Jalen Williams leads Thunder past Spurs in preseason finale

The Oklahoma City Thunder won a back-and-forth game against the Spurs on Thursday night’s preseason finale. The young Thunder core came out on top against a new-look Spurs team, with Jalen Williams leading the way for OKC.

With Shai Gilgeous-Alexander sitting out of the final game before the season opener, Williams played over 30 minutes and led the Thunder in scoring with 21 points on just eight shots. He only missed one field goal the entire game and was a perfect 1-for-1 from three.

The Oklahoma City Thunder wrap up the preseason with a 5-1 record following a win over the San Antonio Spurs, thanks to Jalen Williams’ scoring outburst.

Williams, the 12th overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, has looked like a steal so far for OKC. He is efficient, he plays defense, he can score from anywhere, he’s crafty and a great playmaker. Despite being projected as a mid-to-late first-rounder leading up to the NBA draft, I bet a lot of general managers throughout the league are wishing they got their hands on Williams.

Josh Giddey tallied 18 points on the night along with six rebounds and six assists. Giddey continues to impress with his improved jump shot with another great display of shooting from deep, making two of his three attempts from behind the line. It looks like the Chip Engelland hire is already working wonders for the Thunder and if Giddey can be this consistent from three in the regular season, he will have the complete package offensively. He already looked like a star in the making, but his superstar potential flashed in the preseason.

Tre Mann also had an efficient night from beyond the arc, knocking down four threes. Mann continues to lose defenders and create space using his smooth step-back move. He also showed off his unlimited range when he cashed in a shot about five steps behind the three-point line.

Ousmane Dieng had another solid outing off the bench for the Thunder. Dieng was labeled a project coming into the 2022 NBA draft, but the Thunder traded three first-round picks to select him for a reason. Although the offensive struggles were there in Summer League, as well as the first couple of preseason games, Dieng has looked much more comfortable the past few games. In this game, he added 11 points on an efficient 5-for-8 shooting from the field, while still showing his extreme defensive potential.

Luguentz Dort had a solid outing for the Thunder before exiting the game with a knee injury. No details of the injury or its severity have been announced yet, but it did not look like it was anything serious.

Darius Bazley showed his elite rim protection, swatting two shots on the night, including a block on Spurs’ center Jakob Poeltl that resulted in a Mann and-1 in transition. Bazley also had an emphatic poster jam on Poeltl in the game, showing off his elite athleticism.

This Thunder team has looked really good so far and has been a really fun team to watch. Knowing we haven’t even seen this team play with an elite scorer in SGA is super exciting, and even more exciting when thinking about adding Chet Holmgren into the mix next season. Say what you want about the Thunder’s past couple of seasons, but there is no denying that the future is bright.

The Thunder will play their first regular season game against the Minnesota Timberwolves on October 19th.