OKC Thunder Looking for Aaron Wiggins to Break Out on Road Trip

The Thunder's fan favorite has been unable to find a rhythm recently.

Feb 22, 2026; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Aaron Wiggins (21) moves the ball down the court against the Cleveland Cavaliers during the first quarter at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images | Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

Oklahoma City has been on a roll since the All-Star break, and one of its role players could be ready to take another step on this road trip.

Over the past few weeks, the Thunder have steadily gotten healthier and are looking to make one last push in the regular season to secure the top seed in the West and carry some momentum into the postseason. With the Thunder holding out some key guys on the front end of a back-to-back on Tuesday night in Chicago, Oklahoma City will be relying on its role players to take care of business against the Bulls.

One of the worst teams in the league, the Bulls could be the perfect matchup for one of the Thunder’s struggling role players. After playing a key part in the Thunder’s title run last season, Aaron Wiggins has had issues finding a rhythm again this season, but he could easily change that over the final weeks of the regular season.

Of course, it hasn’t been too easy for Wiggins in recent weeks. With a few other role players making clear contributions and the addition of Jared McCain to the Thunder’s reserves, Wiggins hasn’t had much consistency in his role.

Still, consistency has never been a given with the Thunder and how Mark Daigneault likes to craft his rotations from game to game. While Wiggins is still averaging double digits for the season, he’s only hit the 10-point mark once in six tries since the All-Star break, dropping 20 for the shorthanded Thunder in Detroit last week.

Now, with the Thunder again shorthanded against the Bulls, Wiggins has another opportunity to show off his skills as a creator and play finisher. Considering Daigneault recently noted that he has no issues playing Wiggins through his struggles because he’s a low-mistake player, the Thunder’s faith in him clearly hasn’t wavered.

Sure, he’s been going through a rough stretch in recent weeks, but the Thunder have also seen the highs from Wiggins and know how important he was in the 2025 title run. There’s always a chance that Wiggins never quite reaches his ceiling from last season again this year, but a game like this could be the perfect opportunity to ramp up for the stretch run.

Just in the weeks leading up to the All-Star break, Wiggins had an 11-game stretch of averaging 12.4 points and dropping double digits in nine of those 11 contests. Based on his full body of work, Wiggins has plenty in the tank to give, but it will be up to him to take advantage of this situation and get back on track in Chicago, New York and beyond.