SB Nation User Blog: Zorgon

Game 20 Recap: Oklahoma City 104, Golden State 88

Zorgon — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 08:06:40 -0000

More photos » by ALONZO ADAMS - AP

You couldn't have asked for a better battle of the rookies tonight.

Well, that game went pretty much as I expected it to, yet at the same time, it held a lot of surprises.

Lets start out with the expected. The Warriors started off this game with the lead, slowly rising to a margin of 21-15. Then, the Thunder came back to within 1 point by the end of the quarter, and took a short lead at the beginning of the 2nd. Then, the Warriors went on another run, making it 35-27. Then, the Thunder climbed right back with a run of their own, and it was pretty much even by the time the 2nd quarter was over. This concept of runs and draughts is frequent in Warrior games. By the time the 3rd rolled around, the Thunder came out rolling, taking a 62 to 54 lead. The Warriors pounded their way back to tie it at 62, and then....Corey Maggette lost his cool. I couldn't see what was going on from where I sat, but apparently he was badmouthing somebody, causing him to commit a double technical foul, along with his normal foul. He was escorted out of the arena, giving the Thunder 3 free points and leaving the Warriors bench with 2 guys and an emergency backup in Devean George. At this point, the entire team collapsed. If you were a Warriors fan, you've seen this happen before (most notably during the Steven Jackson and Baron Davis era), and you knew the game was over. Monta Ellis got called for a technical later on, but that's pretty excusable, considering he was the only one scoring for the team.

Now, let's move to the unexpected. This could hardly be considered a fast break game at all, not very typical of the Warriors. It was a game of possessions, with teams actually running offensive sets, and the Warriors not being silly enough to fire it up within the first 7 seconds. In fact, I hardly remember any Warriors fast breaks at all. Most of the fast breaks were made by the Thunder, after the Warriors made a huge defensive error. Whenever the Warriors stole the ball in the back court, the Thunder defense would get back down the floor before the Warriors could do anything.

Another surprising statistic is the fact that Monta Ellis wasn't only able to guard and complete with Kevin Durant, he was able to guard him well. Now, I know, Kevin Durant did have 28 Points, 9 Rebounds, 4 Assists, and 3 Steals. But he also had a whopping 6 turnovers, a poor 9-24 shooting, and 18 of his points came after Corey Maggette's foul. I know that some of those 18 were legit, but Monta Ellis essentially held the Thunder's best scorer to 10 Points though the first 2 and a half quarters, in which he scored less than Russell Westbrook and Jeff Green. If the game had been competitive the whole time, who knows? Monta Ellis might have held him to 16, and people would be saying a whole lot of "wows" right now. Obviously, for his defensive prowess, Monta Ellis gets the Thunder Plunderer award. I know, he had 9 turnovers....but I don't want to award it to Stephen Curry, as explained later.

KD: I'm sorry, my fine sir, but could I perchance acquire that basketball from you? Curry: I do apologize my good man, but I have already thrown it to one of the gentlemen on my basketball team. KD: Ah, well, alright then. Cheery-O! Curry: Cheery-O!

But, admittedly, the Thunder also did an excellent job on defense against the Warriors guards. As a team, the Warriors had a whopping 20 turnovers to 12 assists, with Monta having 9 turnovers and Stephen Curry having 5. It was clear that while both could move the ball well, neither was functioning as a true point guard, and that hurt the Warriors. C.J. Watson, who was in for the entire game, was completely shut down on the offensive end of the floor. 10 Points? That's like scoring once every 10 minutes. Sheesh.

Regardless, back to the Thunder. This is a Thunder blog, isn't it? James Harden had another excellent game tonight, pulling in 26 Points, 9 Rebounds, and 5 Assists. He stepped up the scoring when Kevin Durant couldn't, keeping the Thunder in contention. Sure, 8 of those points came in garbage time in the 4th, but it's undeniable the help he gave tonight, and it's undeniable how much he would help the Warrior's scoring situation right now if he was on their team. He even outscored, outrebounded, and outassisted Curry in 7 less minutes. If I were a Thunder fan (which I supposedly am), I wouldn't regret taking Harden at 3 at this point. He may have to provide scoring on the bench, but he has a long career ahead of him. Oh, and need I say, "Thunder Wonder"?

