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OKLAHOMA CITY — After Oklahoma City Thunder All-Star Jalen Williams turned in his best postseason performance of the 2024-25 campaign in Game 5 of the NBA Finals against the Indiana Pacers, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander gushed over Williams' dominance in a 120-109 win. The Thunder are now one win away from winning the NBA championship, due in part to Jalen's playoff career-high 40-point performance that pushed Oklahoma City to a 3-2 lead.
After the win, Gilgeous-Alexander commended his fellow All-Star teammate, pointing to Williams' ability to make big plays, which kept the Pacers at bay in the second half.
“He was really gutsy tonight. He stepped into big plays. It felt like every time we needed a shot, he made it. He wasn’t afraid. He was fearless tonight, whether they went in or they didn't,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “Obviously, they went in more than they didn't, but he stuck with the plays with confidence, for sure.”
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on Jalen Williams in Game 5:
“He was really gutsy tonight. He stepped into big plays. It felt like every time we needed a shot, he made it. He wasn’t afraid. He was fearless tonight” pic.twitter.com/ugYgczAHj5
— Josue Pavón (@Joe_Sway) June 17, 2025
Williams also finished with six rebounds, four assists, and one steal to go with 40 points on 14-of-25 attempts, including 3-of-5 from deep. He also drained 9-of-12 from the free-throw line. Thunder's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added 31 points on 9-of-21 shooting and went 13-of-14 from the charity stripe. Aaron Wiggins (14) and Cason Wallace (11) combined for 25 points to lead the Thunder's second unit.
Mark Daigneault on Jalen Williams' performance in Thunder win
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Thunder coach Mark Daigneault summed up Jalen Williams' performance in Game 5 with one word — force. Williams' approach on both ends of the floor created the separation the Thunder needed to push the Pacers to the brink of elimination.
“Great force — that’s the word. And we’ve used that word with him in his development,” Daigneault said. “When he’s at his best, he’s playing with that type of force. That was an unbelievable performance by him just throughout the whole game. He really was on the gas the entire night. Applied a lot of pressure. I thought he made a lot of the right plays, and we're going to need”
Close-out games are always the toughest in the postseason, especially in the NBA Finals. For Daigneault, the Thunder will have room for improvement ahead of Game 6. If they're to clinch the NBA title on the road, Daigneault believes Williams and his team will have to work harder to avoid a Game 7.
Either way, for a player in his third season, Williams' impressive performance will go down as a career milestone for the first-year All-NBA star, who's only 24.
