Jalen Williams went down on a drive with 1:14 left in the Oklahoma City Thunder’s 108-101 win over the LA Clippers on Sunday night. Play stopped for about five minutes. He left the floor on a stretcher and gave the Paycom Center crowd two thumbs up on the way out.
(Photo by Joshua Gateley/Getty Images)
A few minutes after the final horn, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was wiping away tears during his on-court television interview.
“It’s obviously going to be tough without a player like that,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “But he’s not gone forever.”
Thunder coach Mark Daigneault met with reporters after the game, before the team had a diagnosis.
“We’re not doing great,” Daigneault said.
The diagnosis came Monday. Williams has a fractured left fibula and a dislocated left ankle. Cason Wallace, hurt in the same game, has a torn labrum in his left shoulder. Both needed surgery. Thunder general manager Sam Presti held a news conference in Oklahoma City that afternoon.
“We’ll have a timeline for everybody once we get through the surgery,” Presti said.
On Monday, without Williams, Wallace, or Chet Holmgren, Oklahoma City beat the Phoenix Suns 125-114 to move to 4-0. Ajay Mitchell scored a career-high 30 points, and Gilgeous-Alexander added 26.
Williams had surgery Wednesday in New York. The Thunder said he will be re-evaluated before the end of the 2026-27 regular season.
Wednesday night, the Dallas Mavericks handed the Thunder their first loss, 120-96 at American Airlines Center. Oklahoma City went 5-of-32 from 3-point range, a season low.
The Thunder can hold their place near the top of the Western Conference through this. It takes Mitchell carrying a second-creator load, the three 7-footers controlling the paint, and Presti spending at least part of the exception he created when he traded Luguentz Dort in July.
An emotional SGA after Jalen Williams’ horrific injury “I just feel bad for him. Nothing more than that. …He’ll be back better than ever.” https://t.co/JspDByCcII
— Basketball Forever (@bballforever_) October 26, 2026
The Injury Report
Seven players were on Oklahoma City’s injury report for Wednesday’s game at Dallas. Williams, Wallace, Holmgren, and Alex Caruso were out. So were Nikola Topic, who had low back surgery, and Thomas Sorber, who had right knee surgery. Mitchell was listed as questionable with a right ankle sprain and played.
Holmgren missed a second straight game with right knee patellar tendinitis. Caruso went 3-of-5 from 3-point range against Phoenix on Monday before spraining his right ankle, and he has not played since.
Williams is 25 years old. Through three games, he was averaging 13.7 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 3.3 assists, second on the team in scoring. Over 251 career games, he has averaged 17.9 points.
Ajay Mitchell Next to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Mitchell started in Williams’ spot on Monday. He scored 13 points in the first quarter, tying his career high for a quarter, according to Thunder reporter Nick Gallo. By halftime he had 18.
He finished 10-of-16 from the field and 9-of-10 from the free-throw line. He had 5 assists and 1 turnover.
At Dallas, Mitchell scored 29 points on 12-of-20 shooting. Gilgeous-Alexander had 21 on 7-of-19.
Last spring, Mitchell also started for Williams in Game 3 of the first-round series at Phoenix. He shot 5-of-20 that night, and Gilgeous-Alexander scored 42 in a 121-109 win.
Ajay Mitchell STARRED in OKC’s victory! 30 PTS (career-high) 5 AST 10-16 FGM The Thunder improve to 4-0 on the season https://t.co/vOuhpDoddo
— NBA (@NBA) October 27, 2026
Now in his third NBA season, Mitchell came to Oklahoma City in a draft-rights trade after going 38th overall in 2024 out of UC Santa Barbara. The Thunder need him as the second ball-handler most nights, not as a bench scorer.
Jared McCain fills the other guard spot. Oklahoma City acquired him from the Philadelphia 76ers at last season’s trade deadline for a 2026 first-round pick and three second-round picks. Starting in Wallace’s place against Phoenix, McCain scored 18 points, went 4-of-7 from 3-point range, and had 4 assists. At Dallas, he scored 10 points on 3-of-13 shooting and missed all 6 of his 3-point attempts.
