This summer, the OKC Thunder committed themselves to upwards of $877.21 million in new, standard contracts, $239 million of which is tied to Jalen Williams by way of base salary.
Since putting pen to paper on this lucrative five-year, max extension, the consensus opinion has been that Oklahoma City seemingly managed to come away with a true bargain of a deal.
Considering the man just made his first All-Star team, was named All-NBA Third-Team, and served as the number two option on the eventual NBA Champions while posting averages of 21.6 points, 5.3 rebounds, 5.1 assists, and 1.6 steals on 48.4 percent shooting from the floor and 36.5 percent shooting from deep along the way, it's truly hard to argue otherwise.
Now, following a recent survey released by ESPN, it appears that any case made in opposition to such a sentiment is destined to become all the more difficult to construct.
Thunder star a candidate for 'best American player in five years'
In a survey conducted by ESPN's senior NBA writer, Tim Bontemps, and involving 20 coaches, scouts, and executives, the question of "Who will be the best American player in five years?" was asked.
In response to the inquiry, five different players received a vote, with Williams being one of them.
Though several rungs below the top-ranked Anthony Edwards and the second-ranked rookie phenom Cooper Flagg, J-Dub's presence on the list is a high-end compliment on its own, and, more importantly, even more proof that Sam Presti pulled off arguably the best signing of the offseason.
By the time the 2029-30 season rolls around, Williams will already be on the fourth year of his recently signed extension, accounting for 26.78 percent of the cap, and will only go up to 30.0 percent if he makes First-Team All-NBA, wins MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, etc.
To put this into perspective, Paolo Banchero, who tied with him on this part of the survey, could earn 30 percent of the cap that very year if he were to merely earn third-team All-NBA, while someone like Jayson Tatum, who ranked third, will automatically be accounting for 35.6 percent of the cap while earning a ridiculous $71.45 million in base salary, roughly $20.15 million more than Williams' payday.
While currently being considered a top-15 player makes his new contract a potential bargain already, scooting into the conversation of being considered a top-five, or potentially even the best American-born baller in five years' time, only further strengthens such a claim.