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After skyrocketing up boards within the pre-draft course of, Jalen Williams in the end discovered his means onto the Oklahoma City Thunder within the lottery. With the No. 12 general choose, he was a prospect Thunder GM Sam Presti coveted.
After a profitable faculty marketing campaign at Santa Clara, Williams could be tasked with a brand new function within the NBA. Rather than being a major on-ball guard, he’d have to show himself as a complimentary wing.
To this level in NBA Summer League, he’s been higher than anybody may have anticipated.
With a 7-foot-2 wingspan, Williams’ sport has immediately translated on each ends of the ground. Not solely has he been one in all Oklahoma City’s prime scorers, however he’s been a key defender.
In reality, in opposition to the Houston Rockets only a few days in the past he was tasked with defending No. 3 general choose Jabari Smith Jr. for a great portion of the sport. Williams blocked one in all Smith’s go-to elbow jumpers whereas additionally making his life tough offensively all sport.
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He’s additionally confirmed to be an elite cutter and environment friendly scorer. Playing off of guard Josh Giddey, Williams has gotten straightforward buckets within the half courtroom offense and in transition, exhibiting off his bounce and craftiness to end close to the rim.
The means to move the ball and facilitate has additionally popped, leveraging the expertise he gained because the offensive focus in faculty. Whether he’s scoring or not, Williams has been one of the vital impactful gamers on the Thunder.
It’s nonetheless early in his profession, however Williams is making the case to maybe be one essentially the most underrated rookies on this whole class. At this level, it wouldn’t be stunning to see him be one of many first gamers off the bench in OKC and even begin a number of video games as a rookie.
The versatility and talent to play a number of positions makes him a plug-and-play prospect on the subsequent stage.
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story by The Texas Tribune Source link
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