Jalen Williams’ season-high 31 points led the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 106-88 blowout win against the New Orleans Pelicans Wednesday night. The Chet Holmgren-less Thunder captured their tenth win of the regular season. However, Williams’ scoring was one of many ways he impacted winning, as head coach Mark Daigneault reminded reporters of Jalen’s productivity.
Prompted or not, Daigneault wouldn’t end his postgame press conference without letting everyone know.
“You guys haven’t asked about Dub yet, but that guy was everywhere tonight. Literally everywhere. There’s nothing on the court he didn’t do tonight,” Daigneault said. “He guarded the ball, he guarded the rim, he blocked the shots, he ran, he created plays. He made shots. He beat everybody down the floor on both ends. The energy that guy played with and competitiveness. So, when you have a guy like him out there doing that, it checks a lot of the boxes.”
Williams made 10-of-18 attempts, including 4-of-7 from deep. He also finished with seven assists, six rebounds, four steals, and two blocks to go with those 31 points. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added 29 points, five assists, five rebounds, two steals, and two blocks.
After taking a four-point lead (54-50) into halftime, the Thunder held the Pelicans to 18 third-quarter points en route to outscoring the Pelicans by 14 points in the second half. Oklahoma City’s defense coerced its opponent into committing a whopping 23 turnovers.
Thunder adapts to small-ball philosophy without Chet Holmgren

Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jalen Williams and head coach Mark Daigneault are never concerned about his team’s relentless competing style with or without Chet Holmgren. The Thunder’s small-ball philosophy ensures an all-hands-on-deck approach. It’s a challenge Williams welcomed the night of Holmgren’s injury in a 127-116 loss to the Golden State Warriors.
“It’s not the first time that we’ve done it,” Williams replied. “So, I’m looking forward to the challenge of that.”
After the Thunder drafted Holmgren second overall in the 2022 NBA Draft, he suffered a Lisfranc foot injury, which cost him his rookie campaign. Two years removed from missing an entire regular season, the Thunder are in a better position to succeed with experience, young talent, and one of the better defenses in the association.
“At the end of the day, it’s a next-man-up thing,” Williams added. “We can’t dwell on it for too long just cause, obviously, the game is going to keep going. Golden State’s not going to feel bad for us. They’re going to keep playing.”
The Thunder remain atop the Western Conference with a 10-2 record.