Jalen Williams said Sam Presti coached prospects in training

Jalen Williams #24 of the Santa Clara Broncos celebrates on the court after the team’s 91-67 victory over the Portland Pilots in the quarterfinals of the West Coast Conference basketball tournament in Orleans Arena early on March 06, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
The Oklahoma City Thunder are conducting pre-draft practices with 2022 NBA Draft prospects ahead of Thursday’s draft. Jalen Williams is a top player in the 2022 NBA Draft. The Santa Clara product has seen its stock jump to the Lottery lineup since the NBA Combine a month ago. Williams recently took a trip to Bricktown. In a press conference on Thursday, he spoke to us in the media about his trip to OKC.
Jalen Williams was one of the most entertaining and insightful prospects we spoke with last week to kick off potential media availability that will run through Tuesday ahead of Thursday’s draft.
Jalen Williams discusses his Oklahoma City Thunder training, including notes on Sam Presti’s training outlook during their training
Williams started his conversation about his Thunder training by commenting on Oklahoma’s humidity which was of course relatable.
Williams said the Oklahoma City Thunder were one of the few teams to have seen him play “a lot”, although later commenting that many NBA teams hadn’t seen him play much because he was playing on the west coast.
Jalen Williams was brought in with a host of prospects, though he only remembered Kennedy Chandler being there.
The Santa Clara product is a late bloomer at 21, although the 6’6 wing who weighs 209 pounds posted 39% shooting from deep a season ago while delivering four assists, slipping a steal and achieving 18 points per game.
While the 12th pick would be considered a reach, it’s important to note Williams’ clarification that OKC is one of the teams that has watched him the most. Ultimately, I think his NBA home will be somewhere else, but with Sam Presti at the helm and the number of future assets OKC needs to come back in the first round if he wants, I wouldn’t rule it out.