OKLAHOMA CITY — Making his long-awaited season debut, Jalen Williams had 11 points and eight assists in his return from wrist surgery, and the Oklahoma City Thunder held on to beat the Phoenix Suns 123-119 on Friday night to reach the knockout round of the NBA Cup.
Williams played 29 minutes and made 3 of 12 shots to help the defending champion Thunder win their 11th straight game and become the fifth team in NBA history to start 19-1. They finished 4-0 in West Group A.
The All-Star guard/forward had surgery in July to repair a torn ligament in his right wrist and a follow-up procedure to remove a screw that was causing irritation.
«The goal for tonight was to get in a rhythm, but it’s an adjustment,» Williams said. «Game 7 was, what, five months ago? Almost six. Trying to adjust to the physicality now was a little different. A lot of it was just rhythm — trying not to do too much, just finding the spots where I was comfortable five months ago.»
The Thunder are off to a dominant start despite Williams sitting out their first 19 games. Last season, Williams broke out as one of the NBA’s best players, averaging 21.6 points, 5.3 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 1.6 steals. He became one of two players to make both All-NBA (third team) and All-Defensive (second team), along with Cleveland’s Evan Mobley.
Williams said the hardest part about getting back into the flow with the Thunder will come on the offensive end.
«Defense is easy for me, especially when you lose your right hand for five months,» he said. «I can always play hard defensively and figure things out from there. Offensively, yeah, it’ll take time. I’ve had two hand surgeries, and I’m still figuring out my jump shot and dribbling. It’s a process, but defensively, my feet feel fine, my wind is good. I can always do that, and I can find ways to contribute offensively until I get my rhythm back.
Because Williams sat out the first 19 games of the season, he is ineligible for postseason honors, meaning he is no longer in line for the $287 million supermax contract kicker in his five-year, $239 million extension.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had a game-high 37 points Friday night, including 15 in the final seven minutes on 4-of-5 shooting. He has scored at least 20 points in 92 consecutive games, matching Wilt Chamberlain for the second-longest streak in NBA history. Chamberlain is first with 126 straight games.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
