Ajay Mitchell almost makes you forget about Jalen Williams' injury on Thunder playoff run
· Yahoo Sports
Ajay Mitchell knew he could beat Austin Reaves to the basket. The Thunder super sophomore had made the former Sooner look silly all night. It was just a matter of which move, in a bag full of them, to bust out this time.
Mitchell danced with Reaves on the perimeter before dusting Reaves with a hard crossover. Mitchell, with Reaves trailing from behind, pulled up for a midrange jumper that rattled in despite Mitchell double-clutching midair.
Visit asg-reflektory.pl for more information.
The ABC broadcast immediately panned to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who was standing at the scorer’s table — eyes wide and mouth agape.
The MVP, like the rest of us, was mesmerized by Mitchell’s magic in the Thunder’s 131-108 Game 3 rout of the Lakers on Saturday night.
“It might be a shock to the world, but it’s no shock to us,” SGA said of Mitchell in a postgame interview with sideline reporter Jorge Sedano. “We knew who Ajay Mitchell was the day he stepped into our building, and he’s just showing it to the world.”
Mitchell, the Thunder’s lowest-paid player, scored a team-high 24 points in Game 3. He had 10 assists and zero turnovers. That’s one more point, one more assist and two fewer turnovers than SGA had.
Not bad for a guy with fewer than 100 regular-season games under his belt. And fewer than 20 playoff games.
Best $3 million the Thunder has ever spent. That’s what Mitchell is making this year before getting his pay cut to $2.85 million next year and the year following. The Thunder has a team option on that final year (2027-28), but count on both sides agreeing to an extension before then. Mitchell is going to get Paid by somebody.
Besides literally every other Thunder player on a standard contract, including rookie center Thomas Sorber ($4.7 million) who’s yet to play in an NBA game, here’s a sampling of Lakers earning more than Mitchell: Jake LaRavia ($6 million), Dalton Knecht ($4 million), Jaxson Hayes ($3.4 million). And don’t forget about Maxi Kleber ($12 million).
Sam Presti uncovered a gem with the 38th pick in the 2024 draft, and the Thunder is making the Lakers and 29 other teams pay for it.
Gilgeous-Alexander said he wasn’t shocked with Mitchell’s play, but his face showed otherwise. It was the proper reaction. Here was a second-year player from UC Santa Barbara — or was it Belgian Waffle University — starring against the Lakers. In the Western Conference semifinals. Outshining his MVP teammate. In the home of LeBron James. With Leonardo DiCaprio and a bunch of A-Listers probably wondering who the heck this Ajay guy was.
It’s a wonder that Jalen Williams didn’t crash the SGA/Ajay postgame interview. Hey, world, remember me? The reigning All-NBA player who once scored 40 points in an NBA Finals game? It’s me, Jalen. J-Dub.
The Thunder is so rich in talent that J-Dub’s absence elicits little more than a shrug when it’s mentioned. Which is crazy for a guy who was one of the best 15 players in basketball less than a year ago.
Does OKC need Williams against San Antonio? Probably. Against Minnesota? Maybe. Against whoever comes out of the East? Unlikely.
The Thunder didn’t get anything from Mitchell last playoffs — he was a rookie coming off a prolonged foot injury — but it didn’t matter. The Thunder hasn’t gotten much of anything from J-Dub in these playoffs — he’s hurt — and it hasn’t mattered.
The Thunder is 7-0, Chet Holmgren has assumed Jalen Williams’ second-best-player-on-the-team status and Mitchell is balling in Dub’s role.
The Thunder could absolutely win another title without Williams, which is no shot at him but rather a recognition of how ridiculously loaded the Thunder is. Williams is more proven than Mitchell. Williams is bigger and stronger. Better, although maybe not by much.
But here’s the thing. It’s not an either/or question. Once J-Dub is ready, the answer will be “both.”
Joe Mussatto is a sports columnist for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Joe? Email him at [email protected]. Support Joe's work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Ajay Mitchell has shined in Jalen Williams' absence for loaded Thunder