Jalen Williams Ranks No. 6 in NBA Rookie Ladder
Fresh off some career performances, Thunder rookie Jalen Williams has moved up to sixth on the NBA’s official rookie ladder.
Williams has seen an increased workload for Oklahoma City of late, taking on more of the primary and secondary creator responsibilities in the recent slate.
With that, he’s seen a jump in productivity, averaging 16.7 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game since the last ladder.
On the season, Williams is now averaging 10.6 points while shooting 51.4 percent from the floor.
Even more impressively, Williams almost nightly gains the task of guarding one of the oppositions two best players (see Ja Morant on Wednesday night), usually the taller of the two. He's just 6-foot-6, but with a 7-foot wingspan he's held his own on many an occasion.
In the rookie ladder, Williams is flanked by Sacramento’s Keegan Murray and Houston's Tari Eason, both of which have had respectable starts to their season. Paolo Banchero, Bennedict Mathurin, Jaden Ivey and Jabari Smith Jr. comprise the top four.
Selected twelfth overall in the 2022 NBA Draft, Williams has perhaps surpassed his expectations the most of any others in the class.
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