Candace Parker’s towering presence stuns Jalen Williams during NBA playoffs

Jalen Williams put on a show in Game 2 of the first-round series between the OKC Thunder and the Memphis Grizzlies. Apart from stuffing the stat sheet with an impressive performance, Williams made sure to entertain viewers with his constant bickering while being mic’d up.

TNT broadcasters had the young forward wired before the game, letting fans in on all of his antics. One of the funnier moments occurred right after the players' introduction, when Williams seemed to be in awe of Candace Parker’s height. Reacting to the WNBA legend’s towering presence, he took a playful jab at teammate Cason Wallace.

“Candace Parker is tall. She is way taller than you. … and me,” Williams hilariously said.

Parker was last listed at 6-foot-4, making her an inch taller than Wallace, but she’s an inch shorter than Williams (6-foot-5). It’s safe to assume Parker may have been wearing heels, giving her the edge in height.

Jalen Williams finished the night with 24 points, six rebounds, five assists and a steal, leading the Thunder to a comfortable 118-99 victory. Williams’ back-to-back 20/5/5 historic outings have played a huge role in Mark Daigneault’s men securing a 2-0 advantage in the series.

---

Jalen Williams backs his team to win 2025 title

The Oklahoma City Thunder dominated the regular season, finishing with the best record (68-14) in the league. Despite their historic performance and being the betting favorites, not many analysts and enthusiasts have their faith in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Co. to win the title, simply because of their postseason inexperience.

However, Jalen Williams doesn't believe the team’s limited experience will pose a setback. He backs the Thunder for not only making a deep playoff run, but also lifting the Larry O’Brien trophy in June.

“I think we have the talent to do it. I’m not gonna lie and say we don’t think about it, but it’s something we put on the back burner. When you start looking too far ahead, you miss what’s in front of you, so I think we've done a really good job of just taking each day one at a time,” Williams said.

The Thunder are 2-0 and projected to complete the sweep against Ja Morant and the Grizzlies. If they the win the first-round series, SGA and Co. will face the LA Clippers or the Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference semifinals.