OKC Thunder Injury Report Sees No Change as Opener Nears

Tonight, the defending-champion Oklahoma City Thunder will take on the Houston Rockets, hoping to leave ring night with a win.

Banners will be raised and rings doled out in OKC, just ahead of what’s sure to be a fiery West matchup between the champs and Houston on the NBA's Opening Night.

On Monday, the league’s first injury report was released, and it wasn’t exactly kind to the Thunder.

Jalen Williams, an obviously vital piece to the team’s rotation, was listed as out due to offseason wrist surgery. Valuable veterans in Isaiah Joe and Kenrich Williams were too, as well as the team’s rookies in 2024 draftee Nikola Topic and No. 15 pick Thomas Sorber, both of which were expected to be.

The initial report was released at 5:30 p.m. CT on Monday, but hasn’t seen change for either team as of 4 p.m. CT Tuesday, just hours before tip. Players can be upgraded ahead of game time but that hasn’t been the case for OKC’s crew. All five players remain out, including its one-time All-Star.

Thunder opening night injury report

Jalen Williams OUT
Isaiah Joe OUT
Kenrich Williams OUT
Nikola Topic OUT
Thomas Sorber OUT

Alex Caruso and Ajay Mitchell are good to go.
— Brandon Rahbar (@BrandonRahbar) October 20, 2025

Now, the Thunder will move into its first bout of the season without a player thats been crucial to its success for several seasons now.

Williams is an obviously talented scorer, often leading the second unit with ball-handling, shooting and more. But he's also become one of the lifebloods of the Thunder defense, having earned an All-Defense Second Team bid last season. He's among the more versatile defenders in the league, able to size up and down across a variety of positions.

Jalen Williams 24’-25’ All-Defense tape

Drop what we should do next !💭 https://t.co/zRXj7NPOEk pic.twitter.com/STbjnnzyLb
— .Slip (@SlipReaper) October 14, 2025

Oklahoma City could certainly used Isaiah Joe and Kenrich Williams, too, as the rotation has taken somewhat of a hit due to offseason and preseason injuries.

The good news for OKC is the lack of Ajay Mitchell and Alex Caruso on Game 1's injury report, as both suffered minor ankle injuries in preseason. Caruso will continue to anchor the Thunder's defense on the perimeter, and could be a useable weapon on a big like All-Star Alperen Sengun. Mitchell's ball-handling and passing creativity will be much-needed in Jalen Williams' absence.

The Rockets are deadling with their own share of injuries, as lead guard Fred VanVleet is likely set to the miss the entirety of the team's 2025-26 campaign due to an ACL tear suffered in an offseason workout. Dorian Finney-Smith, a strong rotational wing, is also set to miss Tuesday's bout.

The Thunder and Rockets tip off at 6:30 p.m. CT.