The post Stephen A. Smith uses Michael Jordan-Scottie Pippen example to praise Thunder's Jalen Williams appeared first on ClutchPoints .
The Oklahoma City Thunder have put the Indiana Pacers on the brink of elimination for the first time these playoffs, taking a 3-2 series lead with a 120-109 win in Game 5 of the NBA Finals on Monday night. Jalen Williams ' performance drew an intriguing Michael Jordan –Scottie Pippen comparison from ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith.
Smith spoke on ESPN's "First Take" Tuesday morning:
"I get the Scottie Pippen joint because when you look at Jalen Williams , the brother's a stud, legit 6'7"-6'8", one of the two players in the NBA this year that made an All-NBA and All-Defensive Team. The brother plays on both sides of the ball."
Smith continued:
"He's got a jumpshot, he's got a handle, he's got passing ability. He can finish at the free throw line, finish in the open court, he's athletic — the brother's got a bag, no doubt about it, and he can ball."
Williams finished Game 5 as the game's leading scorer with 40 points , six rebounds, four assists, and one steal. He shot 14-for-25 from the field and 9-for-12 from the free throw line, posting a game-high plus/minus of +14. According to ESPN, Williams joined LeBron James and Kevin Durant as the only players since 1998 to record at least 18 points in the paint and three made three-pointers in an NBA Finals game.
Additionally, Williams became only the fifth player in the last 40 seasons to score 25 or more points in three straight Finals games before turning 25 years old . The others to accomplish the feat are Shaquille O'Neal (1995), Dwyane Wade (2006), Kevin Durant (2012), and Kyrie Irving (2016).
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander , the 2024–25 NBA Most Valuable Player, contributed 31 points on 9-for-21 shooting and 13-for-14 from the line, adding 10 assists, four blocks, and two steals with a +9 plus/minus. Together, Williams and Gilgeous-Alexander became the first pair of teammates since LeBron James and Kyrie Irving to record at least 40 and 30 points, respectively, in an NBA Finals game.
Smith then drew a line between Williams and Pippen:
"I don't know about the Scottie Pippen comparisons because for me personally, Scottie Pippen's one of the all-time greats — primarily with his defense."
He added:
"One of the things I've never seen — even though his greatest offensive performance was when he scored 37, if I remember correctly, as a Houston Rocket in the first round — this was not when he was with the Chicago Bulls . One time with the Chicago Bulls, he might've dropped 35, but I've never seen a game where Michael Jordan was on the court and Scottie Pippen was the No. 1 option. That never happened."
Smith pointed to Game 5 as an example:
"That happened last night with Jalen Williams. Jalen Williams was given the ball by [Mark] Daigneault — now it was supposed to be for the purposes of being a point forward, getting the ball out of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's hands, not getting the first line of defense out of Indiana coming at SGA. Let it come to Jalen Williams instead so you could preserve SGA so he can have fresh legs come the fourth quarter because we saw what happened to him in Game 3."
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He emphasized Williams' confidence:
"But Jalen Williams is waving him off because he was feeling it. SGA knew it and said go ahead and do your thing. I never saw that with Pippen with Michael Jordan on the court. That's why I don't get that comparison, that's just me."
Smith concluded:
"Having said that, Jalen Williams is special. Make no mistake about it. His only issue — and I told him this when I saw him — his only issue is consistency, that's it."
"There's nothing else about his game that you see that's not there. He defends. Offensively, he's got a bag — a versatile bag — when he brings it at you."
"The bottom line is this: it was consistency. But over the last three games, the brother is averaging 31 [points] on better than 50% shooting and SGA is averaging 30 on 46% shooting. They keep that up, Indiana is not winning this series."
"So I'm looking at it from that standpoint, and I've been saying all along: if Jalen Williams gives you what he's capable of giving you, there's no reason why the Thunder will lose a championship — and they're showing us that now."
The Thunder will look to clinch their first championship since relocating to Oklahoma City when they face the Pacers at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Game 6 of the NBA Finals on Thursday at 8:30 p.m. ET on ABC.
Related: Kyrie Irving gives 'prototype' praise to Thunder's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
