By sweeping the Phoenix Suns in the first round, the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder earned nearly a full week of rest before the Western Conference semifinals tip off.
Now, the Thunder have a date with the Los Angeles Lakers, who eliminated the Houston Rockets in six games. While Luka Dončić’s availability is a big question mark entering the series, the Thunder have an injured star of their own. What is Jalen Williams’ status heading into Game 1 against Los Angeles?
Jalen Williams Injury Update: Latest on Thunder Star’s Status and Return Timeline
Williams has been ruled out for Game 1 against the Lakers on Tuesday night, and it remains to be seen when he’ll return.
Williams went down with a left hamstring injury during the third quarter of Game 2 against the Suns on April 22 at the Paycom Center. After missing a contested layup with 6:26 left, Williams grabbed his left leg and later gestured toward the bench.
While the Thunder cruised to a 120-107 win and ultimately swept the Suns anyway, Williams’ injury now looms over OKC’s playoff run.
Williams is dealing with a Grade 1 hamstring strain, which Dr. Evan Jeffries explained often sidelines a player for one-to-two weeks. Had Williams suffered a Grade 2 strain (like Dončić), the timeline would have been closer to three-to-six weeks, so he dodged a bullet.
Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault confirmed that Williams’ diagnosis was “a relatively positive development” since “the injury could’ve been a lot worse.”
While Williams has been ruled out for Game 1, a return at some point in the next game or two certainly seems possible. Here is the schedule for the Thunder-Lakers series:
- Game 1: Los Angeles at OKC, Tuesday, May 5
- Game 2: Los Angeles at OKC, Thursday, May 7
- Game 3: OKC at Los Angeles, Saturday, May 9
- Game 4: OKC at Los Angeles, Monday, May 11
- Game 5 (If necessary): Los Angeles at OKC, Wednesday, May 13
- Game 6 (If necessary): OKC at Los Angeles, Saturday, May 16
- Game 7 (If necessary): Los Angeles at OKC, Monday, May 18
During the regular season, Williams averaged 17.1 points, 4.6 rebounds, 5.5 assists, and 1.2 steals per game. He struggled with his efficiency, shooting career-lows from the field (48.4%) and 3-point range (29.9%).
Williams appeared in just 33 games during the regular season, as he missed significant stretches while recovering from offseason wrist surgery and a pair of separate hamstring strains. OKC still managed to win an NBA-best 64 games and secure the West’s No. 1 seed with the 25-year-old bouncing in and out of the lineup.
Los Angeles knows a thing or two about missing a key player due to a hamstring injury, as Dončić has yet to play in this postseason while he battles his Grade 2 strain that he suffered on April 2 against OKC. Dončić has been ruled out for Game 1 on Tuesday night, and it sounds like the superstar is “not close” to returning, according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst.
“Most likely you’re not gonna see Luka Dončić at the front end of this series, maybe at least for another week to 10 days… [at] the minimum,” Windhorst said over the weekend.
This lines up with what ClutchPoints’ Brett Siegel reported last Friday night that Dončić’s “return is still not clear nor close.”
Dončić has begun “to do light individual work” and “there is optimism he can begin ramping up his activities” this week, according to Siegel. But he isn’t currently doing any contact drills, 1-on-1, 3-on-3, or 5-on-5 — all things he must clear in order to return.
Barring a surprise, don’t expect to see Dončić back early in this series. The Lakers will try to hang around in the series so that Dončić could make his return toward the middle or end of the round.
Both teams will be anxiously monitoring hamstrings and focusing on treatment in the early part of the series, so be sure to check back for updates on both stars’ availability.
