Jaylin Williams Has the Opportunity to Show his Progression

As the Oklahoma City Blue have played through their season, we’ve seen solid games from the Thunder guys on assignment with them. In that time, Jaylin Williams, who was selected with the no. 34 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, has shown many flashes which include his rebounding and passing.

Evidently, the Oklahoma City Thunder were going to have a void at the center position this season. Derrick Favors was traded, Chet Holmgren suffered a season-long injury and it’s hard to find solid center minutes from Aleksej Pokusevski and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, who are both naturally power forwards.

Playing out of position the Thunder has seen improvements as a defender, and more primarily a shot blocker, from Pokusevski, and Robinson-Earl has provided a solid big-man presence with his strength. However, both of those guys are injured and set to miss time.
Now, Williams is called up once again and can be utilized this time. He could see a solid amount of playing time behind Mike Muscala. The center position is even more thin and it could prove to be a solid “checkpoint” for Williams.

Earlier this season, Ousmane Dieng was called up from his G League assignment for what Coach Daigneault stated was a “checkpoint.” In that time, Dieng set his career-high in points just before being sent back down.

We could easily see Williams set his career-high, simply because a 20+ minute game isn’t something he’s had yet and would allow him to shoot enough to set it. We could also get a baseline as to where the 6-foot-9 big man is talent wise. He’s shown flashes as a low and high post passer, and his rebounding could be beneficial to the squad. He’s got the size to reinforce the paint by not allowing opposing centers to make their way into the painted area.

The Arkansas product has appeared in 11 games, which were all starts, with the Blue. In those games, Williams has averaged 30.6 minutes per game while picking up 14.1 points per game, 8.3 rebounds per game and 5.3 assists per game. As for his efficiency, he’s shooting 63 percent from the field and 36 percent on 3-pointers, though the volume is low.

Even if he’s only here during the absence of Pokusevski and Robinson-Earl, NBA playing time will benefit Williams as he continues to progress for the Thunder.

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