NBA winners and losers: Thunder win, but Jalen Williams’ injury could loom large

Wednesday night’s NBA playoff action was largely drama-free, as the No. 1 seeds in each conference cruised to double-digit wins. Early on, the Detroit Pistons used a 30-3 run in the third quarter to pull away from the Orlando Magic en route to a 98-83 win. And in the second game of the doubleheader, the Oklahoma City Thunder held off a fourth-quarter push by the Phoenix Suns for a 120-107 victory. 

The Pistons and Magic are now all even at 1-1 and will have plenty of time off before Game 3 in Orlando on Saturday. The Thunder, meanwhile, have a commanding 2-0 lead on the Suns, who will host Game 3 of their matchup on Saturday. 

Here’s a look at the winners and losers from Wednesday night in the NBA playoffs. 

Winner: Chet Holmgren

This was, by far, Holmgren’s best season since being drafted No. 2 overall in 2022. He averaged career-highs in scoring, rebounds and field goal percentage, made his first All-Star appearance and finished second to Victor Wembanyama in Defensive Player of the Year voting. When the All-Defensive Teams are announced, he should make the First Team. 

Holmgren has continued his strong play into the postseason. After a strong 16-point, seven-rebound, two-block effort in just 25 minutes in Game 1, Holmgren went for 19 points, eight rebounds and four blocks on Wednesday. All of those blocks came in the third quarter, and were the most blocks in a quarter in the playoffs in 18 years. For the series, Holmgren is shooting 12 of 22 (54.5%) from the field, including 5 of 12 (41.7%) from 3-point range. 

“He’s special, man,” Shai Gilgeous-Alexander said during his postgame interview on the broadcast. “He affects the game at a really high level every time he steps on the floor. I’m gonna sound like a broken record, but since the day that Chet Holmgren played for the Oklahoma City Thunder, we’ve been the first seed in the West, and it’s no coincidence. He makes plays, he anchors the best defense in the league.”

The Thunder are going to need even more from Holmgren if Jalen Williams ends up missing time with his apparent hamstring issue. 

Loser: Thunder’s health

In the middle of the third quarter, the Thunder’s Jalen Williams ran the floor hard in transition, caught a pass from Gilgeous-Alexander and went up for a layup that he missed. Immediately, he grabbed for his left hamstring and took his time getting back down the floor. 

After taking a foul to stop play, Williams appeared to inform the bench that his left hamstring was bothering him, then went to the locker room and did not return. It’s far too early to know how long Williams may be sidelined — he’ll likely undergo an MRI either late Wednesday or early Thursday — but this was not what the Thunder wanted to see. 

Williams played only 33 games this season due to multiple injuries, including a right hamstring issue that kept him out for eight weeks across two different stretches. The Thunder will be fine against the Suns even if Williams doesn’t come back, but if he’s facing another extended spell on the sidelines, that would be a big blow to their title hopes. 

In Game 1, Williams put up 22 points, seven rebounds and six assists on 9 of 15 from the field. Though he had struggled at times this season, he is a proven playoff performer and was their second-best player last season en route to their first title. 

Gilgeous-Alexander was also in pain early in the game after an awkward fall where he put his left hand out to brace himself and his fingers bent the wrong way. He was checked out by the team’s medical staff and remained in the game — and finished with 37 points and nine assists — but it was clear his hand was bothering him all night. That could be something to monitor over the next few days. 

Winner: The Pistons’ supporting cast

Even though the Pistons won 60 games and were the No. 1 seed, they weren’t the clear favorites in the Eastern Conference entering the playoffs, in large part because of concerns about their over-reliance on All-Star guard Cade Cunningham. 

Game 1 was a perfect example. Cunningham poured in 39 points on 13 of 27 from the field on Sunday, but the Pistons lost because every other Detroit player combined for 62 points on 18 of 50 shooting. In fact, Tobias Harris was the only other player who scored in double figures that night, and he shot 5 of 15.

The Pistons won’t get past the Magic, let alone make a deep run, unless their supporting cast steps up to give Cunningham some help. They certainly did in Game 2. Cunningham went off again for 27 points, 11 assists and six rebounds. But the Pistons had five more double-figure scorers, including all four other starters. 

The Pistons still only scored 98 points and shot 6 of 26 from 3-point range, so questions remain about their playoff offense, but this was a must-win game and an important confidence builder for the supporting cast. 

Loser: Desmond Bane

Bane didn’t ask the Magic to trade Cole Anthony, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, four first-round picks and a first-round pick swap to acquire him from the Memphis Grizzlies last summer. But fairly or not, the steep price has raised the expectations for him. 

By any standards, his performance in Game 2 simply wasn’t good enough. He scored 12 points on 2 of 11 shooting and had more turnovers (three) than made baskets. 

It’s one thing to miss shots, but Bane has to take them or the Magic have no chance. He is by far their best 3-point shooter (39.1% on 5.2 attempts per game in the regular season) and their most reliable shot creator in the backcourt. During the regular season, the Orlando was 7-8 when Bane took 11 or fewer shots and 38-29 when he took 12 or more.

Bane’s no-show on Tuesday was a big reason why the Magic had their worst offensive performance of the season. Their 83 points and 32.5 field goal percentage were both season lows.