Jalen Williams made his return to the Oklahoma City Thunder lineup on Monday after an extended absence caused by a hamstring injury, finishing with 18 points and six assists.
Following the game, he shared that not only is his leg feeling good again, but the wrist he had surgery on in the offseason is now fully recovered, according to ESPN’s Tim Bontemps.
“It was just like one of those things that like when you have surgery and you rush into games, it’s like, I wouldn’t say rush, but I’m going into games with … I don’t know what my hands are going to look like,” Williams said.
“So now I’ve had the time to actually sit down and work on it and do what I normally do throughout that process, now I’m in a really good spot with it.”
His return adds another layer of strength to an already formidable Thunder team as they push to defend their title.
As Joel Lorenzi of The Athletic points out, Oklahoma City also benefited during Williams’ absence, with several younger players stepping into larger roles and developing along the way.
“You guys got to watch [Ajay Mitchell] blossom even more. [Jaylin Williams] and [Cason Wallace], they’ve had to be in spots that they didn’t think they were going to be in to start the season,” Williams said.
“We’re better for it now.”
Joel Embiid appears on the verge of returning to action, plus more injury-related notes from around the NBA: https://t.co/H3CjalwNvt
— Hoops Rumors (@HoopsRumors) March 25, 2026
