Jalen Williams and OKC Thunder are hanging out to the high standards they feel they haven’t seen yet.
After a big victory over the Indiana Pacers, the lightning flies high. Tieing the NBA Finals 1-1 was important to them after losing Game 1.
Gary Payton claimed that the first team wins the NBA Finals. However, after a 16-point victory in Game 2, the Thunder will beg for something different.
Jalen Williams and Shai Ggeous-Alexander scored 53 points in the win. The OKC pair’s star-level playoff runs continue as both stars deliver at the highest level.
Williams reminded fans that the series wasn’t over after Game 1. And even after tonight’s victory, the All-Stars are not ready to write down the pacers.
Marika Andrews spoke to Jalen Williams after Game 2 of the Thunder won the Pacers. She asks the young star if the Thunder played their best basketball.
In typical Thunder fashion, Williams replied that his team hadn’t reached its peak and didn’t want to limit his team’s true potential to a strong Game 2 performance, especially as he faces two games on Indiana roads.
“I don’t think so. I don’t want to limit yourself. We’ve done enough to win the game. I think we did enough to win the game tonight. But that’s definitely a different mentality.”
“They came here and stole, so they definitely go home with a lot of confidence.
“So we have to prepare to compete a much more difficult than we did in these last two games.
In the final two games, Jalen Williams showed he wasn’t afraid of the Big NBA final stage. He was the second option they could trust.
In the first two games of the NBA Finals, Williams averaged 18.0 points, 5.5 assists and 4.5 rebounds. He is the second leading scorer in the Thunder just behind the SGA.
His efficiency is not ideal at 33.3% off the field and 22.2% above the arc, but Williams suffered a Thunder attack while stretching, while Shy Gilgauss Alexander rests a bit.
The Thunder relies on Williams to score at a high level for them in the game in the upcoming games. Playing for Indiana is the best player, so Williams is very much needed to score.
The last thing the Thunder needs is to overrely rely on Shy as a scorer on the road. If Williams can continue scoring at a high level, they can steal the game on the road if there is a possibility of dealing with his efficiency.