Last night the Oklahoma City Thunder took on the Indiana Pacers as the Thunder attempted to snap their long losing streak. The Pacers, getting back Domantas Sabonis, were able to hang on late, in overtime, knocking off the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Paycom Center in downtown Oklahoma City. Throughout this game against the Pacers, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander went down with a sprained right ankle.
On replay, you can see his ankle roll on up, and in real-time without any medical education, I immediately thought it looked awful. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was seen leaving the Paycom Center on Friday Night in a boot and crutches.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander out until at least the NBA All-Star Break
Mark Daigneault said following the Pacers’ loss, before even fielding a question, that it was too soon to tell on the severity of the max contract point guard and “We will know more tomorrow morning.”
On Saturday afternoon, the Oklahoma City Thunder Public Relations team informed those of us in the media that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander will be sidelined until at least the NBA All-Star Break. During the All-Star break, SGA will be re-evaluated for his sprained ankle.
It is important to note, this is a re-evaluation date, it does not guarantee Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s return to the hardwood following the Cleveland Festivities.
The NBA All-Star Festivities get underway on February 18th, with the 19th featuring the rising stars game, slam dunk contest, a three-point contest, and the All-Star game being played on the 20th.
The Oklahoma City Thunder will play their last game before the break on the 16th of February against the San Antonio Spurs. Before that, they take on Portland on the 31st of January, The Mavericks, Portland again, Sacramento, Golden State, Toronto, Philadelphia, Chicago, and New York.
OKC returns from the break on February 24th against Phoenix. Will Shai Gilgeous-Alexander be back in the lineup for that game? It is too soon to tell.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has played in 43 games, after only playing 35 contests a season ago. The Oklahoma City Thunder are currently 14-34, five games back of Orlando for the worst record in the league, a half-game back of Houston for the third-worst record which would lock them in for the highest odds at the first overall pick.
Josh Giddey will be tasked with running the show in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s absence, and we all hope to see the max contract point guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander back on the hardwood at some point this season. We will know more following the All-Star break.