In Game 3 of the Western Conference finals at Frost Bank Center, the Thunder turned a quiet playoff night from Jaylin Williams into a loud statement—scoring 18 points with five rebounds and two steals, including key baskets from behind the 3-point line. Oklaho
SAN ANTONIO — It was the kind of night Thunder fans usually reserve for superstars. But Game 3 at Frost Bank Center had a different kind of hero in the middle of it.
Jaylin Williams didn’t just show up. He showed out at the exact moment the Spurs tried to pull the game back. Oklahoma City won 123–108 to take control of the Western Conference finals after the series opener ended in double overtime.
Williams finished with 18 points, five rebounds, and two steals. Every one of his baskets came from behind the 3-point line. He went 4 of 5 in the first half. and even though he didn’t add another one in the second half. the timing of his production mattered—because his lone second-half make came midway through the fourth quarter when San Antonio was making its rally.
That basket didn’t just count. He was fouled on the shot and made the ensuing free throw for a big four-point play.
The turnaround from “largely silent” to “center stage” has felt especially striking across these playoffs. In the Thunder’s first 10 playoff games this postseason. Williams scored a combined total of 35 points—sixteen in the first-round series against Phoenix. thirteen in the conference semifinals against Los Angeles. and six in the first two games against San Antonio.
And this time, his impact wasn’t limited to the scoreboard. When he was on the court, there wasn’t an uptick from the Spurs’ big men. Williams played solid defense, whether it was against Victor Wembanyama or Luke Kornet. At one point, he even drew a charge on Wembanyama.
The story around this Thunder win also had plenty of familiar volume from the top—starting with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. who didn’t score in the first quarter but finished with 26 points. He went 6 of 17 from the field, and his scoring damage came mostly from the free-throw line, where he was 12 of 12.
For all that field-goal inefficiency, Gilgeous-Alexander’s night wasn’t just about his own numbers. He created plays for teammates, and his 12 assists tripled the total of the Thunder’s next-highest assist man. He committed only two turnovers. He was also the only Thunder starter with a positive plus-minus.
Keeping Wembanyama away from the rim mattered too. Wembanyama didn’t score his first two-point basket until the 2:08 mark of the third quarter. after the Thunder had built a wall between him and the basket. His first two-point basket did come in that stretch and it mattered—an and-one over Chet Holmgren resulted in Holmgren’s fourth foul. Even with that, the Spurs didn’t get the kind of volume that would change the shape of the night. Wembanyama finished 6 of 10 from inside the arc.
The third quarter belonged to the noise at Frost Bank Center. Midway through it, chants of “flop-per, flop-per, flop-per” echoed as Gilgeous-Alexander stood at the foul line. There was also a reminder of last season’s labeling—“Free-throw merchant” had been the chant for Thunder foes then—but on Friday night the arena sounded different. even as it stayed loud. Spurs fans, in their signature fiesta shirts, were spectacular. Not every chant was negative, either: they chanted Dylan Harper’s name and serenaded Wembanyama with “MVP, MVP, MVP.”.
That atmosphere cracked into something sharper early in the third quarter when Ajay Mitchell fouled an airborne Stephon Castle. Mitchell was called for a Flagrant 1, and Mitchell and Devin Vassell were whistled for offsetting technicals after extracurricular shoving.
Off the court of headlines and chants, roster availability kept shaping the game. Jalen Williams was ruled out of Game 3 after reaggravating a left hamstring strain. No Mitchell for much of the second half either—he came up limping. went to the locker room in the third quarter. and didn’t return for a large stretch. Still, the Thunder had ballhandlers who could absorb the extra workload. Alex Caruso and Jared McCain handled the ball more than normal. especially after halftime. and each finished with only one turnover. Cason Wallace also handled the ball more and had no turnovers. In total, the Thunder turned the ball over 10 times.
Late rebounds became another quiet edge in the fourth. Williams isn’t the only name connected to big moments on the glass. but the game’s momentum had sequences that made the Spurs chase instead of set their rhythm. The Thunder started slow in part because Gilgeous-Alexander did too, but once the lead was established, rebounds and stops mattered.
Holmgren’s moment from earlier—his fourth foul on Wembanyama’s and-one—didn’t turn into the kind of game-changing foul trouble for Oklahoma City that San Antonio needed. The bigger swing came when San Antonio pulled within 11 with three minutes remaining. Hartenstein snagged another big defensive rebound and speared an errant 3-pointer. not giving the Spurs a chance at a second-chance bucket.
Fox’s night had its own kind of tension. De’Aaron Fox missed Games 1 and 2 with a right ankle sprain that Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said Fox would be dealing with for the rest of the postseason. In Game 3. Fox gave it a go—he was zipping around like his usual self and gave San Antonio’s backcourt a jolt. Then, in the third quarter, Fox re-injured his ankle and couldn’t even cross half court. He hobbled to the bench, looked done for the game, maybe even done for the series.
And then he returned in the fourth quarter.
Fox finished with 15 points, seven rebounds, and six assists.
As the final score settled into place, another detail lingered—how teams and fans look and feel in the postseason. The Paycom Center crowd is top notch, but Frost Bank Center’s T-shirt striping caught the eye. The Frost Center sections were divided by teal, pink, and yellow, a nod to fiesta spirit. The Thunder’s colors—blue. orange. and gold—were left as a question for the home next time. a reminder that even basketball’s architecture can shape the night.
For all the stars and all the noise, Game 3’s clearest takeaway was simple and earned: after months of being largely quiet, Jaylin Williams played like the Thunder needed him most. And when San Antonio tried to rally, he was the one making the baskets that kept the lead from slipping away.
Jaylin Williams Thunder vs Spurs Western Conference finals Game 3 Frost Bank Center Victor Wembanyama Shai Gilgeous-Alexander De'Aaron Fox