Aside from a couple of trades that sent players outbound and re-signing a few core rotation pieces, the OKC Thunder haven't been all that active this offseason.
Yet, despite their silence, the ball club finds itself poised to have arguably made the biggest rotational addition of all heading into the 2026-27 season. Ironically enough, it's a player who's been on their team for years now.
Jalen Williams had as challenging of a season as one could possibly have this past year.
From starting the campaign over a month delayed due to offseason wrist surgery recovery to multiple hamstring strains throughout, the wing was held to just 33 regular-season and five playoff games.
Along the way, Oklahoma City was forced to adapt by dipping into their enviably deep talent pool. Fortunately, thanks to the emergence of guys like Chet Holmgren, Ajay Mitchell, and the now-departed Isaiah Joe, they were still able to coast into the postseason as the number one seed for a third straight year and reach their second consecutive Western Conference Finals.
Of course, even with this on-paper success, the eye test made it more than apparent throughout the season and during their playoff run that the Thunder were far from their full-strength selves without a healthy J-Dub in tow.
Frankly, his injury woes could be considered the primary reason why Oklahoma City was ultimately sent packing by the Spurs in round three.
With a full offseason of rest and rehabilitation under his belt, the potential for Williams to get back to his 2024-25 form is more than realistic. Should this happen, there's no doubt his return to full strength should be considered the biggest rotational addition in the association come next year.
A healthy Jalen Williams makes this Thunder team completely different
Even when Williams was able to suit up this past year, it was evident that he was well short of his All-Star, All-NBA, and All-Defensive self.
Whether it came in the form of his lackluster long-range shooting efficiency (shot 29.9 percent from deep) or his hesitancy to go all-out on the less glamorous side of the ball due to his fears of reaggravating his hamstring strain, it was clear that Williams was a complete shell of himself in 2025-26.
And yet, despite this, the Thunder were still able to finish just one win away from clinching back-to-back NBA Finals appearances.
While the "What If" game can sometimes be dangerous to play, as Williams put it during his end-of-season exit interview, "We went to [Game 7 against San Antonio in the conference finals] without me playing. I don't think I make us worse."
Needless to say, considering a fully healthy Williams averaged 21.6 points, 5.3 rebounds, 5.1 assists, 1.6 steals, and just shy of a block on 48.4 percent shooting from the floor and 36.5 percent shooting from deep during the season before, it's hard not to believe that this reigning top-seeded Thunder club won't get overwhelmingly better with him back to 100 percent this coming campaign.
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