Jalen Williams – Syndication Server

MSU Football offers 2026 Georgia CB Jalen Williams

Michigan State football is the latest big-time program to extend an offer to 2026 cornerback Jalen Williams of Marietta, Ga.

Williams announced last weekend that he’s received an offer from the Spartans. He made the notable recruiting announcement via social media platform X.

Williams is an unranked prospect in the 2026 class, according to 247Sports. He is listed at 6-foot-0 and 160 pounds, and plays for Kell High.

Michigan State is one of nearly 25 programs to extend an offer to Williams, according to 247Sports. Other notable programs to offer Williams includes Auburn, BYU, Duke, Kentucky, Memphis, Missouri, North Carolina, Pitt, Ole Miss, Tennessee, UCF and USF.

Thank you to my teammates, coaches and family for helping me earn an offer from Michigan State University!@DBcoachadams @coach_meat pic.twitter.com/uK9IQcK1Lf

— Jalen Williams (@Jman4x) October 28, 2024

Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan State news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Robert Bondy on X @RobertBondy5.

OKC Thunder will face tough start to 2024-25 regular season

OKC Thunder will face tough start to 2024-25 regular season.

Right out of the gates, the Oklahoma City Thunder won’t have much room for error to start the 2024-24 regular season.

The Thunder unveiled their 82-game slate recently as the calendar creeps closer to starting training camp in less than two months. OKC hopes to repeat its success from last season as the first seed.

To achieve that goal, they will need to get off to a hot start and fight through any possible adjustment periods needed for Isaiah Hartenstein and Alex Caruso — who will be two of the top-six rotation players.

The Thunder have the fifth-hardest strength of schedule in October and November among last year’s playoff squads. OKC’s early opponents had a combined .512 win percentage last season.

The Suns have the hardest strength of schedule of any team in the NBA through November 😳 pic.twitter.com/9x8F9X4hxv

— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) August 15, 2024

A slow start might dampen the Thunder’s ambitions of the first seed. Hovering around .500 could put them behind the marathon as 57 wins was barely enough to get the first seed last season.

Overall, it’s a daunting schedule for the Thunder, who are also tied for the most back-to-backs at 16 this year, an increase from last season’s 14 total.

Regardless of seeding, what’s more important is how strong the Thunder look at the end of the season and the health of their top pieces. Those two variables are more important than chasing a few spots in the standings.

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OKC Thunder tied for most back-to-backs in 2024-25 season among last year’s playoff squads

OKC Thunder tied for most back-to-backs in 2024-25 season among last year’s playoff squads.

After a first-seed finish last season, the odds are stacked against the Oklahoma City Thunder to repeat that achievement for the 2024-25 regular season.

Examining the 82-game schedule, a large sum of back-to-backs pop out. The Thunder are tied for most back-to-back among playoff teams from last season with 16. An uptick from 14 last year.

The LA Clippers, Denver Nuggets, Milwaukee Bucks, Phoenix Suns, Cleveland Cavaliers and New Orleans Pelicans also have 16 back-to-backs.

This is a killer revelation for the Thunder. Even with their youthful legs, there could be surprising losses caused solely by this scheduling snafu.

The league has tried to decrease the amount of back-to-back in recent years. It’s taken a step back in that goal for the sake of the NBA Cup, which will give most teams a semi-off week in December.

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NBA continues to fail to properly parade OKC Thunder on national stage

NBA continues to fail to properly parade OKC Thunder on national stage.

After examining the NBA’s league-wide schedule for the 2024-24 regular season, one point was further proven — the Oklahoma City Thunder did not get the same treatment as their peers.

Despite being the first seed and advancing to the final eight last year, the Thunder ranked 11th in the league in national television broadcast, excluding NBA TV appearances.

11th? Seriously? For last year’s first seed and second-best overall record manned by the MVP runner-up? To add insult to injury, only three of the Thunder’s 15 national contests will be at OKC.

While the league partially amended its error to leave OKC out for Christmas and Opening Night, it did the bare minimum for the Thunder. A scheduling mishap that can cost them down the road.

The Thunder should be paraded with fellow title contenders next season. After all, they will be a member of that exclusive club for the foreseeable future.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has broken out as one of the best players in the league. Expect the 26-year-old to put up nonchalant 30-plus point performances. Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams will only improve and should flirt with All-Star status next season.

Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault is one of the best young minds in the league. GM Sam Presti has built a deep roster filled with young talent and endless potential.

Even considering the small-market tax, the Thunder should’ve been paraded more often this season. A notable bump from last year’s total — the second-best improvement in the league — is only putting perfume on a self-imposed mess.

