The Oklahoma City Thunder are coming off one of the best seasons in NBA history. Their 68 regular season wins were tied for the fourth most ever, and they capitalized by winning the NBA Finals. Somehow, they could be even better this year, and they proved why they are favored to repeat as champions during their season opener. It took two overtimes to do so, but the Thunder won their first game against a very good Houston Rockets team that had arguably the best offseason in the league after earning the No. 2 seed last season.
Reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander got off to somewhat of a slow start, but he led his team to victory and hit the game-winning free throws. The rest of the team did what they always do, and that is play a winning brand of basketball that perfectly complements their star. Gilgeous-Alexander isn't the only star in Oklahoma City, though. Jalen Williams is also one of the best players in the NBA, and his injury status is the biggest question mark surrounding the Thunder.
Jalen Williams and a number of key players are already sidelined
There is a lot of uncertainty surrounding Williams and his injury. The All-Star forward had offseason surgery to repair a torn scapholunate ligament in his right wrist. Reports have suggested that he shouldn't miss extended time, but nobody seems to know just how severe the injury is. A wrist injury on a shooter's shooting hand should be worrisome for the Thunder. Williams was replaced in the starting lineup by Cason Wallace in the first game of the season.
Williams isn't the only banged-up player, either. In fact, the injuries are already starting to pile up just one game into the season. Rookie first-rounder Thomas Sorber will miss all of the year with a torn ACL, and Nikola Topic, who missed his entire rookie season last year, will also miss extended time. Topic has recovered from his ACL injury, but now he is out because of a testicular procedure.
Kenrich Williams and Isaiah Joe missed the first game as well, the former because of arthroscopic knee surgery and the latter because of a knee sprain. Deep playoff runs take their toll on teams, and that is already becoming clear for the Thunder.
Injuries won't prevent Thunder from repeating as champions
Even with the surplus of injuries the Thunder are dealing with, the team will be fine and should still be viewed as championship favorites. Oklahoma City has never-before-seen depth due to their perfectly executed rebuild, in which they are still reaping the rewards of draft capital. Chet Holmgren is a fellow All-Star caliber player, and Isaiah Hartenstein, Lu Dort, Alex Caruso, Andrew Wiggins, Jaylin Williams, and Ajay Mitchell are players who haven't been mentioned yet who are solid rotation pieces.
The Thunder were fine when Holmgren missed extended time last year, and they will be fine if Jalen Williams' injury is more than meets the eye this year, as long as he will be good to go at some point this season. The team's current injury status will allow reinforcements to step up, which they always seem to do under Mark Daigneault.
The Thunder didn't even play all that great against the Rockets, evidenced by their 25 percent shooting mark from deep. This is a team that simply knows how to win games, regardless of if injuries are prevalent or if jump shots are not falling.
