Thunder’s Jalen Williams reveals he’s not fully healed from wrist injury

OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma City Thunder All-Star Jalen Williams revealed he’s not 100% from wrist surgery after Friday’s 132-111 win against the Dallas Mavericks. Williams underwent a second procedure to correct a torn ligament in his right wrist, which forced him to miss the first 19 games of the regular season.

While providing an update on how he’s feeling after his fourth game back, Williams gave an honest response during his postgame media availability.

“My wrist being healthy is going to be an ongoing thing. It’s not like this surgery was a boom — you’re healthy,” Williams said. “A lot of it is trying to get my rhythm back [by] getting to the free-throw line, getting a couple of easy layups, trying to get the mentality down of driving, and playing with force. When I haven’t played for so long, that’s usually the hardest part to get back into. So, the more I can attack that, everything else will fall into place.”

Williams is averaging 16.0 points on 42.1% shooting, 5.8 rebounds, 6.0 assists, and 1.3 blocks in his first four games of the regular season.

Jalen Williams working to find his touch amid Thunder return

Thunder All-Star Jalen Williams preached patience in his return to the floor, which includes learning to find his shot after two procedures in his right wrist.

“In the playoffs, I was shooting the way I was shooting because of functionality in my actual wrist, and my hand was numb. So, a lot of it was based on touch and not so much on a follow-through,” Williams said. “Now, it’s more of a trying to integrate both again. I don’t have the same range of motion that I did before. So, a lot of it is trying to constantly get those reps of what my range of motion is and what I need to do to finish it.

“After I had my surgery, it wasn’t like I had this two-three week period, where I can get shots and work on it. It was like OK, let’s make sure you can fall, and then you just figure it out as you’re playing. So, I’m not missing 30-40 games trying to get reps up. So, that was the biggest thing,” Williams concluded.

Williams and the Thunder will look to extend their winning streak to 15 in Sunday’s matchup against the Jazz on the road.

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