High School

OKC Thunder Standout Jalen Williams Gets Jersey Retired at Alma Mater (Video)

Williams, a 2019 graduate of Perry High School, starred for the Pumas' boys basketball team

Kevin L. Smith

OKC Thunder star Jalen Williams witnesses as Perry High School staff members reveal his retired No. 11 jersey number on Tuesday.
OKC Thunder star Jalen Williams witnesses as Perry High School staff members reveal his retired No. 11 jersey number on Tuesday. / Perry High School Athletics

Oklahoma City Thunder standout Jalen Williams has been in the NBA since 2022. In that short amount of time, he has garnered plenty of accomplishments.

Williams is an all-star and has received All-NBA third team and All-Defensive second team and All-Rookie first team recognition. Aside from those accolades, he was part of OKC’s 2024-25 NBA champion squad.

In December, the Santa Clara men’s basketball team retired Williams’ No. 24 jersey. On Tuesday, the honor occurred once again, this time at the high school level.

Perry High School, Williams’ alma mater, retired the NBA star’s No. 11 jersey in front of friends, family and the Puma faithful. 

Williams watched as Perry officials revealed the school’s first-ever retired jersey number on the walls of the high school gymnasium.

“It’s just wild,” he said via the Arizona Republic. “Being 14, a little kid coming into high school, and now coming back now, obviously to have the success I've been having in the NBA...

“When you're that young playing, it doesn't seem ... I wouldn't say feasible. But you don’t really know that’s going to happen. It just seems like a dream. To come back and make it a reality, it’s surreal.”

Williams’ Thunder teammates were also on hand to support him on his special night.

“That’s the team we have,” Williams said via the AZ Republic. “They want to support. I’ve been there for theirs. It’s just really cool to have that support from guys I'm with on a daily basis. For them to want to do it in the middle of season... We only have two games left before the All-Star break, so to drive 45 minutes to support me, that’s really cool.”

Williams, a 2019 graduate of Perry High School, was part of a Pumas’ squad that reached the Class 6A state final four in the 2018-19 season. Williams averaged 25 points as a senior, and he was recognized as Chandler Unified School District Player of the Year and Region Offensive Player of the Year in his high school career.

“Jalen represents the very best of Perry High School,” Pumas athletic director Jennifer Burks said. “His journey from the Dan Serrano Gymnasium to the highest levels of professional basketball serves as an inspiration to our current and future Pumas. We are thrilled that this will be the first number to be hung on our wall of honor.”

Williams’ brother Cody, a 2023 Perry graduate who now plays for the Utah Jazz, played in the McDonald’s All-American Game and the Nike Hoops Summit. Cody also won three state titles with the Pumas.

Despite Jalen not capturing a state championship in high school, he said winning an NBA title makes up for it.

“I’ve got an NBA championship ring, so we’re about even right now,” Jalen said via the AZ Republic. “He used to bring it up all the time. But now that I’ve got a jersey retired before him – his is on the way – but I got one before him. So we’re good.”

Williams is averaging 16.4 points, 5.4 assists, 4.7 rebounds and 1.3 steals through 25 games for the Thunder so far this season.

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Kevin L. Smith
KEVIN L. SMITH

Kevin L. Smith, a Rochester (NY) native and a graduate of St. Bonaventure University, has been covering high school sports for over a decade. He started out as a freelance sportswriter in 2013. Since then, he’s held sportswriter and editor positions for newspapers in Coudersport (PA), Sayre (PA) and Oswego (NY). Smith currently covers high school sports in the Greater Syracuse Area for syracuse.com | Post-Standard, a position he’s held since 2021. You can follow him on social media @KevLSmittie. Story ideas can be sent to KLSFreelancing@outlook.com.

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