Shai Gilgeous-Alexander will return to action on Friday against Denver. The Thunder superstar is not listed on tomorrow’s injury report, tweets Rylan Stiles of SI.com.
A 27-year-old guard, Gilgeous-Alexander won his first Most Valuable Player award last season after finishing as the runner-up in 2024/25. He also helped Oklahoma City win the championship, earning Finals MVP honors in the process.
SGA has arguably been even better in ’25/26, averaging 31.8 points, 6.4 assists, 4.4 rebounds and 1.3 steals on an elite .554/.390/.892 shooting line in 49 games (33.3 minutes per contest). His 67.0% True Shooting percentage is a career high, as is his 34.2% assist percentage, while his turnover percentage (8.1%) is a career low.
Gilgeous-Alexander has missed Oklahoma City’s last nine games after suffering an abdominal strain against Orlando on February 3. He has been sidelined for 11 contests in total and can’t exceed 17 absences in order to remain eligible for major postseason awards.
The Thunder have held their own over the past nine games without their best player, going 5-4 amid a tough portion of the schedule. Ajay Mitchell (abdominal strain, left ankle sprain) and Jalen Williams (right hamstring strain) have been out for all (Mitchell) or most (Williams) of that stretch as well, and both players will remain sidelined against the Nuggets.
OKC is currently 45-15, the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference. The Thunder hold a two-game lead on No. 2 San Antonio (42-16).
And he can do arithmetic! This guy is really talented.
Shai won’t duck Jokic