After beating the Phoenix Suns 125-112, Oklahoma City Thunder All-Star Jalen Williams joked during his postgame media availability that Alex Caruso’s career-high five steals in the box score must be a typo. In his first season with the Thunder, Caruso has elevated the team’s winning mentality as a veteran with a championship pedigree. Alex’s fundamental approach to the game for Williams has significantly impacted Oklahoma City.

After Wednesday’s win, Williams discussed Caruso’s impact against the Suns.

“He was great. AC’s just a really good vet. He’s a special player for our team. I think everybody always talks about how a lot of his stuff might not come up in the box score, like getting over screens, calling the coverages out right, pumping us up when we’re down; just stuff like that. A lot of that goes unnoticed from the outside perspective. But it’s something we noticed, and we definitely cherish it from him.” Obviously, tonight he was able to fill up the stats a little more.

“So, it was louder. So, I’m happy for him, but he’s ready to kind of do whatever it takes to win, and I think that’s why he’s such a special player,” Williams concluded.

Williams also spoke to his team’s ability to cruise to a 13-point victory with All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and starters Lu Dort and Cason Wallace.

“Well, we’re young, so we probably have a ton of energy. So, that has something to do with it,” Williams said. “I think we’re also maturing a lot faster than people realize or give us credit for. And we’re just learning through the experiences as a team.”

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With the win, Alex Caruso, Williams, and the Thunder simultaneously eliminated the Suns from playoff contention and clinched the best record in the NBA, 66-14.

Jalen Williams’ savage take on Thunder beating Suns

Thunder forward Jalen Williams warms up before the start of a game against the Los Angeles Lakers at Paycom Center
Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

Despite growing up near Phoenix, Thunder All-Star Jalen Williams revealed he was a Lakers fan as a kid. After beating the Suns at PHX Arena, Williams revealed he took in many of the WNBA’s Mercury games in Phoenix.

“I grew up a Lakers fan. So, this arena is not really special to me. I think growing up here is cool. I don’t take it for granted for sure,” Williams said. “There [have] been a lot of camps that I used to do here. My mom used to take me to Mercury games all the time when the Sparks played. It’s cool to come back into this gym and be able to play there.”

The Thunder will face the Jazz on Friday.