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Thunder show they're still not among NBA's elite

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Charley Rosen

Charley Rosen is FOXSports.com's NBA analyst and author of 17 sports books, the current ones being Bullpen Diaries: Mariano Rivera, Bronx Dreams, Pinstripe Legends, and the Future of the New York Yankees and Crazy Basketball: A Life In and Out of Bounds.

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Updated Nov 16, 2009 12:53 AM ET
     
 

Game Time: Clippers 101, Thunder 93

The day after their inspirational win in San Antonio, the Thunder faced an even more significant game at home against the imminently beatable Los Angeles Clippers. Would their victory on the road against an elite team inspire them to play with the kind of consistency that would prove their growing maturity? Or would they continue to pay the penalty for being so young? Here's how they responded to both of the above possibilities:

The Upside

  • Kevin Durant was a monster, totaling 40 points — half of them resulting from 12 isolation situations. After OKC played a listless first half, Durant single-handedly roused his team by netting 18 points in the third quarter.
  • Durant hustled throughout the game at both ends, even coming up with a team-high four offensive rebounds.
  • Nenad Krstic's short-range jumper was on target.
  • Jeff Green scored on a sensational tip-in while falling to the floor after being fouled.
  • After being burned in the first half by opponents getting into the paint after curling around weak-side screens, Scott Brooks made a superb adjustment by dropping a helper from the top-side passer.
  • Another effective adjustment negated the efficacy of the Clippers' dive-cutters when the Thunder's defenders were mesmerized by Chris Kamen operating in the low post.
  • Kevin Ollie played outstanding defense against Sebastian Telfair.
  • Russell Westbrook demonstrated his quickness and creativity when he took his right hand to the hoop.
  • In the waning minutes of the game, Westbrook dropped a critical 17-footer, and Thabo Sefolosha came up with a key steal.
  • Nick Collison and Etan Thomas both worked hard on defense and came up with several excellent rotations.
  • The Thunder attacked their offensive glass with glee, totaling 18 offensive rebounds to the Clippers' 12.
  • The Thunder's running game was devastating, with Westbrook making mostly good decisions with the ball in an open field.
  • For approximately the initial 20 minutes of the second half, the Thunder's defense was intense and well-coordinated.

    The Downside

  • When the game was on the line, the Thunder couldn't get the ball into Durant's hands often enough — he scored only seven points in the fourth quarter. Their standard ploy was to simply give him the ball straightaway and about two steps above the 3-point line. Sending high screens at him were counterproductive as they only enabled the Clips to double-team him. Sending Durant on cross-baseline patterns and having him presented with one or more off-the-ball screens would have created more space when he eventually received the ball. There's no substitute for movement!
  • Westbrook forced a total of five passes/shots, his jumper was erratic, and while he made several nifty assist passes (7), his interior passwork was inept. Plus, he tended to overhandle.
  • In the clutch, Baron Davis had his way with Westbrook's soft defense.
  • Krstic is strictly a jump shooter and isn't sufficiently athletic to play adequate post-up defense against a resourceful point-maker like Chris Kaman.
  • At a mere 6-foot-9, Etan Thomas' perpetual hustling can't overcome his being too undersized to be a constant presence in the paint.
  • Collison is likewise too small to play as big as he has to.
  • The Thunder had a tough time finishing and therefore, missed too many layups.
  • Westbrook missed an open 15-footer in the last minute of play, and Green misfired on an uncontested 3-ball.
  • Their perimeter shooting was even worse; for three quarters, they combined to shoot 7-for-28 on shots longer than 15 feet. In the fourth quarter, they improved to shoot 5-for-12. They lost the game because of a bad beginning and a bad ending. If their victory in San Antonio was a sign of the kind of positive potential that this young team has, the painful loss to the Clippers showed that, although the Thunder have come a long way in the past two seasons, they've still got a long way to go. What does Oklahoma City need in order to take the next irreversible step in their development? The continued evolution of Westbrook as a discriminating point guard — and a toughening of his individual defense. Another dead-eye shooter to compliment Durant. More consistent baseline rotations on defense. A total commitment to ball- and player-movement on offense for 48 minutes. Most importantly, a center with the size, athleticism and skills to be a factor in the paint. In other words, the Thunder are only about two years and two players away from being a team that can beat anybody, anywhere and at any time.

