OKC Thunder vs. Charlotte Hornets Injury Report

Tonight, the Oklahoma City Thunder will face off against the Charlotte Hornets in their first preseason action of the year.

Fresh off an NBA championship, Oklahoma City now jumps into the preseason with a back-to-back, starting with Charlotte on Sunday and ending with a Ft. Worth bout versus Cooper Flagg and the Dallas Mavericks on Monday.

OKC returns nearly all of its championship core, save for the seldom-played Dillon Jones, who was sent to Washington via trade in the offseason. The Thunder were able to ink their core three of MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, All-Star Jalen Williams and rising star Chet Holmgren to long-term deals, and shored up a few more in the offseason as well.

Now, the Thunder move into the 2025-26 season as the favorite to repeat per most experts. And rightfully so given they've retained the deepest and best roster in basketball.

The Hornets are similarly amped to begin their season, having seen a highly-regarded draft that was kickstarted by taking Kon Knueppel fourth overall.

In addition to Knueppel — who was vital to Duke’s Final Four run, and won Summer League Finals MVP — Charlotte also drafted Liam McNeeley, Sion James and Ryan Kalkbrenner. With LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller now at the forefront of their rebuild, the Hornets could be primed for their best season in year.

Here’s where the injury report stands ahead of tonight’s bout:

OKC Thunder injuries:

Thomas Sorber — Out: ACL tear

Kenrich Williams — Out: Knee scope

Jalen Williams — Out: Wrist surgery

Charlotte Hornets:

Grant Williams — Out: Knee

Josh Green — Out: Shoulder

The Thunder are dealing with a trio of injuries in preseason.

Thomas Sorber, the team’s newest rookie drafted at No. 15 in the 2025 NBA Draft, suffered an ACL tear in an offseason workout, and will miss his debut season, a la Chet Holmgren and Nikola Topic.

Forward Kenrich Williams will be re-evaluated in six to eight weeks following a arthroscopic procedure on his left knee.

Jalen Williams famously played through a wrist injury in the NBA postseason, still managing to add star impact through the Finals. He’s still working his way back after having surgery this offseason, and the Thunder will continue to be careful with his progress as the regular season nears.

Hornets president of basketball operations Jeff Peterson said Monday there was no timetable for the return of Williams or Green.

The Thunder and Hornets kick off their preseason bout at 4 p.m. CT today from North Charleston Coliseum in North Charleston, SC.