Injuries plague the Thunder. Will the All-Star break finally bring recovery and a full roster to chase that top seed?
The NBA All-Star Weekend is officially in full swing and the timing couldn't be any better for the Oklahoma City Thunder.
OKC limped into the week long break with a rash of injuries that Thunder fans hope will be served well by the extra recovery time. Oklahoma City lost to the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday night as the last game before the midseason intermission and will play the Brooklyn Nets at The Paycom Center on Friday night in their first game back. That's a full seven days off to continue healing up some lingering bumps, bruises and strains.
The most recent Thunder injury report listed Shai Gilgeous-Alexander out with an abdominal strain, Jalen Williams out with a hamstring strain, Isaiah Hartenstein out with soleus injury management, Ajay Mitchell out with an abdominal strain, Branden Carlson out with back spasms and Thomas Sorber out with a torn ACL. In other words, the league Most Valuable Player, an All-Star/All-NBA/All-Defense player, the Thunder's leading rebounder and starting center, a Sixth Man of the Year candidate and OKC's biggest bench scorer, the team's two-way big and Oklahoma City's #15 overall pick.
The Thunder went from a 24-1 start to the season to suddenly in danger of losing the #1 seed in the West to the San Antonio Spurs and the #1 overall seed to the Detroit Pistons. The overwhelming number of injuries to the team's best players unquestionably have played a key role in OKC's recent struggles. Not only because of the loss of top end talent but also the specific offensive voids created by their absence. Any team losing their top three shot creators and playmakers is apt to scramble to score as Oklahoma City has without Gilgeous-Alexander, Williams and Mitchell.
Now the good news.
There's a possibility every one of those players listed on that last injury report besides Sorber will return to the OKC lineup immediately or soon after the All-Star break. Nikola Topic, the #12 pick in the 2024 Draft, is now healthy and available. Jared McCain was added to the roster at the trade deadline and has already made an instant offensive impact.
The Thunder have the league's most wins at the All-Star Break despite not being at full strength all season. But this week off may help OKC finally form a fully healthy squad. It's impeccable timing because Oklahoma City may need all hands on deck as they fight to keep the #1 seed down the stretch.