Colorado's Cody Williams Continues to Beg First Overall Question

At NBA Summer League back in 2022, I was able to get a first-hand glimpse at some of the new Oklahoma City players that were to make up one of the league's brightest young cores.

One of those players was Jalen Williams – the 6-foot-5 wing who now has played an essential role in the Thunder sitting second in the West with the franchise's best record since the Westbrook-Durant era.

And as I sat and watched – upsettingly, because the Magic decided to sit Paolo Banchero before OKC vs. Orlando – I noticed a really large, seemingly quiet teenager sitting with his dad watching the game.

It didn't take me more than a second to realize it was the Thunder wing's younger brother, then-high schooler Cody Williams. At 6-foot-8, he wasn't hard to notice, even sitting down in a seat.

Now nearly two years later, both brothers are thriving in their respective environments, with the sky being both of their limits. 

Cody, specifically, has been propped up to the highest NBA Draft pedestal, being listed first overall in Yahoo Sports' mock draft by analyst Krysten Peek. 

It's not too much of a surprise. His prototypical modern wing build is ideal for the NBA, holding terrific positional size – though a bit slight at 190 pounds – with a skill set to match. With that, he's continually breaking barriers despite having a freshman season festered with some injury problems. 

Missing nine games so far this season before heading into March, the jumbo wing saw his best performance in his three games in February in a slight loss to UCLA on Thursday night.

He scored 18 points on an 88.9% shooting night, while adding two threes on just three tries, Williams' questionable 3-point shooting presence in high school hasn't seen truth in his 16 collegiate appearances.

He's shooting 48.5% from long distance on 2.1 attempts this season, his outside shooting opens up another layer to attack defenses downhill – which he is very adept at as an agile slasher who can leverage his way to the cup to mitigate his lack of physicality. 

With his measurables and two-way athleticism, Williams has an opportunity to become a special product in the Class of 2024, potentially claiming the top spot in the draft.