The Thunder vs. Spurs Western Conference Finals series is currently tied at 2-2 after last night’s 103-82 win for San Antonio in Game 4. The series now heads to Oklahoma for Game 5 at home for the defending champions.
Both teams are showcasing some extreme physicality on the court that has led to injuries for both sides. Initially, Shams Charania gave an update on the status of Jalen Williams and Ajay Mitchell on ESPN.
“The Thunder are still evaluating both Jalen Williams and Ajay Mitchell on a day-to-day basis,” Charania confirmed. “JDub, a.k.a Jalen Williams, suffered a second injury to the same hamstring in just one month. I’m told he’s making some progress in his on-court workouts.”
“Ajay Mitchell has been dealing with right calf tightness throughout the playoffs, and then he was diagnosed over the weekend with a right calf strain. Both of their status are pretty much up in the air for Game 5 on Tuesday night.”
“Both dealing with soft tissue injuries, and we know that Oklahoma City as a franchise always takes the long-term approach, and when you think about soft tissue injuries like hamstring or the calf, these are typically not just ‘day-by-day’ injuries.”
Shortly afterwards, the Thunder confirmed that Ajay Mitchell (soleus strain) would not be playing in Game 5, while Jalen Williams (left hamstring strain) remains questionable to play. The unfortunate part for the defending champions is that Williams’ injury designation was downgraded from left hamstring soreness to a left hamstring strain.
But he could still play tomorrow night, even though it is expected that the Thunder is leaning towards benching him. The only other player listed on their injury report is Thomas Sorber, who has missed this entire season due to an ACL injury.
Subsequently, the Spurs released their injury report without listing either De’Aaron Fox or Dylan Harper on it, suggesting both players will be fit to return in Game 5 despite the woes of aggravating injuries in Game 4.
Fox had been dealing with a right ankle injury, which caused him to miss the first two games of this series. In Game 3, Fox seemingly reaggravated his injury but still played through it in Game 4. Meanwhile, Harper had been dealing with an adductor injury since Game 2, but has been playing through it as well.
While the Spurs are back to full strength, the Thunder’s injury woes could be detrimental for them down the stretch. Considering that every game is a must-win from this point, the Thunder will need all the help they can get to defeat the surging Spurs.
Jalen Williams has been plagued with injuries this season, so his averages don’t reveal the full extent of his potential contributions on the court as he progresses on the road to bounce back from his injury.
He averaged 17.8 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 3.3 assists while shooting 52.7% from the field and 45.5% from beyond the arc in the four games he has played so far in these playoffs.
Meanwhile, Mitchell has averaged 15.1 points, 4.3 assists, and 3.7 rebounds while going 46.0% from the floor and 32.5% from behind the three-point line.
Losing two of their top three scoring options is not the ideal scenario, but an adversity situation that the reigning MVP, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, is surely capable of leading his team out of. It will be interesting to see how the Thunder defend their home court in Game 5 without these key players.
