Oklahoma City Thunder player Jalen Williams sustained what appeared to be a serious injury during a game against the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday (Oct. 25).
As seen in the video above, Williams drove to the basket as the Clippers trailed the Thunder by four points in the fourth quarter and was ultimately blocked at the rim. Williams fell to the court as his left leg bent behind him, with the apparent seriousness of the injury quickly made apparent for all inside the Paycom Center.
After being assessed on the court, Williams was ultimately taken away on a stretcher as fans cheered. A flagrant foul was called on Kris Dunn of the Clippers.
Though the Thunder did indeed pull out the win with a final score of 108-101, the hard-to-watch moment put an inarguable damper on the evening. Speaking with reporters after the game, Mark Daigneault, head coach for the Thunder, said the team was “not doing great” after witnessing the injury.
“Those are tough, man,” he said. “Yeah, I don’t know. We’re not doing great. That’s tough on the guys. Everyone empathizes, I think, both teams in those situations. So yeah, not doing great.”
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander also addressed this unfortunate turn of events, pointing to past instances of his Thunder teammate bouncing back from an injury.
“He just loves playing,” SGA told reporters on Sunday. “He loves the competition. That’s who he is. I have no doubt in my mind that he’ll be back and he’ll be better than he was before, just like how he handled the last couple injuries. It’s unfortunate, his luck so far, but he’s equipped for it. He’s a warrior, and he’ll be alright.”
Complex has reached out to Thunder reps for an update on Williams’ injury. The team next faces the Phoenix Suns on Monday (Oct. 26).
