Opening week may be behind them, but the Oklahoma City Thunder have endured a horrific experience in just the third game and now must overcome a season-altering injury.
After statement victories over the San Antonio Spurs and the Denver Nuggets to open the season, the Thunder have endured a horrific experience in just the third game. From Shai Gilgeous-Alexander‘s teardrop reaction to Sam Presti rushing down with a concerned look, to Mark Daigneault’s statement that they’re “not doing well right now,” the Thunder walked out of the final game of opening week with crushing blows, physically and mentally. Thunder star Jalen Williams was lost to a heartbreaking leg injury, All-Defensive Guard Cason Wallace to a shoulder injury, and key forward Jaylin Williams to a wrist injury.
Unfortunately, the brutal reality of the NBA is that no one waits, and the schedule doesn’t lighten up, as Oklahoma City will be on the second leg of a back-to-back set tonight against the Phoenix Suns — the team’s first back-to-back of the season — in less than 24 hours.
Given the circumstances, it is unclear who will be available. However, the bigger question is: what does this mean, and what does this team look like in the immediate future and for the Thunder’s season outlook?
This is unfortunately a defining moment, as others will now be tasked with greater responsibility and asked to step up in this tragic situation.
Here are three critical storylines to follow as the Thunder try to bounce back from this emotional moment.
3 Critical Storylines to Watch
1) How the Thunder Compensate for the Loss of Jalen Williams?
Presuming the worst (that Williams is out for the season), the Thunder formula will likely shift. SGA will have to shoulder a significant offensive load once again without Williams. Will have to rely on depth again, except it’s more unproven further down the rotation — having to unload off of Lu Dort, Aaron Wiggins and Isaiah Joe due to cap-related reasons.
Fortunately, the Thunder’s best players off the bench consist of: Ajay Mitchell, Alex Caruso, Jared McCain, J-Will and Kenrich Williams. They’ll lean on Mitchell, who is the most likely of the group to replace the scoring void of J-Dub. Caruso and K-Rich will be leaned on to fill in the void as the wing defender, due to being the only other wings on the roster. One will obviously have to step into the starting lineup, though, which further puts more stress on their overall depth. Pitting the two rookies in — Aday Mara and Bennett Stirtz– in for bigger roles than expected out the gate.
The margin for error that the Thunder previously had is completely gone.
2) Who Steps up as the Secondary Creators?
As stated above, the spotlight will be focused on Mitchell and McCain as secondary creators. It is clear that these two are the prime candidates that are expected to fill in the void left behind by J-Dub and Wallace, who are in need to step into larger roles. How they handle that task will define where Oklahoma City’s season goes from here.
3) Thunder’s Front-Court
Oklahoma City was already thin at the wing position with J-Dub. What does it look like now? K-Rich will likely now play a much bigger role. This also puts greater stress on the frontcourt of Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein to step up and make their presence felt along with Mara and J-Will off the bench in dominating the glass and in the interior, to compensate for areas they could potentially lack in, for the immediate future.
Time will certainly tell how Oklahoma City recovers and responds to this emotional moment, but there’s no replicating what Jalen Williams does for this team. All eyes will be on the Thunder.
Main Image: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
