Kendrick Perkins, who played nearly five seasons with the Oklahoma City Thunder, has an inside track on how front-office boss Sam Presti and his medical staff operate. That’s precisely why Perkins is certain that Jalen Williams — who aggravated his left hamstring injury during Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals — is “done” for the remainder of the NBA playoffs.
“I think he’s done for the postseason,” Perkins told ESPN’s “First Take” on Thursday.
“Having played in that organization, I know how that medical staff operates,” he continued. “Donnie Strack — hell of a guy and great at his job — is not gonna rush him. And they shouldn’t. This has been a lingering injury, and I don’t think Jalen can keep playing through this.”
Further to Perkins’ point, Williams admitted he was healthy enough to play by Game 3 against the Los Angeles Lakers in the second round, but was held out by the Thunder’s medical staff as a precautionary measure. Also, the breakout performance of Ajay Mitchell meant the Thunder didn’t have to rush back their All-NBA wing, who sustained a grade 1 hamstring strain in Game 2 of the first-round series against the Phoenix Suns.
Jalen Williams Injury Concerns
Williams has been plagued by injuries all season, having missed 55 of the Thunder’s 91 games before Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals. He sat out the first 19 games recovering from offseason wrist surgery, and then another 36 games due to issues with both his hamstrings — the right one costing him 30 games during the regular season and the left costing him six games thus far in the playoffs.
“He’s going to get checked out,” Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault said after Williams played just seven minutes before exiting for the locker room on Wednesday.
“I don’t deal in like hypotheticals, especially when doctors are involved. … We’ll see where he’s at. We’ll update him accordingly.”
Thunder Level Up Series
Reigning two-time MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander sounded confident that Thunder could withstand Williams’ injury, citing his team’s backcourt depth, which includes Ajay Mitchell, Jared McCain, Isaiah Joe, Cason Wallace and Alex Caruso.
“Obviously, if we don’t have him, it hurts,” SGA said of Williams.
“I still believe in this team though. We’ve played a bunch of games without him, won big games without him. I still think we’ll get the job done. But losing a guy … no matter how good your team is otherwise it hurts a little bit. And for him, just like as a human being, he’s had a tough year with injuries.”
Thunder will now travel to San Antonio for Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals on Friday night. They are expected to provide an update on Jalen Williams’ injury sometime later on Thursday or closer to tip-off on Friday. The Spurs, who have outscored teams by an average margin of 15.7 points at home in the ongoing playoffs, open Friday’s Game 3 as slight 2.5-point favorites.
Thunder Get Worrying Jalen Williams News From Insider Close to Team