The Oklahoma City Thunder are a popular preseason pick to get out of the Western Conference, but to win a championship they need someone to step up as a true No. 2 behind Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

The most obvious candidate is Jalen Williams. After two impressive seasons early in his career, Williams has fans across the NBA and is one of the early favorites among sportsbooks to win the Most Improved Player award – and for good reason. This guy just keeps getting better.

Than that Ringer's Michael Pina wrote while predicting an All-NBA season for the 23-year-old forward:

“Williams is not a perfect player, but sometimes I wonder if he is on the right path to becoming one. After a remarkable rookie season, everything about his game was noticeably tighter and sharper in year two, from his scoring average and assist rate to his usage percentage and true shooting percentage. J-Dub's responsibilities increased and his efficiency improved, all as the second-leading scorer on a team that finished first in a highly competitive Western Conference. This is absolutely not normal.”

Subscribe to The WhiteboardFanSided's daily basketball-themed email newsletter. If you like The Whiteboard, share it with a friend! If you don't like the whiteboard, share it with an enemy.

Williams was a borderline All-Star last season, averaging 19.1 points, 4 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game. Take a closer look at the numbers and it's easy to see why so many are predicting a star turn. Here is a small excerpt:

The question of Williams' ceiling is determined by scale.

Thunder coach Mark Daigneault wants Williams to take more shots, particularly from 3-point range, to unlock his and Oklahoma City's offense, which was very SGA-centric last season.

“With the way he shoots and drives, if he can shoot more threes and force people to play him a little higher, that creates more space for his attacks and makes him even harder to defend.” said Daigneault at Media Day.

As Jared Dubin recently wrote, Williams is the most likely candidate to take on more aggressive startup responsibilities.

“Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is primarily a mid-range attacker when it comes to getting jumpers off the dribble. Everyone else except Jalen Williams is mostly a catch-and-shoot guy who doesn't get anything done for himself very often. That's what matters. “J-Dub is the most likely candidate to add that special shot to the team's half-court attack.”

But it's not just about giving Williams more ball. His limitations became apparent in the playoffs when he hesitated to shoot 3s and dropped out of open looks.

The preseason was encouraging. Williams attempted 17 3s in a total of 67 minutes, or 9.2 per 36 minutes, at a rate of 53 percent. In a limited sample, its efficiency did not decrease with increasing volume.

It's also fair to wonder how many of his postseason problems are because he is never been there. Those were the first 10 playoff games of his career. It's easy to forget that Gilgeous-Alexander, who played well in the postseason, is already 26 years old and made the playoffs in three of his first six seasons.

Williams is already exceeding expectations and his ceiling appears to be limitless. However, the Thunder need someone to emerge as a reliable No. 2 if they want to take the next step and compete for a championship this season.

Jalen Williams was ranked No. 11 in FanSided's 2024-25 25-under-25 rankings, making him the best young player in the NBA. Check out the rest of the list Here.