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Mark Daigneault, Jalen Williams, and the Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the Orlando Magic 105-99 despite not the two taking a single free-throw shot attempt, as the Thunder head coach pointed out after the win. After their All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander finished his walk-off interview, Daigneault made strong remarks about Williams’ continuous struggles to make consistent trips to the free-throw line.
Despite consistently driving to the rim for the Thunder, Williams went 0-for-0 from the charity stripe, which frustrated Daigneault.
“It was a very frustrating night from that standpoint. Here’s a stat: Jalen Williams and I both shot the same amount of free throws tonight. We both shot zero free throws,” Daigneault said. “And all I did was I called a couple of timeouts, called some ball plays, and clapped a couple of times when we scored. And he was in the throat of the defense for 48 minutes. And we’re encouraging him to be a downhill player. We’re encouraging him to get his athleticism in the game.
“We’re not asking for it to be rewarded. We’re just asking for it to be met with [the] application of the rules. The way it would be for any other player,” Daigneault concluded.
Last month, Williams addressed his free-throw shooting disparity as a facet of his game that he’s hoping to improve this season. However, he tied a season-low 0-for-0, which last happened against the Houston Rockets in a 126-107 win on November 8. It repeated against the same Magic team the Thunder defeated 102-86 on November 4.
“I can understand why he’s frustrated. He’s getting it from us developmentally, trying to help him turn into this athletic force in the league. And he’s really trying to do that,” Daigneault said. “Tonight, I thought there were multiple opportunities to go get those plays. So, I was frustrated, and so was he.”
After averaging 3.1 three-throw attempts last season, a slight dip from his rookie season (3.3), Williams is averaging a career-low 2.5 free-throw attempts per game this year.
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Jalen Williams addresses free-throw shooting disparity
Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault knows his forward Jalen Williams is on pace to make his first All-Star appearance but is still trying to add a facet to his game — consistent free-throw shooting — in his third NBA season. When asked about his mid-range touch, Williams addressed his tendency to attack the basket for high-percentage looks and trips to the free-throw line, to no avail.
“I don’t really go to the free-throw line a lot. A lot of that was predicated on trying to get other shots. That’s an aspect of my game I’m still trying to figure out,” Williams said. “So, it’s just somewhere where I got comfortable.”
Williams averages 21.3 points on 49.4% shooting, 5.9 rebounds, and 1.9 steals.