Among the 10 squads ahead of the Thunder, some are more understandable than others. The Los Angeles Lakers, Boston Celtics and New York Knicks will always be the league’s darlings due to their sheer market size and rich history.

The Denver Nuggets, Dallas Mavericks and — to a certain extent — Golden State Warriors are also reasonable. All three franchises roster a single player with cult-like followings with Nikola Jokic, Luka Doncic and Stephen Curry. They alone are a billion-dollar enterprise.

But the Milwaukee Bucks? Who are fresh off their worst season in recent history and could see the departure of Giannis Antetokounmpo soon? They’re on the downslope.

Or what about the Minnesota Timberwolves? Who are in a similar tier as the Thunder but get more national TV games and featured on the two biggest nights of the regular season?

Gilgeous-Alexander is a better player than Anthony Edwards right now. That should mean the former should enjoy the national spotlight more than the latter next season until proven otherwise.

And finally, what about the Philadelphia 76ers and Phoenix Suns? Both were worse than OKC last season and it’s easy to project that the gap grows as time passes.

The NBA has shown its true feelings about the Thunder and it only confirms the chip OKC fans carry on their shoulders when it comes to the lack of national respect they get.

Being late to the party is one thing. Nobody should be upset that the league failed to schedule the Thunder for several national television games last season. Their ascension took everybody by surprise.

But the NBA has had all offseason — and really, nearly a year — to catch up to conventional wisdom about the Thunder. Instead of showing up late with an apologetic pizza to the house party, they flat-out ghosted OKC’s ascension.

It didn’t happen this year, but sooner or later, the league must grit its teeth and treat the Thunder like one of the best teams. Even if it means abandoning their old method of marketing individual players over anything else.

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OKC Thunder announces 2024-25 regular season schedule

OKC Thunder announces 2024-25 regular season schedule.

The NBA announced its 2024-25 regular season schedule on Thursday. This comes two days after it announced its NBA Cup slate for all 30 teams.

The Oklahoma City Thunder hope to have a similar campaign to last year where they finished with the first seed. After a productive offseason, the Thunder are viewed as a title contender.

The Thunder will play 82 games from October to April. The full schedule can be viewed below:

The Thunder will open the season on the road against the Denver Nuggets on Oct. 24. OKC’s home opener will be against

The Thunder will play 15 nationally televised games on ABC, ESPN and TNT — 25 if NBA TV games are included.

OKC will play 16 back-to-backs this season. Below is a month-by-month breakdown of the Thunder’s regular-season schedule:

4 games in October (2 home, 2 road)
15 games in November (8 home, 7 road)
11 games in December (4 home, 7 road)
14 games in January (7 home, 7 road)
13 games in February (7 home, 6 road)
16 games in March (9 home, 7 road)
7 games in April (3 home, 4 road)

The Thunder’s preseason schedule can be found here.

Thunder PR on OKC’s 2024-25 schedule: pic.twitter.com/SSXeZmqYi9

— Clemente Almanza (@CAlmanza1007) August 15, 2024

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Bleacher Report argues OKC Thunder might be most complete team

Bleacher Report argues OKC Thunder might be most complete team.

Discourses around sports are usually talked through a pessimistic lens. Most fans hope their rivals suffer a downfall throughout the NBA regular season.

Bleacher Report’s Dan Favale took the opposite approach. He listed out one reason to not overlook all 30 NBA teams next season.

Considering how successful the Oklahoma City Thunder have been recently, it was an easy layup to come up for a reason. If anything, Favale might’ve struggled to pick just one out of several possible good answers for this thought exercise.

The Thunder’s sole reason is that they might be the most complete team in the league. The additions of Alex Caruso and Isaiah Hartenstain paired with the natural progression of the rest of the roster is an exciting roster that should threaten to be the first seed once again.

“What’s the weakness in that rotation? Hartenstein takes care of the size, physicality and rebounding concerns from last season. Caruso puts a deadeye modest-volume shooter defenses will actually respect in the Josh Giddey spot.

Secondary creation could be a little prickly. We saw that haunt Oklahoma City during the playoffs, where Jalen Williams couldn’t really get going. Neither Caruso nor Hartenstein fills that void.

Somebody else will. And it’ll probably be J-Dub himself. He has already increased his self-creation and is going to get better. So will Chet Holmgren, who’s own role should broaden with a less ball-dominant running mate in Giddey’s stead. Wiggins can generate hoops for himself and others. Wallace will get better.

