"When you have those two things, you're gonna figure it out" - SGA says he knew Jalen Williams was going to be special from the jump originally appeared on Basketball Network .
The Oklahoma City Thunder are one win away from winning the first championship in franchise history after defeating the Indiana Pacers 120-109 in Game 5 of the 2025 NBA Finals on Monday night at PayCom Arena in OKC.
2025 NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was his usual brilliant self with 31 points, 10 assists, two rebounds, two steals and four blocked shots in 38 minutes of action. However, it was Gilgeous-Alexander's "sidekick," Jalen Williams , who stole the show with a playoff career-high 40 points.
While many were taken aback by J-Dub's 40-piece performance in a Finals game, SGA said he was not surprised because the first time he saw Williams put on a Thunder uniform and play, he knew they had a special player.
"Honestly, from when I saw him play in Summer League, I knew like he could be really good in this league," said Gilgeous-Alexander. "He can do so many things on the basketball court. And then he really has a good feel and really good work ethic. And when you have those two things, you're gonna figure it out. You're gonna get better and just continue to mold your game the more you work and figure out your spots, figure out where you're supposed to be and where you're not supposed to be. And we're seeing that blossom right before our eyes."
The 24-year-old is coming off his best season in the league. Jalen averaged career highs with 21.6 points, 4.6 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.6 steals per game during the regular season.
In the 2025 NBA Finals, Williams has played a notch higher, averaging 25.8 points, 5.6 boards and 4.2 dimes per night. In the last three games of the championship series, J-Dub has put up 31.0 points and 6.3 rebounds per contest, including Monday night's 40-piece in Game 5.
During that span, Jalen joined Kyrie Irving , Kevin Durant , Dwyane Wade , and Shaquille O'Neal as the only players over the last four decades to score 25+ points in three consecutive Finals games before the age of 25.
"Great force, that's the word and we've used that word with him in his development. When he's at his best, he's playing with that type of force. That was an unbelievable performance by him. Just throughout the whole game, I mean he really was on the gas the entire night and applied a ton of pressure. I thought he made a lot of right plays. And we're going to need a similar type of approach in Game 6," said Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault of J-Dub after the game.
J-Dubs' Game 5 performance comes right after ESPN's Brian Windhorst revealed during the network's First Take show earlier on Monday that there are people in the league who are comparing him to Chicago Bulls legend Scottie Pippen.
"The difference-maker in Game 4 was how SGA worked with Jalen Williams ," said Windy. "There are people in this league who believe that Jalen Williams can have a Scottie-Pippen-like career because he can do it at both ends. The playing of point guard through the first three quarters of this game and then working on the two-man game to force a better matchup with SGA, Jalen Williams was the guy who unlocked SGA throughout that whole game, and that 1-2 maneuver could be a big thing not just tonight but for the next decade in the NBA."
Tracy McGrady recently compared SGA's game to Michael Jordan's, and now here come the Pippen comparisons for J-Dub. Those make sense, though, as OKC is one win away from its first NBA title, and it's young and outstanding.
You can also argue that the current Thunder team could be the next dynasty, like Jordan's Bulls were during the 1990s. But that may be looking too far ahead. For now, Oklahoma City has to win one more contest, as Game 6 will be on Thursday night in Indianapolis.
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jun 17, 2025, where it first appeared.
