Jalen Williams Will Have Surgery After Gruesome Injury, Update on Thunder Star's Timeline to Return

The Oklahoma City Thunder will be without star Jalen Williams for the foreseeable future.

General manager Sam Presti told reporters Monday he suffered a fractured fibula and dislocated left ankle during Sunday's win over the Los Angeles Clippers. Presti explained Williams will need surgery and the exact timeline for his return will be known following the operation.

Williams suffered the gruesome injury with fewer than two minutes remaining in Sunday's game when he went up for an attempt at the rim and collided with Kris Dunn. He suffered the injury when he fell awkwardly and was stretchered off the court.

The Thunder crowd chanted his name as he was stretchered away.

Teammate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was emotional after the game and said during an interview, "I don't even know. I just feel bad for him. Nothing more than that. ... It's obviously gonna be tough without a player like that. But he's not gone forever, he'll be back better than ever and we know it. We've just gotta hold the fort down until he comes back."

Williams' setback was all the more notable because he dealt with injury concerns throughout the 2025-26 campaign.

He appeared in just 33 regular-season games because of wrist and hamstring injuries and then played just five of OKC's playoff games. His absence was a significant factor in the team's loss to the San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference Finals.

Unfortunately for the Thunder, Williams isn't the only injury situation they are dealing with early in the season.

Presti said Cason Wallace suffered a left labral tear in his shoulder and will also require surgery with an exact timeline to be determined.

"I like to say, and we say within our walls all the time," Presti continued. "There's a difference between being positive and being optimistic. Not going to sit up here and say this is exactly where we want to be or this is how we'd like to have it, but at the same time, we're extremely optimistic about the recovery for both players. Most importantly, things could've been a lot worse."

He also said his focus has been on "people" during the last 24 hours:

ESPN's Bobby Marks added context to possible roster moves if Oklahoma City does choose to respond:

The Thunder reached the Western Conference Finals last season even with Williams dealing with injuries, but they will be missing two significant pieces of their roster for the foreseeable future following these setbacks.