The Oklahoma City Thunder’s quest for back-to-back titles hit a significant speed bump. The team announced that the reigning MVP, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, has been sidelined indefinitely, which means he’s giving up his spot in the All-Star lineup. While we’re wondering how this could impact the MVP race, evidence has emerged as to why the Thunder made this move.

The team’s official communication stated that he suffered an abdominal strain during the February 4 game against the Orlando Magic. But viewers have spotted moments from a week’s worth of games indicating he’s been dealing with this problem for a while.

Perhaps the most alarming development was seeing all the evidence of Gilgeous-Alexander playing through visible pain. Across multiple games, he’s been flinching or stiffening up when he hugs staff and players.

A clip from the Denver Nuggets game on Sunday, February 1, has gone viral in the last few hours. Shai’s run-in with a staff member left him reeling for several seconds. He managed to gather himself and still contributed 34 points and 13 assists in the Thunder’s 121-111 win.

Gilgeous-Alexander likely aggravated that injury during yesterday’s game. We probably didn’t notice as he dropped 20 points to blow the Magic out, 128-92. But clearly, this became unsustainable in the long run, and the Thunder had to take a drastic decision.

He is only five games away from tying Wilt Chamberlain’s 126-game record for the longest 20+ point game streak. If things were different, he’d break that record before the All-Star Game.

Fortunately, ‘indefinitely’ here doesn’t mean the end of the season.

OKC Thunder ensures its title chances remain alive with the Shai Gilgeous-Alexander move

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder’s decision to keep him out of his fifth All-Star game might be hard to accept. But it was a matter of self-preservation and keeping the Thunder’s chances of consecutive titles alive.

He will use the break to focus on his recovery, miss at least five games between now and the All-Star Game, and be re-evaluated after the break.

“He’s certainly a high-usage, high-impact player for us,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said before Wednesday’s game. “So we’ve got to do it as a group and collectively, which is what we do when he’s on the bench and he’s not on the court.”

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The decision appears to be a calculated move by the medical staff. With a comfortable six-game lead over the San Antonio Spurs for the top seed in the Western Conference and a roster decimated by injuries to Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams, Ajay Mitchell, and Lu Dort, they’re prioritizing the more grueling upcoming stretch of the season.

The impact will be immediate. Adam Silver is expected to announce Gilgeous-Alexander’s replacement soon in the All-Star lineup.

This will also shake up the 2026 MVP race, as Nikola Jokic is back and already putting up big numbers, while Luka Doncic continues to perform at an elite level. A frontrunner for back-to-back MVPs, Gilgeous-Alexander’s eligibility solely hinges on meeting the 65-game mandate. He has played all but two games this season until today.

The Thunder have also made some swift contingency moves while the trade window is still open. They just secured guard Jared McCain from the Philadelphia 76ers for a 2026 Houston Rockets first-round pick and three second-round picks.

True to form, the Thunder are remaining calm and resilient amid the injury bug. The focus now shifts entirely to the training room, where the health of the league’s most consistent scorer will determine the Thunder’s ceiling in May.