Kenrich Williams Ramping Up Action to Return to OKC Thunder

Oklahoma City’s veteran forward should return to lineup soon.

Apr 14, 2024; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kenrich Williams (34) shoots as Dallas Mavericks forward Olivier-Maxence Prosper (18) defends during the second half at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images / Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

The Thunder’s front court depth has taken a hit to start the season with Isaiah Hartenstein, Jaylin Williams and Kenrich Williams all sidelined. It looks like Oklahoma City could be inching closer to getting some depth back.

On Wednesday, Kenrich Williams was assigned to the OKC Blue, which is typical protocol for a player nearing a return. Whether he just got in a quick practice with the team or it was just to cross it off the checklist, Williams made progress in his journey back to the court. Shortly after, he was recalled from the Blue and will be back with Oklahoma City on the sidelines when the team faces off against San Antonio. It’s unclear when he’ll be active again, but it appears to be sooner rather than later.

Williams is recovering from a minor right knee surgery that sidelined him through training camp. He talked a bit about it during the team’s media day before the season began.

“It was something I've been dealing with,” Williams said. “Kind of just flared up on me this offseason. So we kind of got it taken care of, started rehab. Everything has been going great so far. The training staff is doing a good job of taking care of me and just keeping me focused on what's next.”

Now that he has made the quick trip down to the Blue and seems to be ramping up his on-court reps, all that’s left for Williams is to return to the lineup.

Oklahoma City hasn’t had any problems with its front court depth, though. Even though the team is down a number of quality players on paper, they are still dominating all competition. Even against a team led by Nikola Jokic, OKC had no issues at all.

It’s always good to have depth and rotation players, though, and that’s what Oklahoma City has in Williams. Once he’s back on the floor, he could be a great gadget player for this surging Thunder team.

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