The Utah Jazz will enter their matchup with the Oklahoma City Thunder carrying a long injury list, while the Western Conference leaders remain mostly intact. According to the official NBA injury report released Sunday, April 5, Utah is missing several rotation pieces and Oklahoma City has only one player ruled out.
Utah will be without Lauri Markkanen, Keyonte George, Isaiah Collier, Elijah Harkless, Blake Hinson, Jaren Jackson Jr., Walker Kessler and Jusuf Nurkic. The absences remove a large share of the Jazz’s scoring, playmaking and interior defense at a time when the team is already deep in evaluation mode.
Markkanen is the biggest loss on paper. He leads Utah with 26.7 points and 6.9 rebounds per game, while George has added 23.6 points and 6.1 assists in 54 games.
Collier’s absence also matters because he has been one of Utah’s most active facilitators, averaging 7.2 assists per game. Nurkic, meanwhile, has provided a steady frontcourt presence with 10.4 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game, giving the Jazz a center who can rebound and pass out of the post.
That leaves younger players such as Ace Bailey, Kyle Filipowski and Brice Sensabaugh with more responsibility. Bailey is averaging 13.6 points, Filipowski 11.3 points and 7.1 rebounds, and Sensabaugh has been one of Utah’s more efficient perimeter scorers when healthy.
The Thunder, by contrast, will only be without Thomas Sorber, who remains out after right ACL surgery. Oklahoma City’s core of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams is available, giving the Thunder a major edge in both continuity and star power.
That matters against a Utah team that has lost its last two games and has already dropped three meetings with Oklahoma City this season. The Thunder won those matchups by scores of 144-112, 131-101 and 129-125 in overtime.
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Oklahoma City enters at 61-16 and has already clinched the Western Conference. Utah is 21-57 and remains near the bottom of the standings.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander continues to drive the Thunder’s offense at an MVP level, averaging 31.6 points and 6.5 assists per game. Holmgren adds 16.9 points and 8.8 rebounds, while Williams contributes 17.1 points and 5.4 assists when available.
