{"id":71460,"date":"2024-04-01T14:45:59","date_gmt":"2024-04-01T18:45:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=71460"},"modified":"2024-04-01T14:45:59","modified_gmt":"2024-04-01T18:45:59","slug":"bill-simmons-compares-second-year-nba-player-to-2x-finals-mvp-jalen-williams-kawhi-leonard","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2024\/04\/01\/bill-simmons-compares-second-year-nba-player-to-2x-finals-mvp-jalen-williams-kawhi-leonard\/","title":{"rendered":"Bill Simmons Compares Second-Year NBA Player to 2x Finals MVP"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>After their close victory against the New York Knicks on Sunday, the Oklahoma City Thunder are proving they are a serious contender for the NBA championship this season. Led by MVP candidate <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/g\/gilgesh01.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2024-04-01_bbr\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Shai Gilgeous-Alexander<\/a>, the Thunder have a 52-22 and currently sit alone as the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference. Furthermore, they have already clinched their first postseason appearance since the 2019-20 season. Although Gilgeous-Alexander is having a fantastic season, other Thunder players deserve to be acknowledged. And apparently, long-time NBA analyst and founder of The Ringer Bill Simmons agrees. In a recent episode of the Bill Simmons Podcast, he likened OKC forward <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/w\/willija06.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2024-04-01_bbr\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jalen Williams<\/a> to two-time NBA Finals MVP <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/l\/leonaka01.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2024-04-01_bbr\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Kawhi Leonard<\/a>: &#8220;There&#8217;s a lot of Kawhi when I watch Jalen Williams.&#8221;<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">&#8220;There&#8217;s a lot of Kawhi when I watch Jalen Williams.&#8221;<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/BillSimmons?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@BillSimmons<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ryenarussillo?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@ryenarussillo<\/a> discuss the potential of Jalen Williams after his massive game yesterday at MSG: <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/xVhiFyAzq7\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/xVhiFyAzq7<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 The Ringer (@ringer) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ringer\/status\/1774822605914321247?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">April 1, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>In Sunday&#8217;s win, Williams scored 33 points while shooting 14-for-18 from the field. Additionally, the second-year wing recorded four rebounds, eight assists, two steals, and two blocks. On the season, Williams is averaging 19.5 points, 4 rebounds, and 4.6 assists per game.<\/p>\n<h2>Bill Simmons Compares Second-Year NBA Player to 2x Finals MVP<\/h2>\n<h3>The NBA World Acknowledges Jalen Williams&#8217; Game<\/h3>\n<p>In February, Minnesota Timberwolves star <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/e\/edwaran01.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2024-04-01_bbr\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Anthony Edwards<\/a> said Williams was the <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2024\/02\/18\/anthony-edwards-dubs-thunder-jalen-williams-most-underrated-player-in-nba\/\" target=\"_self\">most underrated player<\/a> in the NBA.<\/p>\n<p>Additionally, former MVP <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/h\/hardeja01.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2024-04-01_bbr\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">James Harden<\/a> recently said, if he could pick anyone to wear his shoes, <a href=\"https:\/\/hoopshype.com\/rumor\/2720952\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">he would pick Williams<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>When asked who he\u2019d like to see sport his Adidas shoes, Harden picked Williams, saying he\u2019s felt like an older sibling seeing him develop into one of the best wings in the league so quickly. \u201cHe\u2019s been killing it. I feel like a proud big brother,\u201d Harden said about Williams. \u201cI think that\u2019s our job is to create something special to give back to the younger generation.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">\u201cIs there anyone in the league you want to see where your shoes?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>James Harden: \u201cJalen Williams. He\u2019s been killing it\u2026 I feel like a proud big brother.\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/ZknzwdGGnm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/ZknzwdGGnm<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 z &#8211; Thunder Film Room (@ThunderFilmRoom) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ThunderFilmRoom\/status\/1763202100010340613?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">February 29, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<h3>Jalen Williams is No Kawhi Leonard&#8230;Yet<\/h3>\n<p>Williams has shown a lot of promise in his second season. At 23 years old, he should only continue getting better and becoming a mainstay in the league for at least another decade. That said, he is not Leonard just yet. On paper, there are some similarities in their games. Both of them are long wings who can contribute to every aspect of the game. Additionally, Williams has shown flashes of being able to take over a game like he did against the Knicks. This is something Leonard has been able to do countless times in his NBA career. However, beyond that, the two are not entirely comparable. Leonard is much more athletic and is a greater presence on the defensive side of the ball. Williams, however, is a better pure shooter than Leonard is and makes himself noticed in different ways.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Jalen Williams put on a SHOW in the <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/okcthunder?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@okcthunder<\/a>&#8216;s down-to-the-wire win at MSG \ud83e\udd29<\/p>\n<p>33 PTS | 14-18 FGM | 8 AST <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/tP82d48H5n\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/tP82d48H5n<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 NBA (@NBA) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/NBA\/status\/1774622076332019781?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">April 1, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>All that said, the Colorado native is an intriguing player who can help the Thunder win for years to come.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>After their close victory against the New York Knicks on Sunday, the Oklahoma City Thunder are proving they are a serious contender for the NBA championship this season. Led by MVP candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the Thunder have a 52-22 and currently sit alone as the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference. Furthermore, they have [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4631,"featured_media":71472,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1608,27,62,3,22],"tags":[2109,4609,444,168,1489],"class_list":["post-71460","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-basketball","category-clippers","category-nba","category-news","category-thunder","tag-anthony-edwards","tag-jalen-williams","tag-james-harden","tag-kawhi-leonard","tag-shai-gilgeous-alexander"],"modified_by":"Elie Deglaoui","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71460","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4631"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=71460"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71460\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/71472"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=71460"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=71460"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=71460"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}