Early in the first quarter, Jaylin Williams accounted for seven of the Thunder’s first 11 points, scoring on an aggressive drive against Pistons star Cade Cunningham before landing awkwardly and briefly favoring his ankle, via Rylan Stiles of SI.com.
With Oklahoma City already missing several key players, including Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren, Isaiah Hartenstein, Ajay Mitchell, and Alex Caruso, there was concern he might also be forced out.
However, Williams returned after a timeout and went on to deliver a career-best performance despite the short-handed lineup, which later also lost Isaiah Joe and Branden Carlson during the game.
Head coach Mark Daigneault praised his effort afterward, saying, “[Jaylin Williams] was unreal tonight. I thought [he had] great toughness and, obviously, great offense. I think that must be a career high for him. We flowed through him. This is a team that really pressures. Similar to what we had to do lately, he was a great hub for us again tonight. But I thought we made really good toughness plays. We outrebounded a team that’s really physically strong, and they dominated a lot of people there. I thought he had a lot to do with that. [Kenrich Williams], [Brooks] Barnhizer and once [Branden] Carlson went out, those guys – we played small with them – they scrapped and fought. So, like I said, we got a lot of really good individual efforts, really good team efforts. It’s a game we can feel really good about despite the loss,” Thunder Head Coach Mark Daigneault reflected postgame.
Williams finished with a career-high 30 points, five three-pointers, 11 rebounds, four assists, a steal, and a block, shooting 64% from the field and a perfect 7-for-7 at the free-throw line as the Thunder pushed Detroit before falling 124-116.
