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Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault expressed his frustration with NBA officials and Jalen Williams after the Thunder beat the Orlando Magic 105-99. Despite scoring 11 points on 5-of-15 attempts, Williams didn't earn a single free throw in Thursday's win.
After the game, he expressed his frustration after Daigneault's initial comments.
“It's very frustrating. I also don't let that affect the rest of my game. I think I average like 21-something points with no free throws. So, it's almost encouraging in a way because when I do get the whistle, I am getting calls; obviously, I can boost my numbers that way,” Williams said. “But, I'm very good at a lot of other things. So, I try to do those in the meantime. Like I said, it's something that I'm working on.”
This isn't the first time Williams has mentioned his free-throw shooting disparity, which he considers a focal point in improving his game in 2024-25. Still, he does his best not to let it impact his game.
“You can't let games like this where, and I'm going to avoid a fine, but games like this, where I don't go to the line, affect the overall trajectory of what I'm trying to do,” Williams added. “We have so many games where I can do it. Just me. I'll even put the blame on myself; it's probably just me trying to get a whistle and still finish through contact. But, yeah, it's just a long process of stuff.”
Mark Daigneault blasts refs with Jalen Williams comparison
Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault attempted as many free throws as his starting forward Jalen Williams. Williams had a comical response to that.
“Impressive, huh? I drove a lot more than Mark,” Williams quipped. “We have a good relationship. I know I'm getting hit if Mark is saying something because Mark usually encourages me to go in there and try to get knocked out of the air a little bit, just to kind of practice it. And he's usually upfront with me when I'm not getting fouled. So, I know there's a big honesty piece to it. But, again, there's a lot of other stuff going on the officials have to look at. So, again, it's just one of those things where I have to figure it out and keep doing what I'm doing.”
The Thunder will look to make it two straight when they face the Heat on Friday.
