Behind the Oklahoma City Thunder was a fantastic 114-88 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals, with unexpected role players making headlines.
Relegated primarily to garbage hours for the entire playoffs, Ken Rich Williams delivered a perfect performance that attracted the attention of analysts across the country.
With just 10 minutes of action, Williams scored eight points with perfect shooting. More impressively, he registered an eye-opening +19 plus and minus rating during limited court hours.
NBA analyst Bill Simmons highlighted Kenrich Williams’ impact on the podcast, expressing his surprise at the efficiency of the veteran forward at such a critical playoff moment.
“It was funny that Kenrich Williams came in. Was it incredibly fifth and best nugget? Where did he rank the nuggets? Simmons said.
The analyst praise has led to a real curiosity about manager Mark Dean’s decision to leverage Williams in such a critical playoff contest.
“He was 19 in nine minutes and made every shot he took. It’s incredible. When he did that, I thought, “Is this a tactical move or he was worried that his team might be worn a little, so did he stretch the bench today?”
Williams’ surprising contributions contrast to his limited role throughout the Thunder playoff run. Before Game 1 of the conference final, Williams saw little meaningful action.
In the Western Conference semi-finals, he appeared in a blowout victory, winning more than 25 points in two of his seven games. His total scoring output on these looks was just five points.
In the regular season, the 30-year-old averaged 6.3 points and 3.5 rebounds in 16.4 minutes in 69 games (seven starts). He was primarily the fourth big man on the team, just behind Chet Holmgren, Isaiah Haltenstein and Jaylin Williams.
This context is even more noteworthy about his perfect Game 1 performance, showing off the extraordinary depths of Oklahoma City compared to his conference rivals.
Simmons also questioned whether Williams’ minutes’ increase was reflected.
“Did he (daigneault) suddenly lose faith in Caruso? And Caruso came in and played one of the great stretches he had in the playoffs,” observed Simmons.
Interestingly, Caruso answered potential concerns about his own perfect shooting night from the 3-point range, contributing nine points while maintaining his trademark defensive strength.
Daigneault’s willingness to trust deeper rotation players like Williams and Caruso could offer a huge advantage for Oklahoma City as the series progresses.