The Oklahoma City Thunder have been the clear-cut best team in the Western Conference this season with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander as arguably the leading MVP candidate. They’ve had some injury bumps along the way though, with the latest being Lu Dort during the Thunder’s recent 113-107 win against the Pistons.
Lu Dort left the Thunder’s win against the Pistons early due to an injury scare in the third quarter. Dort landed on Gilgeous-Alexander’s foot while guarding Cade Cunningham’s drive to the basket, and landed awkwardly on the floor. Dort was officially diagnosed with hip soreness and is due to be re-evaluated in the morning, as per Thunder sideline reporter Nick Gallo.
Coming into the Pistons’ game, the Thunder were already without Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams and Aaron Wiggins. Holmgren was listed as being out due to rest, Williams has a hip issue and Wiggins had an illness. It was revealed recently that the Thunder were under investigation by the NBA for possible player participation violations.
The Thunder are currently 55-12 and hold a 12 game lead over the Denver Nuggets who are in second place in the Western Conference.
Any potential games missed by Dort could be a big loss for the Thunder. Dort is one of the team’s best on-ball defensive players. He went undrafted in the 2019 NBA Draft and made his NBA debut with the Thunder as an undrafted free agent on a two-way contract. He’s emerged as one of the best defensive players in the NBA.
This season, Dort has appeared in 61 games for the Thunder, at a little over 29 minutes per game. He’s been averaging 9.9 points, 4.1 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.1 steals with splits of 42.4 percent shooting from the field, 39.8 percent shooting from the three-point line and 75 percent shooting from the free-throw line.
Last season, the Thunder were eliminated in the Western Conference Semifinals by the Dallas Mavericks in six games.
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