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It all comes down to this for the Oklahoma City Thunder.
With a win over the San Antonio Spurs in Game 7 of the Western Conference finals on Saturday night, the Thunder will advance to the NBA Finals for a second consecutive season and get an opportunity to defend their title. With a loss, their season will come to an end.
Jalen Williams ruled out for Game 7 of Western Conference finals
Unfortunately for the Thunder, they'll be heading into the critical do-or-die game without a key contributor.
Thunder star guard Jalen Williams has been officially ruled out of Game 7 due to a left hamstring strain.
Williams missed Games 3,4, and 5 in the conference finals due to the injury. He briefly returned to action in Game 6, but he played just 10 minutes in the game and didn't look comfortable.
"He's obviously not 100%. He didn't know what to expect. I didn't know what to expect. So, it was a matter of getting him out there in kind of an insulated role and see what he can bring to the team," Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said of Williams after Game 6.
"He's an All-Star player, he's an All-NBA player. He hasn't done a full return to play [protocol] like he would if this was the regular season, and yet, he just wants to do whatever he can to try to contribute whatever he can to the team."
So now if the Thunder want to extend their season, they'll have to do it without Williams. They'll also have to do it without Ajay Mitchell, who has been ruled out of Game 7 against San Antonio with a right soleus strain. It will be the fourth straight game missed by Mitchell due to the injury.
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