On Monday night, the OKC Thunder and Indiana Pacers took the floor in a pivotal Game 5 of the NBA Finals. Following another exciting matchup, one key player in the series received high praise from a former Boston Celtics champion.
The Pacers managed to make things interesting in the fourth quarter, but the Thunder managed to regain momentum and walk out with a 120-109 victory. A driving force in this crucial win was the play of Jalen Williams. The All-Star forward had his best performance of the series thus far, erupting for 40 points on 56% shooting from the field.
As Williams picked apart the Pacers’ defense, countless people in and around the basketball world took to social media to applaud his efforts. Among those to do so was Kendrick Perkins, who has loved what he’s seen from the Thunder star in his first taste of finals action.
“J-Dubb standing on Bidness in these Finals,” Perkins wrote on X.
Williams came out of the gates slow, but has settled in nicely after shaking off the nerves of playing on the game’s biggest stage. With his outburst on Monday, he has not scored 26 or more points in each of the last three matchups.
The Thunder are already a tough team to compete with as it is. That said, when Williams is operating at this high of a level, they are nearly impossible to defeat. Thanks to him and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander combining for 71 points, OKC now finds themselves one win away from capturing a championship.
In recent years, Williams has slowly entered the conversation of top second options in the NBA. With his play in the finals, he has proven he is more than capable of leading the charge for the Thunder alongside SGA. Williams will attempt to keep his momentum rolling Thursday as OKC attempts to close things out.
