Thunder’s Jalen Williams to miss Game 7 vs. Spurs with hamstring injury

The Oklahoma City Thunder will be without forward Jalen Williams in Saturday’s Game 7 of the Western Conference finals against the San Antonio Spurs, as he has been ruled out with the same left hamstring injury that has limited him throughout the playoffs.

Williams, an all-NBA performer last season, missed the final two games of the Thunder’s first-round series sweep of the Phoenix Suns and the entire second-round series against the Los Angeles Lakers with the injury. He returned for Game 1 of the Spurs’ series, then reinjured his left hamstring early in Game 2. After missing games 3-5, Williams suited up in Game 6, but played just 10 minutes.

“He’s been hellbent on trying to get himself to this point. I give him credit. He’s a big team guy, big competitor,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said of Williams after Game 6. “He’s obviously not 100 percent. He didn’t know what to expect; I didn’t know what to expect. So it was a matter of getting him out there in an insulated role and see what he could bring to the team. … He hasn’t done a full return to play the way that he would.”

Williams attempted to gut it out in Game 6, spending much of his time off the floor stretching his body and getting treatment, but he lacked his usual burst on offense and struggled on defense. He left Game 6 without speaking to reporters.

After breaking through on last season’s championship team, Williams has been limited by injuries throughout the 2025-26 season, playing just 33 regular-season games. He missed the Thunder’s first 19 games of the season after offseason wrist surgery, then played just two games between mid-January and late March after injuring his right hamstring. He averaged 17.1 points, 4.6 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game this season.

The Thunder will also be without guard Ajay Mitchell, who has not played since suffering a right calf strain in Game 3 of the West finals. The 23-year-old guard broke out in the Thunder’s second-round sweep of the Lakers but was ineffective against the Spurs before suffering the injury.

With Williams and Mitchell sidelined, the Thunder have started Jared McCain in the last two games. The former Philadelphia 76ers guard is averaging more than 13 points per game in the Western Conference finals.