How Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s injury affects the race

Victor Vembanyama he was the first victim of the injury bug that affected his chances of winning the NBA MVP award. Then Nikola Jokic missed 16 games, putting him on the verge of breaking the 65-game minimum threshold. Now it is Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is battling an injury that could end his hopes of winning his second straight MVP.

The Oklahoma City Thunder the star has missed seven straight games as a result the abdominal injury he received on Feb. 3 against the Orlando Magic. When the Thunder announced this injury, it was said that their MVP would be reevaluated after the All-Star break.

It was initially hoped that Gilgeous-Alexander would be cleared to return for the team’s first few games after the All-Star break, but nothing has been said. With five of the next six games on the road, will SGA bounce back from injury during the Thunder’s upcoming road trip?

Since suffering the injury, the Thunder have gone 4-3, picking up a much-needed key win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday night. The game marked Gilgeous-Alexander’s seventh consecutive shutout and his ninth total absence of the season.

That means Gilgeous-Alexander can miss a maximum of eight more games to remain eligible for end-of-season honors and awards. While he’s still in a good spot, that could change immediately if the reigning MVP isn’t able to get back on the court this week.

This year’s race for the NBA MVP award hinges heavily on who can stay healthy, as nearly all players inside the top five of these rankings are approaching the 17 maximum absences allowed to remain eligible.

Previous 2023-24 NBA MVP Rankings: Sunday 17 | 16th week | 15th week | Sunday the 14th | 13th week | Sunday the 12th | Sunday 11 | 10th week | 9th week | 8th week | week 7 | 6th week | 5th week | 4th week | 3rd week | 2nd week | 1st week

Previous rank: #1

2025-26 stats: 42 games, 28.8 points, 12.5 rebounds, 10.5 assists, 1.4 steals, 58.4 FG%, 42.1 3P%

In three appearances after the All-Star break, Jokic averaged 29.7 points, 15.3 rebounds and 8.3 assists per game, while shooting 51.7 percent from the floor and 42.9 percent from 3-point range. They are MVP-like numbers for a three-time MVP despite the Denver Nuggets losing two of those games.

The argument for the MVP award right now seems to be focused on availability, as Jokic has played in 42 games compared to Gilgeous-Alexander’s 49 games. Has Jokic done enough in his limited number of appearances to justify winning the MVP award over Gilgeous-Alexander, whose team remains the best in the NBA?

It’s certainly a big debate that many don’t have an answer to at this point, and it’s the main reason why Gilgeous-Alexander’s return from injury is so critical to the MVP race.

2. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander – Oklahoma City Thunder

Previous rank: #2

2025-26 Stats: 49 games, 31.8 points, 6.4 assists, 4.4 rebounds, 1.3 steals, 55.4 FG%, 39.0 3P%

There is still no news on when Gilgeous-Alexander could return to the field. Until then, the MVP race is kind of holding up, as four or five more missed games will tie him with Jokic in terms of missed time.

Regardless, Gilgeous-Alexander still ranks second in the league in scoring, and the Thunder (44-14) have the best record in the NBA. He may be second in the NBA MVP rankings right now, but this is really a 1A and 1B situation between him and Jokic.

No player is the wrong answer for MVP with seven weeks left in the regular season.

Previous rank: #3

2025-26 Stats: 49 games, 25.5 points, 9.8 assists, 5.8 rebounds, 1.5 steals, 46.3 FG%, 33.8 3P%

What Cade Cunningham has accomplished for the Detroit Pistons this season is incredible. Not only do the Pistons own the best winning percentage in the league right now, but Cunningham leads the league in total assists and the only player averaging more assists per game is Jokic.

In his first game out of the All-Star break, Cunningham put on a show against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. The Pistons All-Star scored 42 points for his third 40-point performance of the season and added 13 assists and eight rebounds.

Cunningham has back-to-back double-doubles with 13 assists since the All-Star break. He is firmly in the 3rd place in these MVP rankings.

4. Victor Vembanyama – San Antonio Spurs*

Previous rank: #5

2025-26 stats: 42 games, 24.3 points, 11.2 rebounds, 2.7 blocks, 51.1 FG%, 35.7 3P%

He skipped Vembanjama Luka Dončić for 4th place on the NBA MVP rankings for several reasons. Aside from the San Antonio Spurs closing in on the Thunder for the best record in the NBA, Wemby has been on a hot streak of late.

Since his dominant 40-point, 12-rebound double-double against the Los Angeles Lakers before the All-Star break, Wembanyama has averaged 23.7 points, 11.7 rebounds and 3.7 blocks per game while shooting 50.0 percent from the floor over the past three games.

Spurs are unbeaten in this stretch and Vembanjama has led his team to eight straight wins. It is the longest active winning streak in the NBA.

5. Luka Doncic – Los Angeles Lakers*

Previous rank: #4

2025-26 Stats: 44 games, 32.8 points, 8.5 assists, 7.7 rebounds, 1.5 steals, 47.1 FG%, 35.5 3P%

There’s no denying that this is the second-best season of Luka Doncic’s career since finishing third in MVP voting in 2023-24. Doncic not only leads the league in scoring, but also leads the league in three-pointers made and attempted per game, as well as free throws made and attempted per game.

Offensively, Doncic is locked in right now, and the only word that describes his game right now is dominant.

However, Doncic’s ceiling in the NBA MVP race this season is pretty much decided. He can’t get past Jokic or Gilgeous-Alexander as long as their teams stay ahead in the West standings, and Cunningham is now locked in third.

Between Vembanyama and Doncic, the Spurs star has the advantage both head-to-head and in terms of his overall impact on his side’s championship aspirations this season. Doncic has missed 12 games this year, which means he will have to stay healthy this year to qualify for awards and honors.

It’s just missing the cut

6. Jaylen Brown – Boston Celtics (No. 6 last week)

7. Donovan Mitchell – Cleveland Cavaliers (No. 8 last week)

8. Anthony Edwards – Minnesota Timberwolves (seventh last week)

9. Jalen Brunson – New York Knicks (No. 9 last week)

10. Kevin Durant – Houston Rockets (unranked last week)

*Signals player is in danger of reaching the minimum threshold of 65 games for awards/recognition.