Jalen Williams of the Oklahoma City Thunder was taken off the court on a stretcher Sunday night, after suffering what a serious injury to his lower left leg while getting fouled in a scene that moved some of his teammates to the brink of tears.
He was injured while being fouled on a drive with 1:14 remaining of Oklahoma City's game against the Los Angeles Clippers, getting tended to almost immediately by medical personnel after going down underneath
the basket on the Thunder's offensive end.
Williams' ankle was draped by towels and players from both teams acted in immediate dismay as the stretcher was brought out. The game was stopped for about five minutes, and the Thunder went on to finish a 108-101 victory.
“Just feel bad for him,” Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander said in a postgame televised interview, fighting back tears as he spoke. “Nothing more than that.”
There was no immediate diagnosis from the Thunder, though it was obvious that the injury was severe. Oklahoma City coach Mark Daigneault said the team would be briefed Monday morning with the latest updates on Williams' condition.
“We're not doing great,” Daigneault said.
Williams — a shooting guard who entered Sunday having averaged 18 points per game in his first 250 NBA contests — has been an All-Star and an All-NBA player already in his career, plus was a huge part of the Thunder team that won the 2025 NBA title. He missed 49 games last season with an array of leg issues, mostly hamstring problems.
The Thunder play again Monday, at home against Phoenix. The schedule gives Oklahoma City little choice but to try and move on somewhat quickly, Daigneault said.
“We don’t have a choice,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “It’s what we signed up for. It’s obviously going to be tough without a player like that. He’s not gone forever. He’ll be back better than ever. We know it. We’ve just got to hold the fort down until he comes back.”
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