Bennett Stirtz is next in line. The Thunder traded up one spot with the Memphis Grizzlies to take him 16th overall in June. He scored 7 points on 1-of-6 shooting against Phoenix and 8 points on 3-of-5 shooting at Dallas.
The Three 7-Footers
Holmgren, Isaiah Hartenstein, and Aday Mara are all 7-footers. In the season opener, a 116-104 win at the San Antonio Spurs, the Thunder held Victor Wembanyama to 1-of-13 shooting. Two nights later, Nikola Jokić went 5-of-19 in a 96-84 Thunder win over the Denver Nuggets.
Nuggets coach David Adelman spoke after that game in Oklahoma City.
“When you have those bigs, there’s a lot you can do that others can’t do,” Adelman said.
With Holmgren out Monday, Hartenstein had 15 points and 13 rebounds for his second double-double in two nights. Mara, the 12th overall pick out of Michigan, had 11 points and 10 rebounds. Oklahoma City outrebounded Phoenix 57-49 and outscored the Suns 50-38 in the paint.
Hartenstein added 10 points and 14 rebounds at Dallas, and Mara had 6 points and 3 rebounds. The Mavericks outrebounded the Thunder 57-52 and won second-chance points 18-7. Oklahoma City outscored Dallas 44-42 in the paint.
Hartenstein re-signed this summer on a three-year contract. None of the summer trades touched the frontcourt, and Daigneault can lean on two-big lineups for longer stretches until Holmgren’s knee settles.
OKC’s BIGS PROTECTING THE RIM Holmgren SWAT. Hartenstein SWAT. The Thunder lead with under a minute to go in Q4! https://t.co/FPaDCOorFA
— NBA (@NBA) October 21, 2026
The Depth That Left in July
According to CBS Sports, Oklahoma City went 39-10 without Williams last season. Hamstring problems and recovery from right wrist surgery cost him 49 games, and the Thunder lost to San Antonio in Game 7 of the Western Conference finals.
Three of the players who covered those minutes are gone. Oklahoma City traded Isaiah Joe to the Detroit Pistons and Aaron Wiggins to the Atlanta Hawks on July 6, then sent Dort to Atlanta on July 19. The three deals returned seven second-round picks and kept the Thunder under the second apron.
Eric Pincus reported for Casino.org that the moves cut a projected luxury-tax bill of about $350 million to under $20 million.
Wallace took Dort’s place in the starting lineup. He signed a five-year extension on Oct. 19, six days before the shoulder injury. Last season, he finished eighth in Defensive Player of the Year voting.
Lu Dort and Aaron Wiggins dapped up the entire Thunder coaching staff and Thunder sideline reporter @NickAGallo https://t.co/tlj9CKCwbr
— SleeperThunder (@SleeperThunder) October 13, 2026
The Dort Exception
The Dort trade left Oklahoma City with a $17.7 million traded player exception, which lets the Thunder absorb a player’s salary without sending one back. They have 14 players under contract and one open roster spot.
Pincus estimated that using the exception could add $45 million to $70 million in luxury tax, depending on the incoming salary.
Williams’ injury may also qualify the Thunder for a disabled player exception. Under the collective bargaining agreement, the league grants one when a league-designated physician determines a player is substantially more likely than not to be out through June 15. It can be used to sign a free agent or to trade for a player in the final season of his contract.
Free agents who signed this summer become trade-eligible on Dec. 15.
With Wallace and Caruso both out, the exception is where a replacement perimeter defender comes from. Oklahoma City saved the money in July, and some of it now has a use.
The Thunder visit the Houston Rockets at 7:30 p.m. CT on Saturday. They then play the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday in Cleveland and on Wednesday in Oklahoma City.
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