The Oklahoma City Thunder have already had plenty of practice figuring out life without Jalen Williams, and that reality is about to hit again.
Williams, the team’s No. 2 scorer behind Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, recently had surgery to repair a fractured left fibula and a dislocated ankle. He’s expected to miss most, if not all, of the year, leaving Oklahoma City thinner than it wants to be on the wing and forcing the front office to think bigger.
That’s where the 2021 draft comes back into focus.
If the Thunder had held onto Alperen Sengun, they might have had the kind of extra firepower that could ease the loss of Williams. Instead, Sengun was moved to the Houston Rockets on draft night in 2021, and he’s become a major piece there. The 24-year-old center is putting up a career-best 22.8 points, 7.4 assists and nine rebounds per game, and he’s already a two-time All-Star.
Bleacher Report’s Zach Buckley pointed directly at what Oklahoma City gave up, writing, “You know what the Thunder are unlikely to find there? A two-time All-Star, 24-year-old center who might be taking his game to previously unseen heights.
"And that hurts because Şengün was originally drafted by them, only to be quickly rerouted to the Rockets for draft assets the Thunder later used as part of a package for Ousmane Dieng, who was salary-dumped at last season's deadline," Bleacher Report's Zach Buckley wrote.
The Thunder did receive two first-round picks in the deal, and general manager Sam Presti has used those kinds of moves to build one of the league’s strongest rosters. But this is one trade that may linger, especially now that Oklahoma City is dealing with more injury trouble.
The team went 39-10 without Williams during the 2025-26 season, so there’s evidence it can survive the absence. Still, Chet Holmgren’s small patellar tendon tear in his right knee adds another complication, and it leaves the Thunder in a spot where another All-Star would look awfully useful.
Presti has earned plenty of trust for the way he’s built the roster. Even so, if Oklahoma City wants another trip to the NBA Finals, it may have to get creative - and the Sengun deal is one it could wish it could take back.
In Other News...
Thunder Contract Call Just Raised Questions About Their Young Core
The Thunders injury crunch has already forced the roster into a difficult stretch, and the latest contract decision only adds another layer to the uncertainty around the young core. Oklahoma City declined the fourth-year option on Nikola Topic, a move that shifts his future into a more uncertain lane while the team continues to juggle absences and search for stability after a loss to the Houston Rockets.
Jared McCain has been one of the more significant contributors this season, while Thomas Sorber has yet to play because of knee injuries, leaving the Thunder with more questions than answers about how their youth will fit together. Topics situation is now part of that broader picture, especially with the team still navigating injuries to key players and trying to sort out its long-term plans without much margin for error. [Read more 🡒]
Thunder Head Into Cleveland With A Problem They Can't Ignore
The Thunders trip to Cleveland comes with the kind of injury backdrop that can reshape a game plan before the opening tip. Oklahoma City has been forced to navigate a rotation thinned by significant absences, including two All-NBA selections and three former All-Defense players, and the ripple effects have shown up everywhere from the starting group to the bench. Even with the roster stretched, the Thunder still have to keep moving forward, and a meeting with the Cavaliers at Rocket Arena offers another test of how well they can manage the load.
There are still some encouraging signs in the recovery process, with Jalen Williams, Cason Wallace and Chet Holmgren all working back from injuries and carrying expected return timelines. For a team trying to stay organized through an extended stretch of uncertainty, those updates matter almost as much as the matchup itself. Cleveland has its own injury list to sort through, including three players currently listed and Peyton Watson marked questionable, but Oklahoma Citys bigger concern is whether it can keep absorbing these hits without losing too much ground in the rotation. [Read more 🡒]
Thunder Just Sent A Clear Signal About Their Center Rotation
The Thunder have already made one quiet but telling move in the middle of their center picture, exercising Thomas Sorbers rookie-scale team option even though he has yet to play a game for the club. It is the kind of decision that says plenty about how Oklahoma City is thinking about its frontcourt depth, especially with Chet Holmgren sidelined by a knee injury but still around the team in a supporting role.
At the same time, the bigger roster question is getting harder to ignore. Isaiah Hartenstein signed a multi-year extension, but the Thunder are also weighing the long-term cap picture and how much room they want to keep tied up in the center spot as younger pieces emerge. Sorbers option pickup fits that larger calculation, and it leaves the next step in Oklahoma Citys rotation planning very much in play. [Read more 🡒]