Joe is shooting 40%, which is a massive jump from a year ago, when he shot just 33% in that setting.

Coming off hand-offs, Joe has thrived, turning in 1.049 points per possession, and off dribble hand-offs (DHOs), he is shooting a jaw-dropping 46% from the floor. While curling off screens to his right, Joe is shooting at a 43% clip.

All of this pairs nicely with his ability to produce 1.258 as a pick-and-roll partner, laying guard to guard screens, and 1.253 points per possession in transition, and 1.344 points per possession as a spot-up option, where he shoots an impressive 45% from the floor.

His ability to operate as a screener, curl off screens set for him, handle DHOs, relocate around the perimeter to find an open look, and flashing some off the dribble scoring prowess all blend together for a completely different player than who he has been in the past –– One that can make a massive impact in the postseason.

Joe is also lethal for the Thunder's best baseline out-of-bounds play, which he is shooting 58% and has helped generate 1.615 points per possession, and in the half-court, he ranks in the 94th percentile as he posts 1.180 points per possession–– an area that got messy for the Bricktown Ballers last postseason.

Though it is not just offensive improvements for Joe. He has been able to stand in defensively in 16 isolation attempts against him; matchups are shooting just 31% while he is closing out to shooters off the catch and limiting them to 32% shooting and competing in the passing lanes. While he is far from elite on that end, he does enough to stay on the floor, especially flanked by the amount of defensive talent the Thunder enjoys.

Things look different now for Joe. Do not be shocked if he has a more featured role in the Thunder's quest for their second straight NBA Championship.