Jalen Williams Stays at No. 2 on NBA Rookie Ladder with Unprecedented Play

Following yet another week of strong play, Thunder rookie Jalen Williams has maintained his spot at No. 2 on the official NBA rookie ladder.

Williams has had an incredible month of March, leading to his initial rise to the second spot last week. In five games, he’s averaged 22.6 points, 6.4 rebounds and 4.8 assists while shooting a whopping 64 percent overall and 54 percent from beyond the arc. He also tacked on 2.2 steals and shot 85 percent from the line in that same span.

Since his last ladder ranking, he’s averaged 20.3 points, 7.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game while shooting 57.5 percent overall. In his last 14 games, Williams broke Shaquille O’Neal’s record for true shooting percentage in a 14-game span for a rookie.

Suffice to say, Williams has been seeing some unprecedented efficiency numbers for a rookie.

More than his individual accolades, he’s helped the Thunder to win six of their last seven games and push them right back into the NBA Play-In mix following a five-game slide out of the All-Star break.

On the season, Williams is now averaging 13.6 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game while shooting 52 percent overall. On the rookie ladder, he only trails Orlando’s Paolo Banchero, and that’s likely the case for the coveted 2022-23 Rookie of the Year Award, as well.

For now, Williams and the Thunder look to their next matchup with Toronto on Thursday to again try and move to an even record.

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