Jewei defeated the Pacers last line of defense, the two stars shone into the championship code

When the basketball was passed to Jaylen Williams on the right wing, the Thunder's lead of as many as 18 points had been eroded by the Indiana Pacers to just 2 points left.

The All-Star player, who was selected for the first time in his third season of his NBA career, stepped forward and hit a three-pointer, killing the Pacers' counterattack momentum.

This was the most impressive moment of Jaylen Williams' rising career, as he scored 40 points in his game and led the Oklahoma City Thunder to defeat his opponent 120-109 in the fifth game of the pivotal Finals on Monday. That three-pointer ignited a 18-6 offensive for the Thunder, securing the victory for the Thunder and pushing the team to the closest place to the championship.

"He was really outstanding tonight," Alexander commented. "He stood up in the important round. He felt like he could score every time we needed to score. He was fearless and he showed fearless courage tonight."

Alexander also played a performance that matched his MVP level, contributing 31 points, sending 10 assists, sending 2 blocks, and completing 2 steals to help the team hit that climax in the fourth quarter. This is his 15th single-game score of 30+ in this playoff journey, and the number of times he has achieved this in a single playoff game, with only 1992's Michael Jordan and 1995's Hakeem Olajuwon more than him.

However, this game is destined to belong to Javi. J-Dub, 24, set a record for a single-game playoff score with 40 points, surpassing his 34 points in his fourth game victory against the Minnesota Timberwolves in the Western Conference Finals. He has also become an elite rank, becoming the third youngest player to score at least 40 points in a single game in the finals, second only to Magic Johnson and Russell Westbrook.

"This is more of a thing I will review in the future, rather than worrying about what statement it delivers now," Williams, who also contributed 6 rebounds and 4 assists in the game, said after the game. "I think the only statement we have to make now is that we are leading 3-2, but we still need to win another victory."

In fact, Jewe's upward trend has been reflected in the previous few games. He has scored at least 25 points and 5 rebounds in each of the last three games, becoming the youngest player in the Finals to achieve such a continuous performance since Shaquille O'Neal in 1995. In these three games, Williams scored a total of 91 points, the highest score in his three consecutive games in his playoff career. At the same time, he assumed a lot of point guard duties to relieve Alexander of his burden when facing the Pacers' full-game press.

"I just stayed aggressive on the field," Javi said. "Like I said, I have a coaching staff and teammates who support me and they allow me to do that, let me fumble on my way of playing and find a position where I can try to show explosiveness. For the most part, I'm just trying to choose my attack points and do what I can do to help the team win games. Not every game can score 40 points or 25 points. It's more like doing whatever you need to win."

In Game 5, Williams was tirelessly rushing the rim, shooting 9 of 16 shots near the basket, almost all from breakouts. This is the competition he focuses on developing and improving this season.

"When he's in his best form, he's playing with that kind of impact," Thunder head coach Mark Dignot commented. "He's been incredible throughout the game. He kept pushing all night, putting a lot of pressure on the opponent, and I think he made a lot of right decisions. In Game 6, we need him to do a similar way of performing."

Jewe had a lot to prove before the start of the season, as he struggled when the Thunder were eliminated by the Dallas Mavericks in the second round of the playoffs last season. He made another significant leap this season, averaging a career-high 21.7 points, 5.3 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 1.6 steals per game, and was selected for the NBA All-Series third team and the All-Defensive second team.

J-Dub's performance has been ups and downs during the Thunder's playoff journey, including three consecutive games of low shooting percentage (10 of 43 shots) against the Denver Nuggets in the second round, but he has repeatedly stood up for Oklahoma City at critical moments. He averaged 21.7 points, 5.7 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.4 steals per game, completely dispelling any doubts about whether the Thunder have the second-in-command who is qualified to take on this role for a champion team.

"He deserves this moment," Alexander said. "With that being said, we still have a game to win, and I know he will not be satisfied with this performance."

(text/Mango)