Shai Gilgeous-Alexander gets emotional in his reaction to Jalen Williams' gruesome injury

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander gets emotional in his reaction to Jalen Williams' gruesome injury originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jalen Williams was off to a fantastic start to the 2026-27 NBA season, as he was fully healthy after an injury-riddled 2025-26 campaign. In a tragic turn of events, Williams suffered a gruesome lower-body injury late in their 108-101 win against the Los Angeles Clippers.The Thunder's medical staff had to take him off the court on a stretcher, so the injury does not look good. It is yet another bad chapter in Williams' career, as he has struggled with injuries throughout his time in the league. However, that has been dialed up to 100 ever since the Thunder won the title in 2025.Shai Gilgeous-Alexander gets visibly emotional after Jalen Williams' injuryEver since Williams entered the league in 2022, he has been close to Gilgeous-Alexander. They have become the Thunder's star duo, as they quickly became the best players during the Thunder's rise to the top of the NBA.On and off the court, Gilgeous-Alexander and Williams have been close, so that is why it's hard for the former to keep seeing his teammate get injured. Sunday night's injury was the latest chapter in Williams' struggles because he was finally healthy after constant spells on the sidelines in the year prior.MORE: The latest injury update on Jalen Williams after he was stretchered out of the gameNow, it seems the Thunder have to deal with it all over again. It has hurt Williams and his teammates even harder this time because it looked like a gruesome injury, and the players empathize with their teammate who has to go through physical therapy yet again."I just feel bad for him. Nothing more than that... We don't have no choice; this is what we signed up for. Obviously, it's gonna be tough without a player like that. He's not gone forever; he'll be back better than ever, we know it. We just have to hold the fort down until he comes back," Gilgeous-Alexander said in his post-game interview after the win vs. the Clippers.It will be tough for the Thunder to deal with this again, but thankfully, they have a talented roster. Head coach Mark Daigneault is spoiled for choice with his talented group of players, but he would prefer having a healthy Williams in the rotation.More NBA news:The Thunder have signed an injury replacement for Otega Oweh amid injuryShai Gilgeous-Alexander made an unusual choice that made his 141-game streak endJared McCain gives the Thunder another reason to be happy after Victor Wembanyama struggled to start the seasonHow Aday Mara compared to Victor Wembanyama's physical measurementsAdam Silver does not see any problem with the positives of parity after 8 unique champions