Oklahoma City’s injury list got a lot longer in a hurry.
Thunder general manager Sam Presti said guard Cason Wallace has suffered a left labrum tear that will require surgery. Wallace, the team’s freshly-inked fourth-year guard, went down just minutes into Sunday night’s game against the Clippers after trying to fight through a screen and immediately grabbing at his shoulder area. He was taken off the floor by the medical staff and was ruled out at halftime.
Presti said there is no timetable yet for Wallace’s return, and the team will reassess things after the surgery.
The update lands at a rough moment for Wallace, who signed a new five-year contract weeks ago that will keep him in OKC for the next half-decade. Last season, he averaged 8.6 points on 43% shooting overall and earned an All-Defense bid.
Wallace’s injury is part of a brutal stretch for the Thunder. Presti also said Jalen Williams suffered a fractured fibula and ankle dislocation late in the Clippers game and will also need surgery, with no current timetable for a return. Williams had gone down with a gruesome left leg injury in the closing minutes.
The timing is especially ugly because the Thunder had seemed relatively clean on the injury front just a day earlier. On Tuesday, only Thomas Sorber and Nikola Topic were on the report. Now, Oklahoma City is listing five players: Wallace, Williams, Sorber, Topic and Chet Holmgren, who is dealing with right patellar tendinitis.
It feels like a familiar storyline for the Thunder, who were hit by injuries all last season and into the postseason. Williams missed significant time during the regular season with wrist and hamstring injuries, and in the playoffs, the Thunder dropped a seven-game series to the San Antonio Spurs with Williams and Ajay Mitchell both missing time.
Even so, Oklahoma City has shown it can survive the chaos. The Thunder managed 64 wins last season despite a run of major injuries, including Holmgren’s own absences, and they’ve already opened this year 3-0 with wins over the Spurs, Nuggets and Clippers.
Now comes the next test. The Thunder play the Phoenix Suns at 7 p.m. CT tonight in their first back-to-back of the season, and the latest injury news figures to hang over the rest of the night and beyond.
In Other News...
Thunders Unbeaten Start Suddenly Comes With A Worry Fans Will Feel
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The concern arrived in the third quarter, when Jaylin Williams and Cason Wallace both exited with injuries and did not return. Williams was dealing with right wrist soreness, while Wallace had left shoulder soreness, and the sight of two rotation pieces heading to the bench at once is the sort of thing that can linger far longer than one regular-season game. [Read more 🡒]
Thunder Suddenly Have A Huge Jalen Williams Concern
The Thunder had one of those late-game moments nobody in Oklahoma City wanted to see when Jalen Williams went up for a dunk against the Clippers and came down awkwardly on his leg in the fourth quarter. The sequence turned quickly from a routine attacking play into a scary pause, with Williams eventually leaving the floor in a leg brace after being helped off.
Williams did manage to give the crowd a thumbs up before he exited, a small sign that offered some relief in the moment. Even so, the bigger concern now is the same one that follows any sudden injury like this, since the Thunder have not provided an official update on his status and will be waiting to learn how serious it is. [Read more 🡒]
Aday Mara Is Already Making OKC's Draft Choice Look Smarter
Aday Mara is already giving the Thunder a good early return on a draft decision that drew plenty of attention in the moment. Taken 12th overall, the big man has looked comfortable through his first three games, and the early read from Oklahoma City is that his defense and fit have been just as encouraging as the raw production.
For a team that values long-term upside but still wants immediate signs of progress, Maras start matters. Around the same Michigan pipeline of prospects, the opening stretch has been uneven, which only makes Maras smooth transition stand out more for the Thunder as they track whether they found the right player for this spot. [Read more 🡒]