    Straight Shooting

    It's a truthful cliche that injuries are part of the game. What's left unsaid is how the injury to one of more key players can affect his team. The answer is "it depends." At one extreme is San Antonio, where both Tony Parker and Tim Duncan were briefly incapacitated, yet the shorthanded Spurs rallied to beat Toronto and Dallas. Indeed, the absence of the Spurs' leading scorers allowed Richard Jefferson to suddenly assume more responsibility on offense than he had when their roster was intact. This development will pay significant dividends after Parker and Duncan return, since Jefferson will have attained a comfort level that might otherwise have taken him weeks or even months. Also, in lieu of Parker at the point, George Hill's education and confidence likewise made quantum leaps forward. In fact, by winning those two games, the Spurs demonstrated their depth, resourcefulness and courage are weapons that transcend their already considerable collective talent. Similarly, the Lakers have continued their winning ways even with Pau Gasol on the shelf. His absence had two beneficial results: providing more ball time for Ron Artest to get acclimated to the triangle offense, and forcing Phil Jackson to have Andrew Bynum get more scoring opportunities and also to finish games. Even Milwaukee benefited from the injury to Michael Redd. Without their leading scorer, the Bucks were compelled to play an equal-opportunity offense, which, in turn, allowed Brandon Jennings the chance to prove he's capable of both facilitating and scoring. Moreover, the less mileage that Duncan, Parker, Gasol and Redd put on their wheels now, the more tread they'll have left come the playoffs. Then there's New Jersey losing Devin Harris and Courtney Lee and Minnesota playing without Kevin Love. In these cases, there simply isn't enough depth to fill these gaping holes. In fact, the holes will get so deep that the remainder of the Nets' and the T-Wolves' seasons will be played in the dark. For sure, injuries are part of the game. But some teams find a way to win, and some teams find a ready excuse to lose.

    Vox Populi

    Why do you seem to have a bias towards defense-only players and dislike offense-only players? Shouldn't they both be considered limited players? — Jeremy Hanes, Virginia Beach, Va.

    It has been said many times that offense wins games but defense wins championships — and I heartily concur. That said, I do not "dislike" players whose talents are focused on offense. After all, somebody's got to score. What I am concerned about, however, is the media constantly promote guys who can only score. The only defenders who are universally celebrated are those whose defensive skills can be quantified in numbers — blocked shots, defensive rebounds and steals. Because there are no statistics that measure good defensive rotations, showing to positive effect on the weak-side of screen-and-rolls, helping on weak-side screens, getting back on defense, bad shots forced, shots intimidated, passes denied, boxing out, deflections in passing lanes and so on, truly effective defenders are largely ignored. In fact, blocked shots, defensive rebounds and steals are the only statistical categories that presume to determine defensive prowess. Compare this to field-goal percentage, three-point percentage, free-throw percentage, offensive rebounds, assists and points-per-game. (Yes, there are no stats for screens set, lanes filled, passes that lead to assist passes, et al.) Moreover, given that the NBA as a whole shot only 45.8 percent last season, it's quite obvious defenses were successful 54.2 percent of the time. Free throws, though, do add another critical factor here, raising the NBA's universal points-per-possession to about 1.1. But playing good defense without committing debilitating fouls is yet another defensive skill that can't be measured — and that can't be touted by the media. Far from denigrating exceptional point-makers, what I've been attempting to accomplish for these many years is to emphasize the overwhelming importance of guys who specialize in playing defense.

    Travels with Charley

    And then I wrote: 'TIS THE SEASON TO BE ... HOOPING So silently has another NBA season proved the slow turning of the world —
    gray leaves twirling flying already dead
    Leaving only a few blazing flowers to survive the frosty curtain
    of nightfall Runny noses
    winter cough
    Storm and screen
    The fearsome nocturnal sigh of an oil burner coming alive
    The hawkwind whipping your face
    Wild ducks arrowing southward and blackly under sere gray
    clouds of doom
    Vitamin C and thermal undies
    Snow tires and tired batteries
    Days and nights lengthened by unendurable losing streaks by your team of choice So silently does death come upon us —
    as we dance our imaginary lives macabre upon the crumbling edges
    of despair
    Death, like winter, turning the earth to stone Spring seems so far from here —
    escaping like a warm tailfeather of dream from a cold
    and rheumy morning Even so —
    some joyful someday
    shall the barren heart-stones of winter
    suddenly burst forth into the luminous blossoms
    ... of the playoffs
    • Tagged: Bucks, Timberwolves, Nets, George Hill, Pau Gasol, Spurs, Brandon Jennings, Tim Duncan, Courtney Lee, Michael Redd, Kevin Love, Devin Harris, Tony Parker, Metta World Peace, Richard Jefferson, Andrew Bynum, Lakers

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