The Thunder also have the assets to consolidate or reorient their pecking order. Assuming they need it. Which they may not. Because they’re that good—that complete.”

Over the last few years, the Thunder have built up a strong foundation brick by brick. Last season saw the fruits of that labor with a top-seed finish and tough second-round exit. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander established himself as one of the best players in the league.

Expect the Thunder to be a mainstay in the title conversation for the foreseeable future. Nobody else in the league is best set up to contend both in the short-term and long-term future.

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Should the OKC Thunder chase after the 2024 NBA Cup?

To make the early portions of the regular season interesting, the league has added the NBA Cup. Last season saw the inaugural in-season tournament succeed with LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers taking it seriously.

Many wondered how ambitious teams would be for the tournament. The winner received solely monetary gain before they returned to the rest of their regular season schedule.

For the league to see arguably the greatest player ever and their biggest franchise win it the first year must’ve provided a massive boost of confidence. Now it’s about building off that momentum.

This upcoming season hopes to see similar results as NBA Commissioner Adam Silver tries to weave the NBA Cup into the regular season tradition.

Fans have hesitated about the idea, mocking it as a meaningless trophy with no enjoyable rewards. However, as each season passes, the NBA Cup will become the norm for future generations.

To further legitimize the controversial NBA Cup, the Oklahoma City Thunder capturing the December crown can help.

The Thunder will be a title contender for the foreseeable future. The formation of their trio of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams is enough for several deep playoff runs barring health.

If the Thunder are next season’s NBA Cup winner, it could be a symbolic passing of the torch from James to Gilgeous-Alexander as one of the league’s faces.

The league should be excited about the possibility. OKC will be a fixture in the contender scene and pundits could point towards its win of the NBA Cup as a reason for its success later on down the road in the playoffs.

For the Thunder, an NBA Cup could help curry favor for future seasons. They were notably left off the slate for Opening Night and Christmas — the league’s two biggest regular-season days.

Boasting an NBA Cup championship should ensure that doesn’t happen again as long as the Thunder are in this title window. It’d be a beneficial success for both sides which goes beyond the extra cash all 18 Thunder players would receive in this scenario.

Now, with the motivation laid out, how realistic is it for the Thunder to win the 2024 NBA Cup?

They have one of the best odds to win it. That’s also considering the likelihood the Thunder treat the Group B games as the average regular season outing. Even if OKC doesn’t trim its rotation like a playoff contest, the roster is good enough to be a serious threat.

They are the first seed in the West’s Group B. Examing their competition of the Phoenix Suns, Los Angeles Lakers, San Antonio Spurs and Utah Jazz, OKC should be the favorite to capture first place in group play and advance to the eight-team knockout stage.

The Lakers have already won the tournament, which means a lack of motivation to repeat might exist. James and Anthony Davis will likely pace themselves during the regular season. They won’t go all out for a November or December contest.

The Suns are in a similar situation. Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal hope to cruise through the regular season to be as healthy as possible by the playoffs. They won’t go 100 miles an hour at the start of the season.

The Jazz are in a rebuild. They hope to lose as many games as possible. Expect Utah to be a favorite to land Cooper Flagg in the 2025 NBA draft. This should be an easy win for the Thunder and gives them a chance to boost their point differential.

That leaves the Spurs, who will arguably be the toughest squad to face in group play for the Thunder. Like OKC, San Antonio is young and hungry. Victor Wembanyama will chase after the NBA Cup as an early-career accolade.

A Wembanyama-Holmgren matchup by itself is juicy enough, add in the stakes of the NBA Cup and it should increase those sparks.

Even with that considered, the Thunder are simply better than the Spurs. The latter added some nice veteran pieces but is still far from challenging OKC at the top of the Western Conference.

If the Thunder advance past the group stage, they have as good odds as anybody else to capture the NBA Cup. The league should cross its fingers and hope OKC takes it seriously enough to win.

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OKC Thunder 2024-25 regular season schedule to be released on Thursday

OKC Thunder 2024-25 regular season schedule to be released on Thursday.

With less than two months until training camp starts, the Oklahoma City Thunder announced their 2024-25 regular season schedule will be released on Thursday.

A handful of contests have already been revealed thanks to the 2024 NBA Cup that spans from November to December. OKC’s preseason slate kicks off on Oct. 7.

After a first-seed finish last year, the Thunder hope to build off their strong campaign with another shot at a deep playoff run and a chance to win an NBA championship.

OKC has one of the league’s best trios in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams. Expect it to be part of several national television broadcasts for the foreseeable future.

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