Game 3 of the Western Conference finals has not yet started, and the injury report already reads like a series obituary. ESPN's Shams Charania told The Pat McAfee Show on Friday that the Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs are heading into the swing game in the series with three star-level injuries between them.
"These are the playoffs," Charania said. "So right now, gamesmanship is at an all-time high, but three major injuries for this Oklahoma City–San Antonio Spurs series. And this is like the heavyweight titan battle between, you know, this could be the two best teams standing right now in the league."
The list runs from one of the Thunder's most important wings to two of the Spurs' brightest young guards.
Jalen Williams has a left hamstring injury, and Charania said the medical staff are weighing the fact that this is the same hamstring he strained on April 22, costing him roughly four weeks. "He suffered another left hamstring injury in less than one month," Charania said. "I'm told the Thunder are evaluating this day to day, game to game now, given the fact that he's just a couple days removed from a hamstring strain. It's a reoccurring injury." He noted that Williams has been managing problems on the opposite leg as well, with two right hamstring strains during the season that cost him "four weeks at one point, then six weeks at another point". "I think for him it does appear more unlikely than likely that he plays in Game 3 tonight."
For the Spurs, De'Aaron Fox is back in the game-time conversation after missing the first two games of the series with a high right ankle sprain. "I'm told he's going to be a game-time decision again tonight," Charania said. "But he's trying. He is making improvements. Still dealing with soreness."
The biggest mid-series scare belongs to rookie Dylan Harper. The first-overall pick suffered an adductor injury in 25 minutes of Game 2 after starring in the WCF debut that announced him as a postseason force.
"He played 25 minutes," Charania said. "He starred in Game 1, played at an elite level in Game 1 as a rookie. Then in Game 2 suffers this injury that we see right there. But the crazy part is he actually jogged back onto the court. He felt good enough to be able to play in this game and come back the competitor that he is. He's going to go through his pregame routine tonight."
Charania said the Spurs ultimately pulled Harper back from a planned return to the floor. "There was a decision made. He wanted to play, and then somebody was like, wait, this would be stupid to be doing this right now with Dylan. We're dealing with two organisations in the Spurs and the Thunder. Not only are these two organisations very tight-lipped, but they're like player health — they're going to do everything they can to make sure his future is not jeopardised."
The medical context offered some relief. "I think the Spurs are breathing some sigh of relief that this wasn't a hamstring injury, because that could be even more timely," Charania said. "We've seen guys in the past play through adductors and groins, but we'll see tonight. Dylan Harper is going to go through his pregame. Spurs are treating him like a game-time decision."
Charania framed the wider series in language that matched the medical room. "You watch the Spurs and you watch the Thunder, and you think about the intensity, the competition, and also the physicality level," he said. "It's no wonder that these guys are really putting their bodies on the line and guys are getting hurt or are hurt. They're getting banged up. They're having to play through injuries. It's really going to be a war of attrition."
He hinted that the Spurs' frustration with the Thunder may have moved beyond standard playoff physicality. "What the Spurs have taken issue with from my understanding is the pulling of Stephon Castle's hair, the tugging on the hand, the pulling on the elbows. Those are the tactics that I think the Spurs have looked at internally. But listen, Oklahoma City — this is how they play. They're a physical team. They're one of the best defensive teams of all time in a lot of ways."
With Williams trending towards out, Fox a coin flip and Harper warming up through a fresh adductor strain, the third game in the series may turn less on schemes than on which trainer's room empties first.
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*Originally published on [NBA News Global](https://nbanews.global/article/dylan-harper-jalen-williams-deaaron-fox-wcf-game-3-injury-shams-may-2026). Visit for full coverage.*