Jeff Green also pitched in, adding 21 Points, 13 Rebounds, and 3 Assists, earning him the Thunder Down Under award. He also added to the scoring while Durant was out of commission. The Thunder Blunder, without question, is Russell Westbrook. I know, he had decent numbers considering he was up against a team full of players who do the exact same thing he does offensively, except better in every way. But 4-17? Sheesh.

Me, shortly after being stringed.

Just adding to the bizarro night in which the Warriors played half-court ball and Monta Ellis defended well was the vendetta Rumble took against me. I've cheered for the Warriors twice before when the Thunder were in the Ford Center, but it was before I was well known as a fan, and before rumble ever existed. It all started with Rumble getting people excited in the section, and other fans encouraging him to jeer me. Then, his cold, angry eyes met mine, and he clearly disapproved of what I did. Eventually, he left. But, just before the 4th quarter started and the game looked out of reach, Rumble popped out of nowhere and emptied about 5 cans of silly string on to me. I tried to think of something clever to do, but I just sat there, in extreme shock and awe. He left as soon as he'd come, and I now have a ball of goo sitting in my car as a result of the incident. As the game ended in a Thunder victory, Rumble stopped on his victory segway to stare at me again. He pointed to me, and cut his throat as an indication of what he wanted to do to me. It was all very shocking, very entertaining, and very flattering. How many people can say they've drawn the ire of the mascot so much as to have him break out in a vendetta against them? I guess I'm one of the lucky few, heh! In any case, I'll get him back one day....and it will be in the name of Thunder, the old Warriors mascot! I'll get you, Rumble!

Next Game: At the Grizzlies, Friday, December 12th, 7 PM Central Standard Time

Game 20 Preview: Oklahoma City vs. Golden State

Zorgon — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 06:51:56 -0000

More photos » by Don Smith - NBAE/Getty Images

Last time we met, the Thunder won on a last second buzzer-beater by Jeff Green. It was also one of Desmond Mason's final games playing for the Thunder, before he busted his knee for the year.

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This also counts as an open thread, so feel free to post your thoughts during the game here.

Time: 7:00 PM Central Standard Time

Place: The Ford Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

TV: Fox Sports Oklahoma, Comcast Sports Net Bay Area

Radio: WWLS The Sports Animal (98.1)

Enemy Blog(s): Golden State of Mind

Backstory: Ah, the time has arrived.

It's my favourite time of year. The time of year where I get to cheer on my favourite team in the NBA against a crowd of enraged fans as they lose miserably against my other favourite team. I make a lot of enemies in the process, but a Thunder-Warriors game, for me, is truly a great spectacle to behold. No matter what, I win, and I always have a lot of fun. And, I know there are those of you who think I'm a traitor for cheering against the Thunder, but I don't care. I've been a Warriors fan ever since I was a young one, and they will remain my favourite team through thick and thin. I love the Thunder almost equally as much, but they'll just never take the place of the Warriors in my heart. You could lecture me all day about how they've been the worst team in the NBA over the past 15 years (correct), how the organization stinks (correct), how the players are punks (wrong), how Oakland is trashy (wrong), and how much better the Thunder are. But the fact remains that they're the team I was raised on, the team that has captured my love, and the team that I'll watch until I die.

And before I go on to the actual preview, I'd also like to give a big shout out to Golden State of Mind. I've been a loyal member of their community since they first moved to SB Nation and Mike Dunleavy and Derek Fisher were bricking treys on a regular basis. It's a huge honor to be on the same network as them, and a dream I've always had.

But, enough personal asides. Let us get to the analysis.

Who are the Warriors? Well, they're a very two-faced team. When they play well, they're a team with excellent ball movement that can drive the ball into the post when there are no open shots, and a team that can also run down the floor, and knock down the first open shot they get. When they play badly, oh man, do they play badly. It usually consists of a complete lack of scoring combined with them shooting bad, completely guarded jumpers within the first few seconds of the shot clock, leading to large deficits. It's usually a result of exhaustion and a lack of big men. You might think that the bad Warriors show up more often than not, and they do, but it's not because of a lack of talent. This team has seen more injuries than the Mexican Army as they tried to take the Alamo. 3 of their big men, Biedrins, Turiaf, and Wright are all out with injuries. Both of their off-season acquisitions, Devean George and Speedy Claxton, are out as well. Heck, even Raja Bell, who came in a trade, has needed hand surgery, and to make it all complete, Kelenna Azubuike was out with surgery, and Anthony Morrow was recently out to attend a funeral. This left the team with 8 active players (including Forward Chris Hunter, who was called up from the Fort Wayne Mad Ants out of desperation). This is nothing new for the Warriors, as Azubuike himself was a D-League find in a similar time of trouble. Rather, it is just another chapter in the book of a team of injuries, bad draft picks, bad management, bad coaching, and just overall futility. Anthony Morrow will be back for tonight's game at the Ford Center, but Don Nelson won't make the trip. Can a team of 9 guys and an assistant coach overcome the hungry Thunder?

