OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) 鈥� Jalen Williams is planning to have surgery on his right wrist after the Oklahoma City forward tore a ligament before the Thunder started their run to a championship, general manager Sam Presti said Monday.
Williams played in all 23 postseason games in helping the since moving to Oklahoma from Seattle 17 years ago. in a 120-109 win over Indiana in Game 5 of the NBA Finals. Oklahoma City beat the Pacers in seven games.
The 24-year-old Williams is expected to be ready for next season, Presti said. Williams was inactive for the final two games of the regular season after playing 36 minutes in a 125-112 victory over Phoenix on April 9.
Williams wrote a brace on the wrist on his shooting hand at times during the playoffs and had it taped during games. He shot just 30% from 3-point range in the playoffs, more than 6% off his percentage during the regular season.
鈥淭he part that I鈥檓 most impressed with is in our modern era, when someone has a poor performance or they鈥檙e not playing to their capability in a game and there鈥檚 a lot of attention on it, you often see a little birdie make sure that everybody knows that the player is not 100%,鈥� Presti said during his season-ending meeting with reporters. 鈥淣ever happened with this guy, not one time. He powered through. He showed incredible mental endurance and security in himself.鈥�
A first-time All-Star in his third season after the Thunder drafted him 12th overall out of Santa Clara in 2022, Williams averaged career bests of 21.6 points, 5.3 rebounds and 5.1 assists.
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The Associated Press
