Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s Injury Status Provides a Ray of Hope for Suns Fans As They Look to Avoid the Play-In
The Oklahoma City Thunder will take on the seventh-seeded Phoenix Suns tonight at the Paycom Center in a game that could significantly impact the West seeding. The Suns look to avoid the Play-In tournament and climb into the top six in the Western Conference standings. A ray of hope for them ahead of a tough stretch of games could come from the absence of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who has been dealing with a quadriceps injury since the game against the Utah Jazz on March 20.
According to the recent injury report According to the OKC Thunder, Gilgeous-Alexander’s presence for tonight’s game has been deemed “doubtful” due to the contusion to his right quadriceps. After playing three games with this injury, the 2024 MVP contender was ruled out for Wednesday night’s game against the Houston Rockets. Unfortunately, OKC couldn’t get a win without their superstar player, falling 126-132 in an overtime loss.
According to the NBA Injury Policy, players classified as “doubtful” only have a 25% chance of being injured for that game. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s injury comes at a time when OKC is fighting to finish the regular season with the best record in the Western Conference.
They may have to find the best option for their rotations to continue their strong record and enter the postseason with intentions of going far in the playoffs.
The Phoenix Suns need to avoid the Play-In Tournament to comfortably compete for the title
The Phoenix Suns currently have a 43-30 record and sit in seventh place in the Western Conference. The West has become a hotbed of competition for teams, with several talented squads vying for the top six spots in the standings. However, given that they are just one spot below the sixth-seeded Dallas Mavericks, the Suns might need to increase their wins within the remaining regular season schedule.
The Suns have the NBA’s fifth-best winning percentage of all time, the second-highest winning percentage of any team that has never won a championship. Additionally, they have the most finals appearances for a non-championship team.
Given these stats, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s absence could be an easy opportunity for the Suns to get a win.
The Houston Rockets were quickly able to overwhelm the Suns on Wednesday night without Gilgeous-Alexander on the court. Perhaps the Suns could also perform with similar vigor, making the most of the OKC superstar’s absence.
