Williams has strained his hamstring twice this season, injuries that played a part in limiting him to just 26 starts. His most recent injury came on Feb. 11, just two days after returning to the court from recovering from his first strain. He also missed the first 19 games of the season as he was recovering from surgery on his right wrist.<\/p>\n
Williams\u2019s return is perfect timing for the Thunder ahead of the postseason. OKC was the first NBA team to clinch a playoff spot<\/a> on Tuesday. Since then, the Spurs and Pistons have joined them. But, the reigning champions are still the team to beat. Adding one of last year\u2019s NBA Finals stars back to the starting roster only makes the Thunder a scarier opponent for the rest of the league.<\/p>\n The Thunder hold the NBA\u2019s best record at this point of the season, and the team\u2019s accomplished this feat while dealing with injuries and absences from its star players. OKC players have missed the second-most time on the court this season<\/a> behind the Grizzlies, per Charania, yet the team is dominating the league.<\/p>\n Want to hear an unbelievable statistic? The Thunder\u2019s regular starting five combination from last year\u2019s title run of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, Lu Dort, Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein have only played in five games together this season<\/a>, for a total of 41 minutes, per NBA Advanced Stats. <\/p>\n Those five games include three losses to the Spurs (Dec. 13, 23, 25), the loss to the Timberwolves on Dec. 19, and a win over the 76ers on Dec. 28. That means the reigning championship starting five has gone 1\u20134 this season\u2014yikes. <\/p>\n The starting five is expected to reunite on Monday vs. the 76ers, except that Dort missed Saturday\u2019s game vs. the Wizards for a left knee contusion. We\u2019ll see what his status ends up being for Monday night\u2019s game. Otherwise, there will be delay before we see all five of these players in action together again.<\/p>\n Remaining schedule for Thunder<\/p>\n Williams rejoins the Thunder with just 11 games remaining in the regular season. Here\u2019s a look at their schedule to finish out the season.<\/p>\n Date<\/p>\n Opponent<\/p>\n Monday, March 23<\/p>\n @ 76ers<\/p>\n Wednesday, March 25<\/p>\n @ Celtics<\/p>\n Friday, March 27<\/p>\n vs. Bulls<\/p>\n Sunday, March 29<\/p>\n vs. Knicks<\/p>\n Monday, March 30<\/p>\n vs. Pistons<\/p>\n Thursday, April 2<\/p>\n vs. Lakers<\/p>\n Sunday, April 5<\/p>\n vs. Jazz<\/p>\n Tuesday, April 7<\/p>\n @ Lakers<\/p>\n Wednesday, April 8<\/p>\n @ Clippers<\/p>\n Friday, April 10<\/p>\n @ Nuggets<\/p>\n Sunday, April 12<\/p>\n vs. Suns<\/p>\n The Thunder are currently on an 11-game winning streak, so we\u2019ll see how much longer that continues for as they close out their season.<\/p>\n OKC is scheduled to face the top three Eastern Conference teams in their final 11 games\u2014No. 1 Pistons (51\u201319, the second-best NBA record), No. 2 Celtics (47\u201323) and No. 3 Knicks (46\u201325). The Thunder will also face some playoff-hopeful Western Conference teams in the Lakers (46\u201325), Nuggets (43\u201328), Suns (39\u201332) and Clippers (35\u201336). It won\u2019t be an easy ending to the season for the Thunder, that\u2019s for sure.<\/p>\n More NBA from Sports Illustrated<\/p>\n Listen to SI\u2019s NBA podcast,\u00a0Open Floor, below or on\u00a0Apple<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Spotify<\/a>. Watch the show on\u00a0SI\u2019s YouTube channel<\/a>.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/assets.minutemediacdn.com\/platform\/google_discover_icon.svg\"){kind=icon}
Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow<\/a>Wild stat shows how miraculous Thunder\u2019s NBA-best record is<\/p>\n