Cason Wallace selected No. 10 in NBA Draft, traded to OKC Thunder

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john-calipari-congratulates-cason-wallace-after-selection-in-first-round-of-2023-nba-draft — Photo by Arturo Holmes | Getty Images

Cason Wallace has found his NBA home.

During Thursday night’s 2023 NBA Draft, the Kentucky men’s basketball freshman combo guard was selected with the No. 10 overall pick by the Dallas Mavericks, but his draft rights were traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder. Wallace is UK’s 24th lottery pick under head coach John Calipari.

Dallas is also sending Davis Bertans to OKC as part of the deal, which will team Wallace up in the Thunder backcourt with former ‘Cat Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who was an All-NBA First-Team member in 2022-23. In addition, the Thunder sent its No. 12 pick to the Mavericks.

“Kentucky guards, Kentucky players in general, they get to the league, they stick for a while,” Wallace said immediately after getting drafted. “Kentucky, they set me up very nicely — let me play point, let me play wing, I got to display many different talents.”

During his lone season with the Wildcats, Wallace put up per-game averages of 11.7 points, 3.7 rebounds, 4.3 assists, and 2.0 steals in 32.2 minutes across 32 games (all starts). The All-SEC Freshman Team selection shot 44.6 percent overall from the field, 34.6 percent from beyond the arc, and 75.7 percent from the free throw line. He ranked among the SEC’s leaders in assists per game (2nd), assist-to-turnover ratio (4th), and steals per game (4th).

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Wallace, who turns 20 years old in November, scored at least 20 points on four occasions for the ‘Cats, including a 21-point, nine-rebound, four-assist, and two-steal performance in Kentucky’s final game of the season — a 75-69 loss to Kansas State in the NCAA Tournament’s Round of 32. He also dropped at least nine assists four different times, breaking double-digits with an 11-assist outing against Mississippi State.

Out of Richardson (TX) High, Wallace was a consensus five-star recruit before suiting up for Kentucky and was considered the No. 7 overall prospect from the class of 2022 according to the On3 Industry Ranking. He was named the 2022 Texas Gatorade Player of the Year and The Dallas Morning News’ Player of the Year during his senior season at Richardson. Wallace was also a McDonald’s All-American and was named to the Jordan Brand Classic roster.

Now, Wallace is off to start his pro career in OKC.