OKLAHOMA CITY — The Oklahoma City Thunder declared Jalen Williams unavailable for Tuesday night’s Game 5 of the Western Conference finals, despite his status remaining uncertain throughout the day due to continuing problems with a strained left hamstring.
Ajay Mitchell, who normally fills Williams’ starting role, was also sidelined by the Thunder earlier with a strained right soleus muscle.
Oklahoma City chose to insert Jared McCain into the starting five, joining Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren, Isaiah Hartenstein and Lugentz Dort in the lineup.
This marked McCain’s inaugural playoff start in his professional career. Coming into Tuesday’s contest, he had posted an average of 8.8 points across 12 playoff appearances as a reserve player for Oklahoma City.
Williams made his comeback in the opening game against the Spurs, putting up 26 points over 37 minutes during the Thunder’s 122-115 double-overtime defeat a week ago Monday in Oklahoma City. During Game 2, he managed four points in seven minutes of first-quarter action, highlighted by an alley-oop slam with 2:12 remaining in the period, and has been absent from the court since then.
Throughout this season, including playoff games, Williams has been unavailable for 58 of Oklahoma City’s 95 total contests. Among those missed games, 19 resulted from right wrist problems while 39 stemmed from hamstring complications — with the right hamstring sidelining him for 30 regular season games and the left hamstring now accounting for nine playoff absences.
