Jalen Williams returns to OKC Thunder lineup for key matchup

The Oklahoma City Thunder have been a bit murky about the hip injury Jalen Williams sustained in Golden State. He woke up last Sunday feeling sore, causing him to miss the matchup in Portland. Since then, Jalen Williams has missed two more games (Wednesday against the Bulls and Saturday against the 76ers).

Williams has not played in a game in nine days but will return to the hardwood on Tuesday for the final In-Season Tournament pool play game in Minnesota. This is a key matchup to have the Sophomore Sensation back for.

The OKC Thunder announced that Jalen Williams will return to action on Tuesday against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Jalen Williams had a murky timeline on his injury, Mark Daigneault did not offer if he was day-to-day or month-to-month when Thunderous Intentions asked him, while Williams himself posted a somewhat cryptic message on Tik Tok.

The Santa Clara wing missed Friday’s practice entirely but was a limited participant in Sunday’s practice and participated in practice on Monday. The Team will now travel to Minnesota for a tough test against the Timberwolves.

Following Monday’s practice, the OKC Thunder bench boss Mark Daigneault announced that Jalen Williams will be active and off the injury report against the Minnesota Timberwolves tomorrow.

This matchup is an important one, not only does it conclude the inaugural In-Season Tournament run for the OKC Thunder, but it is also a chance to re-stack up against the Timberwolves, who ousted them from last year’s postseason.

For Mark Daigneault, he will presumably have to rework some lineups to match up with the big men duo in Minnesota, something he tried against the 76ers rolling Jaylin Williams out there with Chet Holmgren.

Tuesday’s matchup pits the top two teams in the Western Conference against each other as the Timberwolves enter with a 12-4 record, while the OKC Thunder are a game back at 11-5. Each side is 8-3 in their last ten contests.