It wasn't supposed to go down like this. The devastating injury that would derail an early part of Jalen Williams' career already happened. 2026-27 was supposed to be a season of get-back for the all-star who was limited to just 33 games last season after wrist surgery and other ailments.
I guess the basketball powers that be had other plans.
"I just feel bad for him," an emotional Shai Gilgeous-Alexander said Sunday, just moments after Williams was stretchered off the Paycom Center floor with a gruesome leg injury. The Oklahoma City Thunder won the game, but the reigning back-to-back MVP had tears in his eyes. The entire scene was heartbreaking.
I won't share video of the injury here, because it's hard to watch. But here's what happened: Williams
drove the baseline for a two-hand dunk over two Clippers defenders and landed with his left leg bent underneath his own body. When he sat up and straightened out, his left foot was bent in a way it shouldn't. A staffer threw a towel over it immediately.
More details about the injury will be revealed today, but anyone with eyes saw it was significant. And I just can't stop thinking about how devastating the entire ordeal must be for J-Dub, who was an ascending star and now faces a second-straight season of missing games in the prime of his career.
At some point, we'll discuss the ramifications of Williams’ injury on the Thunder’s championship window. How his absence impacts their ability to avenge last year’s conference finals loss to the Spurs. How the same offensive burden SGA carried last year will remain this year. But for now, all I can think about is the person.
It sucks when anyone gets hurt. It's especially tough to see a player with so much untapped potential who just returned from injuries go down. It's too reminiscent of past budding stars who never got a chance to reach their peak. And once you see the looks on the faces of Williams' teammates -- the people who spend the most time with him and know his aspirations and how much it meant for him to be back -- it really hits home. That's what makes this injury so devastating. Williams has an even longer road ahead of him to get back to where he wants to be.
Quick hits: Baylor coaching candidates ... 49ers unbeaten no longer ... and more
- 5 Baylor football head coach candidates after the Bears fired Dave Aranda.
- The 49ers finally cracked under the weight of their own injuries.
- The Giants' reaction to J.J. McCarthy's victory speech showed exactly how they feel about him.
- Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes reportedly booted OT Josh Simmons from a team meeting before he landed on IR last week.
- NFL fans roasted the Steelers for arriving to their game in Paris in Peaky Blinders-themed outfits.
- The end of the Packers-Lions thriller was marred by controversial, questionable calls by the officials.
- South Carolina trolled Tennessee coach Josh Heupel after another win over the visiting Volunteers.
- Garrett Wilson explained what appeared to be a heated exchange with Geno Smith.
- Derrick Henry's six-word review of the Ravens' middling running game was on the money.
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This article originally appeared on For The Win: Jalen Williams’ gruesome injury is so heartbreaking
