The news on Monday afternoon was about as bad as it could be for the Western Conference favorites, as the Thunder announced that both Jalen Williams and Cason Wallace require surgery and will be out indefinitely. J-Dub had a gruesome fall on Sunday night and suffered a fractured fibula and a dislocated ankle, while Wallace has a torn labrum in his shoulder.
Now, two of OKC’s most important players will miss most of, if not the entire season, and the Thunder are in a world of hurt. These are devastating blows that will leave the entire basketball world reeling, and all you can do is hope that both players are able to make a full recovery and move on with their promising careers.
Last season, they were flush with depth, but the second apron comes for everyone, and they were forced to shed Lu Dort, Isaiah Joe, and Andrew Wiggins in the offseason.
They’ll survive, but this brings them back to the pack in a major way. And while this is extremely unfortunate for the NBA, it’s a reminder that injuries play a huge role in deciding the champion each season, and the league has truly become a war of attrition in recent years.
Devastating injuries bring OKC back to the pack in West
The Nuggets should know this as well as anyone. The team basically lost out on two whole playoff runs thanks to a Jamal Murray injury, and they haven’t been fully whole for a playoff run since winning the championship in 2023.
Just when it looks like teams are set up for long runs of sustained excellence, something gets in the way. Sometimes it’s a financial burden, sometimes it’s injuries, or sometimes it’s something else. But things rarely play out according to plan in the NBA, and that’s what’s happening in Oklahoma City, where they were poised to build a dynasty a year ago.
And that still may be the case. But the point is, it’s far from a guarantee. And that’s why the Nuggets need to approach every second of Nikola Jokic’s career with all the urgency in the world. When the season started, it looked like the Thunder and Spurs were primed to square off in the WCF, and everyone else was playing for third place. That was a week ago.
Nuggets must cherish every opportunity in Jokic era
Going into last season, nobody thought the Knicks would win it all or the Spurs would topple the Thunder in the West. The year before, the Celtics looked unbeatable, and nobody could imagine the Pacers making the Finals. And so on and so forth. Crazy things happen every season, and as long as you’re in the mix, you’ve got a shot.
The Nuggets have more than a shot with their elite trio of Jokic, Murray, and Aaron Gordon. We’ve seen this group produce one championship, and if they can make it to the finish line fresh, the circumstances could easily allow them to make another run. The owners and front office owe it to this group to do everything in their power to make that goal a reality.
Yes, they’re going to need some luck, and yes, there’s a lot that’s out of their control, but that’s the nature of the beast. Every year, the champion gets lucky, while other teams succumb to unfortunate circumstances. Sadly, that’s just how it is. But why can’t the Nuggets be that team that gets lucky this season? They’ve got all the pieces in place. They just need to weather the storm.
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