Jalen Williams has never shied away from the spotlight, but this offseason, the Oklahoma City Thunder forward is facing a challenge he can’t ignore. The wrist injury he battled through during the playoffs—most notably in the Finals against the Indiana Pacers- has taken a more serious turn.

Williams revealed that he underwent surgery in early July to repair a torn ligament in his right wrist, an issue that had lingered since Game 7. To stay on the floor during that stretch, he admitted to taking “28 or 29” injections just to be able to practice, a telling sign of how much pain he played through.

Addressing it recently during an interview with SLAM magazine, he said, “I think another thing for me with my hand. Like I haven’t been able to do anything and I won’t be able to do anything for like another month in close like training camp is going to be like, all right, let’s see how good I can get during the year after not being able to use my hand the whole time. So now I have a motivator for that.”

This update follows his previous statement on X, when a fan asked him if he was cleared to play without his brace. He replied, “That seems to be the case,” captured practicing without a brace on, something that he had seen with throughout the summer at various events. However, his newest statement indicates his confidence that he will be back to full strength as the season goes on, and he is motivated to perform well once his hand is back to normal.

Williams explained why he chose not to undertake the surgery and play through the discomfort. Suffering the injury during a regular-season game against the Phoenix Suns, Williams talked to the doctor who eventually performed his surgery.

“We kind of came up with a plan to talk to Dr. Chin, who did my surgery,” Williams said on The Young Man and the Three podcast. “He’s like, “You can play through it and get shots, and you can’t do anything worse to it.” So, that gave me a lot of confidence to go out there and just figure out how to shoot through the pain.” From there, it was just a matter of figuring out how to work through different pain levels while modifying his jump shot.

Jalen Williams’ Motivation and Team Mindset

Even beyond the injury, Jalen Williams is driven by more than just his physical recovery. The media narrative surrounding the Thunder has given him a unique motivation. “Honestly, for me, just seeing what the media kind of thing was, how the tables kind of turned to like, we’re too young to win. And then when we win, it’s like, oh, they were the ones who all year they should have won. I think that is for at least me, that’s a huge motivator because it’s like, all right, well, let’s do it again and see what they have to say this time,” Williams explained.

It’s clear that Williams, and perhaps OKC as a whole, are using the media disrespect to fuel his play going into next season.

Williams has also signalled a change in his and his teammates’ play after their championship win this offseason. “I think for our team, it’s more like, we can play even more free now because before, you kind of like, I wouldn’t say playing for a check, but you are trying to play to like stay in the league. So now that that’s there, like you’re kind of playing free, and we, we know what it takes to win. So we’re going to use that,” he said.

The change from playing for survival to a more free-style of play represents a mental change for the Thunder roster, one of the league’s youngest teams, rostering an average age of just 25.6 years old last season.

For Williams, these factors have become a source of focus and determination. He knows that coming back full strength is only step one; the Thunder will need to prove that they can defend their crown against a challenging Western Conference, now loaded with refueled contenders like the Nuggets and Rockets.