Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams, two of the best rookies on this season’s Oklahoma City Thunder, are having growing pains in the NBA Finals. Later that evening, they are taking on the Indiana Pacers. Each athlete has performed spectacularly during the playoff run. Yet their lack of polish in Game 1 casts doubt on their preparedness to go all the way to the championship stage.
23-year-old Chet Holmgren was the most dominant player in the Western Conference playoffs. He averaged 16.4 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 2.0 blocks per game on 62.9% shooting. He had a monster Game 7 vs the Minnesota Timberwolves. He put up a career playoff-high 34 points on 10-of-17 shooting and was especially effective from three, shooting 5-of-9. In the opening contest of the Finals, Holmgren was tested immediately. He never really found his groove, finishing with just six points on 2-of-9 shooting from the field.
Jalen Williams, who, at 24 years old and a recent third-team All-NBA selection, absolutely struggled in Game 1 as well. During the course of the Thunder’s playoff run, he produced 20.4 points, 5.8 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 1.6 steals per game. In the Finals opener, he had 17 but on a rough 6-of-19 from the field. Holmgren and Williams could never quite get on the same page in Oklahoma City’s close 111-110 loss to the Pacers. Combined, they scored only 23 points on a brutal 8-of-28 shooting night.
Though these experiences are issues, head coach Mark Daigneault is still encouraged and excited about what his young stars can bring to the table. He emphasized that it’s rare for young players to shine in this intense level of competition. He thinks their last performance was the real gauge to measure their extraordinary talents.
“Usually delivering in the Finals is not on the curriculum for third-year players and they have thrust themselves into that situation, which is a credit to them.” – Mark Daigneault
Daigneault thought that Holmgren and Williams need to keep growing from their playoff runs to push through the tough moments.
“Now that they are here, they have to continue to do what they have done all the way through the playoffs, which is go out there, fully compete, learn the lessons and apply it forward.” – Mark Daigneault
Make no mistake, both players have endured tough sledding this season. Holmgren sat out the entire 2022-23 season due to a foot injury. This season, he missed almost three months recovering from a fractured pelvis. His myriad ailments have drastically limited his playing time the past few seasons. Because of this he’s only acquired a season and a half of actual NBA experience.
Contrast that with how Williams has always come up clutch the past two playoffs. His contributions on both ends of the court earned him a well-deserved second-team All-Defensive spot. Those tools combined with his rare improvisation ability make him one of the hardest quarterbacks to pin down in any given moment.
“I try and think of myself as somebody that’s very uncommon,” – Jalen Williams
Even during his post-game comments after Game 1, Holmgren admitted he had to do better and thinking back there were opportunities he could have converted.
“I feel like I could have slowed down, kind of finished some of those plays at the rim,” – Chet Holmgren
As they prepare for Game 2, Holmgren and Williams have to quickly tune their game tactics. They’ll rely on what they’ve learned in all their past playoff runs to lead the way. Daigneault feels it will be how well they respond to those moments of adversity that will decide whether their fairytale run continues deep into the Finals.
“And they have done a great job of that. I think you’ve seen that over the course of the playoffs. They haven’t always played their best game but they always get themselves ready to play the next one.” – Mark Daigneault
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