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Jalen Williams #8 of the Oklahoma City Thunder is helped off the court against the Miami Heat during the first half at Kaseya Center on January 17, 2026 in Miami, Florida.
All-Star swingman Jalen Williams has been cleared to return from his hamstring injury during Sunday’s road game against the Los Angeles Lakers, spelling good news for an Oklahoma City Thunder team also dealing with injuries to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (abdominal) and Ajay Mitchell (abdomen).
Williams, who has missed the last 10 games with a right hamstring strain, also sat out the first 19 games of the season due to an offseason wrist surgery. As such, the 24-year-old star has already missed 29 of the Thunder’s 53 games this season. The injuries haven’t allowed Williams to hit his stride this year, with his points nosediving to 16.8 per game, his lowest since his rookie season, and his efficiency also taking a hit. He is shooting a career-low 47% from the field and 30% from the three-point line.
Jalen Williams Injury Update
The return of J-Dub comes at a crucial time for Thunder, with leading scorer Gilgeous-Alexander set to be out for an extended period with an abdominal strain. Once Williams can regain his rhythm, he can take over SGA’s duties as OKC’s go-to scorer, especially in crunch time. The reigning NBA champions didn’t have that luxury in back-to-back losses to the Houston Rockets and San Antonio Spurs over the weekend, which saw the likes of Cason Wallace and Aaron Wiggins step up to the plate and assume more offensive duties. The plan didn’t work great as Wiggins (18.5 points on 44% shooting) was a -14 in the losses, while Wallace (18.0 points on 50% shootinmg) was a -4.0.
It’s unknown if Williams will be on a minutes restriction during his return against the Lakers on Monday. He came off the bench in his first few games in late November and early December after wrist surgery, and could be used in a similar role again.
Lakers Injury News
Meanwhile, the Lakers will be without Luka Doncic (hamstring) for a second consecutive game, while starting center Deandre Ayton (knee) is also a game-time decision after he sat out Saturday’s win over the Golden State Warriors.
The Lakers could potentially re-insert star guard Austin Reaves into the starting unit after he came off the bench thrice this past week after missing a month of action. Furthermore, the Lakers’ trade deadline acquisition, Luke Kennard, made an instant impact in Saturday’s win over the Warriors, and could have a bigger role going forward.
“Just his ability to make reads and make plays,” Redick said of Kennard. “He’s not a guy you’re going to give the ball to in isolation and then he’s going to bend the defense. But he’s a smart basketball player. He knows how to play and he knows how to make reads.”
“He doesn’t always get the assist, but generally speaking he’s going to attack a closeout, get a shot fake and swing the ball, and that leads to something good,” Redick said. “For his first time with us, getting here yesterday, I thought he was really good.”
The Thunder (40-13) enter Monday’s game against the Lakers (40-13) as -5.5-point favorites despite playing on the road and without their best player, Gilgeous-Alexander.
Sai Mohan covers the NBA for Heavy.com. Based in Portugal, Sai is a seasoned sports writer with nearly two decades of publishing experience, including bylines at Yardbarker, FanSided’s Hoops Habit, International Business Times, Hindustan Times and more. More about Sai Mohan
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