The Utah Jazz certainly faltered on Wednesday evening, but Jazz draftee Nigel Williams-Goss had himself a night overseas.
If you’re a Utah Jazz fan, you’re likely still nursing your wounds from Wednesday’s traumatically disappointing loss in Game 5 of their first-round series against the Oklahoma City Thunder. Rather than dwell on such a troubling outcome that’s already been beat to death by discouraged Jazz fans, though, how about we focus on a Jazzman who had the night of his life on Wednesday?
No, I’m not referring to anyone on the current roster. Rather, I’m referring to former Jazz draftee Nigel Williams-Goss (whose rights are still retained by the Jazz) who is currently playing for Serbia’s Partizan Belgrade club overseas.
Playing in the second stage, round three of Serbian League (KLS) play, Williams-Goss exploded for 35 points on 14-of-18 shooting from the field, including converting on his lone 3-point attempt. In the process, he also netted 12 assists and six rebounds to help lead his Partizan team to a 93-82 win over Dynamic BG.
With the victory, Williams-Goss’ team moved to 3-0 in Group B’s KLS Stage Two play.
My God, the Jazz are cooking overseas. Utah stash Nigel Williams-Goss messed around in the playoffs in Serbia and finish with 35 points (14-of-18 FG), 12 dimes, 6 boards and a 52 (!!!) index rating over 31 minutes. Partizan Belgrade win.
— David Pick (@IAmDPick) April 25, 2018
As the 55th overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft for the Utah Jazz, it’s entirely possible that Williams-Goss could develop into a diamond in the rough for the Jazz. Utah has done an exceptional job of finding under-the-radar players and turning them into bonafide NBA talent. For examples, look no further than the likes of Royce O’Neale and Joe Ingles, to name a couple.
Since Williams-Goss didn’t receive a training camp invite, they still retain his rights as a “draft-and-stash” player. If he continues to play at such a high level, as he demonstrated with his incredible 35-point outpouring on Wednesday, it’s entirely possible that we could see him back in the States donning a Jazz jersey in the not-so-distant future.
Putting up those kind of numbers against solid EuroBasket competition is no easy task, and it’s plausible that the former Gonzaga product could find a nice place coming off Utah’s bench behind the likes of Ricky Rubio, Donovan Mitchell and Dante Exum.
Next: Utah Jazz: Westbrook killed the close-out (and my story)
Hopefully some of Nigel’s stunning play will rub off on his Utah Jazz comrades in Salt Lake City as they’ll take on the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 6 on Friday night at 8:30 PM MT in a game that will very likely determine the outcome of the series.