Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
LAS VEGAS — Cody Williams' face said it all.
He had just sliced through the lane and delivered a left-handed dunk that got Cox Pavilion buzzing. There were gasps from the crowd; and Keyonte George, Collin Sexton and Johnny Juzang all flew up from their courtside seats in shocked celebration.
As Williams began to run back down the court, he looked at his brother — Oklahoma City budding star Jalen Williams — and wrinkled his nose and squinted his eyes.
"I just gave him a little face just to show him I'm like that a little bit," Cody Williams said with a smile.
After a mostly forgettable showing in Salt Lake City, the No. 10 pick in last month's NBA draft erupted onto the scene in Las Vegas.
Williams had 21 points on 9-of-15 shooting, including 3-of-6 from 3-point range, and added four assists and three rebounds in Utah's 90-89 win over Dallas to open up the Las Vegas Summer League.
He handled the ball, made spot-up jump shots, and got into the lane. The lengthy forward scored at all three levels, and was also a key part of an improved Jazz defense.
"He's not one dimensional, which is fantastic for us moving forward and fantastic for him right now," Jazz summer league coach Sean Sheldon said. "He's getting into different situations with the ball, and he's capitalizing on that. He's going to continue to get more comfortable and show flashes, and maybe some things we haven't seen yet."
Those flashes were apparent immediately to fellow rookie Isaiah Collier.
The former USC guard — who had 12 points and seven assists in the win — recalled on the first day of practice that Williams was already slicing through the lane and dunking on people. So while his highlight-reel slam might have caught some by surprise, Collier could see that type of performance coming.
"Cody's gonna be real good," Collier said. "He's real special — 6-foot-8 with length like that. For sure, Cody's gonna be real good."
The glimpses of a special player were on display in Utah's first game in Vegas. He took advantage of the more open NBA game by attacking the basket both in the halfcourt and in transition. The Jazz also used Williams as a point forward some, and his six 3-pointers were two more than he took in any game during his freshman season at Colorado.
"I think as we go, you're just gonna see everyone getting more comfortable," Sheldon said. "Everyone's starting to figure out their game and one another's games a little bit. So I think that's just a product of getting more comfortable."
What really stood out to Sheldon about Williams on Saturday was his handle. He doesn't have the quickest moves with the ball, but he's shifty and can fool defenders.
"It's fun to watch, and we're going to continue to do it. We're going to continue to try new things and put guys in situations that maybe they haven't been in yet," Sheldon said.
Does that mean Williams has even more up his sleeve?
While Saturday was a showcase of his diverse skillset, Williams didn't come to Las Vegas to try and capture the spotlight. He saw summer league as a chance to learn. He's a 19-year-old kid prepping to go against seasoned veterans every night. He just wanted to use these couple weeks to get used to the speed of the game, improve his reads, and get familiar with the NBA's physicality.
"I don't come into summer league with expectations," he said.
After Saturday, it'll be hard for some to keep them down. For NBA youngsters, a couple of made 3s and some highlight dunks in July can change everything.
"When you go to the basket at this level, you see everyone's tossing every layup, so you gotta go there to dunk it," Williams said of his eyebrow-raising dunk. "So that's mentality, but just got to be a ballplayer at the end of the day. If you see a lane, you've got to take it and be aggressive."
