OKC Thunder Downgrade Shai Gilgeous-Alexander vs Sixers

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander won't be facing the Sixers on Wednesday.

Jan 14, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) controls the ball against the Philadelphia 76ers during the fourth quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

On both sides of Wednesday’s game between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Oklahoma City Thunder, injury reports are loaded with big names. For the Thunder, they are going to give their MVP candidate, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, a night off.

According to the official NBA injury report, Gilgeous-Alexander has been offered a night of rest against the Sixers. He will miss his first set of action since March 7, when the Thunder took on the Portland Trail Blazers.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (rest) listed out for Wednesday.

— Underdog NBA (@Underdog__NBA) March 18, 2025

The absence of Gilgeous-Alexander could have a major impact on the game. Being that he’s been one of the top players in the league this season and has a legitimate shot at winning MVP over Denver’s Nikola Jokic, OKC clearly takes a step back without him.

However, the Thunder are first in the Western Conference for a reason. They are strong, and the absence of the MVP candidate certainly doesn’t signal they can’t collect wins without SGA on the floor.

Mar 16, 2025; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) drives for the basket against Milwaukee Bucks forward Kyle Kuzma (18) in the first quarter at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-Imagn Images | Benny Sieu-Imagn Images

The Thunder have just a small sample size of that scenario this year. When Gilgeous-Alexander missed his first game of the year back in January, the Thunder lost to the Dallas Mavericks 106-98.

In the March 7 game against the Portland Trail Blazers, the Thunder took care of business with a 107-89 win. A 1-1 record in a small sample size, but the Sixers are missing a ton of players themselves, making it difficult to imagine the absence of Gilgeous-Alexander will shift the odds out of OKC’s favor.

The Thunder hope to improve to 57-12 on the year on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the Sixers are looking to avoid falling into a two-game hole after an overtime loss against the Houston Rockets.

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