OKLAHOMA CITY – Prayers up for Jalen Williams.
Phoenix Suns All-Star Devin Booker is wishing Williams the absolute best after seeing him suffer an ugly injury to the lower part of his left leg late in the Oklahoma City Thunder’s 108-101 home victory over the Los Angeles Clippers Oct. 25.
“I watched it live,” Booker said after the team’s morning shootaround prior to the Suns facing the Thunder on Monday, Oct. 26, at Paycom Center. “It’s sad, honestly. You feel for somebody like that who has done everything the right way and continues to miss his time, but my prayers and thoughts are with him. Hoping for a speedy recovery.”
A Perry Gilbert High graduate, Williams was carried off the court on a stretcher as Thunder teammates and fans were overcome with emotion. He's been officially ruled out of Monday's game with a left lower leg injury.
Monday's game is a rematch of last season’s first-round playoff series, which the Thunder won in a sweep.
“Unfortunate. Sad,” said Suns guard Jalen Green, who played just 32 games last season mostly due to a right hamstring injury.
“You never want anybody in this league to go down like that or have an injury like that.”
Williams was looking to drive past Clippers guard Kris Dunn off the dribble to the basket with Oklahoma City up, 103-99.
Clippers forward Derrick Jones Jr. came over to contest and collided with Williams midair as Dunn was called for the foul.
Williams’ left leg bent underneath his body as his left foot planted first on the floor.
When his leg snapped back straight, Williams’ left foot was twisted sideways. He appeared in shock at first before grimacing in pain.
“It's sad to see,” Green said. “Hopefully he has as a healthy recovery and has a good journey back.”
Injuries limited Williams to 33 games last regular season.
The All-Star forward underwent right wrist surgery and didn’t play his first game of last season until Nov. 28, 2025, against the Suns in NBA Cup action in Oklahoma City.
Williams later dealt with a recurring hamstring injury. He’s averaging 13.7 points a game through three games this season.
“It’s tough. It’s tough,” said Suns guard Luke Kennard, who made his Suns debut Oct. 24 against the Golden State Warriors at Mortgage Matchup Center after missing the season opener with left knee tendinopathy.
“You never want to see a guy get hurt and I know he's had some injuries before. I feel for him. I feel for the team, the coach, everybody that's involved, the fans. He's such a big piece of what they’ve built here, and I hate it for him. I understand the way that the team might feel right now. To lose a guy that early, it's definitely tough.”
Have opinions about the current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at dmrankin@gannett.com or contact him at 480-810-5518. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, at @DuaneRankin.
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Devin Booker, Phoenix Suns saddened by OKC star's gruesome leg injury