Why Mark Daigneault was surprisingly impressed with Jalen Williams’ Thunder season debut

Down the stretch of a 123-119 victory, coach Mark Daigneault watched his Oklahoma City Thunder All-Star forward Jalen Williams remain steady in his regular-season debut in an NBA Cup game against the Phoenix Suns. Daigneault says Williams looked almost as if he’d been with the team all along, amid a 19-1 league-leading start to the 2025-26 campaign.

Williams helped the Thunder stretch its winning streak to 11 while advancing to the NBA Cup semifinals after a perfect 4-0 record in West Group A play. After the win, Mark Daigneault gushed over Williams’ effort in the Thunder’s win.

“He played the right way, and he really competed,” Daigneault said. “I thought the ball pressure was like he played yesterday, with the way he was pressuring the ball, and bringing the ball up. It was really impressive, actually, for a guy that hasn’t played since Game 7. So, we gotta work him back in. We had a lot of change tonight without Hart. Without Ajay. You add him in. Kenrich is only in his second game. A lot of Chet at the 5.

“It was just kind of a lot of things that were different right away, which made it a little bit clunky, but it’s giving us something we have to work through. And, I was really happy with the way we just kind of stuck with it tonight. We didn’t get inconvenienced by that or frustrated with the game. We just played the next possession. Did the best we could. I thought he controlled everything he could control and did a nice job — it’s a nice start for him,” Daigneault concluded.

Williams finished with 11 points, eight assists, and two steals in the Thunder’s four-point win against the Suns.

Jalen Williams preaches patience after Thunder season debut

The defending champion, playing without Thunder’s starting center Isaiah Hartenstein, was facing All-Star forward Jalen Williams’ regular-season debut, and the All-Defensive star stepped into a crucial role.

“It’s gonna take some time,” Williams said. “I haven’t played in forever, and there was just a lot of like behind the scenes, as far as, like, what was actually going on with my hand and two hand surgeries, like, still trying to figure my way out through, like, my jump shot and dribbling, and, like, trying to get my touch back, and that’s just something that’s got to progress throughout the season.”

The Thunder will hit the road for a quick two-game road trip, starting against the Blazers on Sunday.

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