The Oklahoma City Thunder have eight games left in their season, seven after beating Portland on Monday Night, and they have been hit hard by the injury bug during the 2021-22 NBA Season. The OKC Thunder have already shut down many key players for the rest of the season like Lu Dort, Josh Giddey, Mike Muscala, and Ty Jerome. There is also no return in sight for Kenrich Williams or Derrick Favors. On Monday before tip-off against Portland, the Thunder ruled out Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Darius Bazley for the rest of the 2021-22 NBA Season.
With Jeremiah Robinson-Earl returning to the fold, the OKC Thunder have nine active players for the remainder of the season. Tre Mann (who was a late scratch against Portland with a hamstring injury), Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, Olivier Sarr, Lindy Waters III, Vit Krejci, Aaron Wiggins, Aleksej Pokusevski, Isaiah Roby, and Theo Maledon.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have shut down Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Darius Bazley for the remainder of the 2021-22 NBA Season
The Oklahoma City Thunder made it officially that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander will be shut down for the second straight season, this time missing the final eight games. The max contract point guard played just 36 games a year ago due to a foot injury that held him out of the Olympics later that summer, and 70 games in his first season with the Thunder after playing all 82 in his rookie campaign with the playoff-bound Clippers. While he only played 70 games in his first season in Bricktown, the entire league was cut short due to the pandemic sending them to the NBA Disney World Bubble. There should be no concern over Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s long-term health or durability.
Darius Bazley will also miss the final eight games with a fracture in his knee sustained over the weekend against the Nuggets. Bazley had an up and down season but transformed into an elite defender that can guard every position on the floor.