The Oklahoma City Thunder have started Luguentz Dort in every game of the Western Conference Finals, yet they have been outscored with him on the floor in all six games.
Dort carries a negative plus/minus even in the two games where the Thunder won by double digits, which underlines how damaging his presence has been.
For the series, the San Antonio Spurs have outscored the Thunder by 60 points across the 109 minutes that Dort has been on the floor.
Dort made the All-Defensive first team last season, a testament to his effectiveness on that side of the ball, and he is strong enough to guard bigger players.
However, he has managed only three steals in six games this series and got into foul trouble in the Thunder’s Game 1 and Game 4 losses.
His biggest problem has been on offense, where he is shooting just 4-of-22 from three-point range and went 1-of-9 from deep in Game 6 alone.
Three-pointers made up 71 percent of Dort’s shot diet in this series and 64.8 percent of his shots in the regular season, meaning an inability to make threes kills his offensive value entirely.
The Thunder have already trimmed Dort’s minutes, but it may now be time to start All-Defensive guard Cason Wallace instead of relying on a player clearly struggling with his shot.
Wallace has played the fourth-most minutes on the Thunder in the Western Conference Finals, just behind Jared McCain, and is shooting 13-of-27 from three-point range for the series.
Wallace carries a positive plus/minus for the series, though it does not match the remarkable plus-38 posted by super-sub Alex Caruso across the same stretch of games.
Jalen Williams looked hobbled in his Game 6 return and Ajay Mitchell may miss Game 7 with a calf strain, cutting into the Thunder’s celebrated depth at a critical moment.
The Thunder have already elevated McCain to the starting lineup, and Game 7 presents the ideal opportunity to move either Wallace or Caruso into a starting role as well.
The team has thrived by deploying fresh and surprising player combinations, though that approach becomes harder when two key starters are unavailable or limited.
If Dort can rediscover his shooting stroke quickly in Game 7, his earlier struggles may be forgotten, but a continued slump allows the Spurs to cheat off him and disrupt his teammates.
The Thunder should enter Game 7 with Caruso and Wallace playing significant minutes and Dort operating on an extremely short leash if he cannot contribute offensively.
