OKC Thunder Shake Up Starting Lineup vs. Cavaliers

Thunder face uphill battle against red-hot Cavaliers with key players out

Feb. 22, 2026 at 5:34pm

Got story updates? Submit your updates here. ›

The Oklahoma City Thunder will be without several key players, including Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, Ajay Mitchell, and Alex Caruso, as they take on the Cleveland Cavaliers in a nationally televised matchup. The Thunder will have to rely on their defense and a shaken-up starting lineup to try and pull off the upset against the surging Cavaliers, who have won 9 of their last 10 games.

Why it matters

The Thunder-Cavaliers game is one of the marquee NBA matchups of the day, but both teams will be missing star players due to injuries. This could open the door for an unexpected outcome, with the Thunder needing to find a way to slow down the Cavaliers' high-powered offense.

The details

The Thunder will start Isaiah Joe, Lu Dort, Chet Holmgren, and Isaiah Hartenstein alongside rookie Cason Wallace. They'll need Joe and the bench unit of Nikola Topic and Jared McCain to provide a scoring boost to offset the loss of Gilgeous-Alexander and Williams. Defensively, Dort will have the tough task of slowing down Cavaliers star Donovan Mitchell, who was held to 5-for-18 shooting in their last matchup.

  • The Thunder-Cavaliers game tips off at 12:00 PM local time on February 22, 2026 inside the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City.

The players

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

Superstar player for the Oklahoma City Thunder who will miss the game due to injury.

Jalen Williams

All-NBA swingman for the Oklahoma City Thunder who will miss the game due to injury.

Donovan Mitchell

Star player for the Cleveland Cavaliers who the Thunder will need to slow down defensively.

Isaiah Joe

Thunder player who will start and needs to provide a scoring boost with key players out.

Lu Dort

Thunder player who will have the tough task of defending Donovan Mitchell.

Got photos? Submit your photos here. ›

What’s next

The Thunder will hit the road for a back-to-back set starting on Tuesday in Toronto to take on the Raptors and concluding on Wednesday night in Detroit to face the Pistons.

The takeaway

This game highlights the impact of key injuries on marquee NBA matchups, with both the Thunder and Cavaliers missing star players. The Thunder will need to play tough, gritty defense and get unexpected scoring contributions to have a chance at pulling off the upset against the surging Cavaliers.