A common sentiment you will hear is that Jalen Williams just needs to get back to being the player he was last season if the Thunder want to go back-to-back this year.

After OKC's win over the Heat tonight, I asked JDub if that was the case, if he was chasing the player he was last season, or if there was something more he was after as he continues to progress.

“I don’t wanna get to the point that I was at last year because then I feel like I would be going backwards. So I’m trying to ascend through whatever I have going on. I don’t see it as a crutch. It’s just something that I have to hurdle and get better, and once I hurdle it, like why I’ve done so much with it already in a weird spot, and now that I’m comfortable, I can kinda do whatever.”