Jalen Williams waves to the crowd as he is forced out after an injury in the second half against the LA Clippers.
Jalen Williams of the Oklahoma City Thunder was taken off the court on a stretcher Sunday night after suffering a serious injury to his left leg during a foul during a scene that moved some of his teammates to the verge of tears.
He was injured during a practice with 1:14 left in Oklahoma City’s game against the Los Angeles Clippers, and was treated almost immediately by medical staff after falling under the basket on the Thunder’s offensive end.
Williams’ ankle was covered in towels and players from both teams immediately acted with dismay and disbelief when the stretcher was brought out. The game was stopped for about five minutes and the Thunder ultimately took a 108-101 victory..
“Just feel bad for him,” Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander said in a postgame television interview, choking back tears as he spoke. “Nothing more than that.”
There was no immediate diagnosis of the Thunder, even though it was obvious the injury was serious – and the stretcher was requested just seconds after the game ended. Oklahoma City coach Mark Daigneault said the team would be informed Monday morning of the latest updates on Williams’ condition.
“We’re not doing very well,” Daigneault said.
Williams, sitting on the stretcher, greeted cheering fans with two thumbs-up signals as he was taken off the field.
“Our entire city will have JDub in our thoughts and prayers as he faces this adversity and as he recovers,” Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt said on social media after the game.
Williams — a shooting guard who entered Sunday averaging 18 points per game in his first 250 NBA games — has already been an All-Star and All-NBA player in his career, and was also a big part of the Thunder team that won the 2025 NBA title. He missed 49 games last season due to various issues, primarily hamstring issues and recovering from major right wrist surgery.
“He loves to play, he loves to compete,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “That’s what he is. … It’s unfortunate, his luck so far. But he’s equipped for it.”
The Thunder play again Monday night at home against Phoenix. The schedule gives Oklahoma City little choice but to try to move forward a little quickly, Daigneault said.
“We have no choice,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “That’s what we signed up for. It’s obviously going to be difficult without a player like that. He’s not gone forever. He’ll come back better than ever. We know that. We just have to hold down the fort until he comes back.”
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