Well, anything is possible. The Thunder are coming off of a bad loss against the Celtics, but that's the exception rather than the rule. They've been known to put the lower-echelon teams when they've needed to, but they've also been known to play them tight into the second half. When you've facing the Warriors, who are capable of going on huge runs all at once, it's a dangerous thing to do.

Below: Matchups, Prediction

Matchups:

Center: Nick Collison vs. Mikki Moore (Possibly Anthony Randolph)

Mikki Moore did well in garbage time against the Thunder last year when he played for Boston, but I wouldn't expect a repeat performance tonight. He's been useless in every sense of the word when he's played for the Warriors, missing open layups, fouling far too often, and not rebounding as much as they'd like him to. There are very few matchups where Nick Collison can legitimately eat someone alive, but this is one of them. Expect at least a double double.

Power Forward: Jeff Green vs. Vladamir Radmanovic (Possibly Anthony Randolph)

Again, this matchup provides a huge advantage for the Thunder. Jeff Green always beats power forwards that are smaller than him, and then though "the rad man" is 6'10", he's a defensive and offensive post softie. He'll hit a few threes and grab a couple of rebounds just because of he sheer amounts of shots being taken, but don't expect him to put up nearly as good of numbers as Green will.

Small Forward: Kevin Durant vs. Monta Ellis

Well, this is a matchup I never thought I'd see in my day. Kevin Durant against Monta Ellis? It will never sound right in my head, but apparently, it's about to happen. As they're both mains scorers for their respective teams, and seeing as how neither have excellent defense, expect a huge scorefest tonight from both players, with Durant racking up more rebounds and blocks and Ellis racking up more assists and steals. Sounds kind of obvious, but what else am I supposed to say?

Shooting Guard: Thabo Sefolosha vs. Anthony Morrow

Anthony Morrow can score from all over the floor, but he's mainly a shooter. That being said, he'll probably perform a little below par if he has to play against Sefolosha, since Sefolosha closes out on shooters pretty well. He won't be shut out though, because he'll probably be on the floor for some of the time Sefolosha will be on the bench, and it's hard keeping such an elite scorer down.

Point Guard: Russell Westbrook vs. Stephen Curry

Stephen Curry has been one of the leagues best Rookies this year. Widely considered to be the Warriors future Point Guard, he can score from anywhere on the floor and pass it smoothly to the right guy with the style and grace of a veteran. Russell Westbrook can do that too, but without the great shooting.

Battle of the Benches:

The Warrior's bench, while depleted, is better than you think. Hunter is pretty useless, but Maggette is great at getting to the line when he wants to, and C.J. Watson scores well in spurts. Most importantly, Anthony Randolph, coming off of a 28 Points, 13 Rebound, and 5 Assist performance against Orlando, looks poised for greatness. He's the Warriors best kept secret, and easily owns anybody we have on our bench, including Ibaka, Wilks, and Harden.

Coaching and Intangibles:

The Warriors don't have Don Nelson, who has known to be a bit silly with his player management, but they will get tired. Not because they've had 5 games in their last 9 days, but simply because they play such a tiring game and only have 9 guys to play it. It can be evidenced by the Magic suddenly and dramatically going on a 15-0 run at the end of the last game while the Warriors were firing up well-guarded duds. On top of that, they have a horrible record, and they're playing in the Ford Center. Most everything is on the Thunder's side.

Bottom Line:

I would shout with joy if the Warriors won this game, but it's just not going to happen. They've made big runs against every team under the sun, but shown a huge inability to close those same games. Also, most of the teams they've been able to compete with have consisted largely of outside shooters, while the Thunder are mainly a inside scoring team. All in all, it will be close for a while, but the game will end quietly, with most of the fans filing out with 3 minutes to go and the Thunder having won by 10.

Prediction: Oklahoma City 122, Golden State 112

How do you think the game will go? Vote in the Poll!

And, again, feel free to drop any comments you might have during, before, or after the game below. I'll be in the Ford Center cheering the team Warriors on, but I'll be back to write a recap later tonight. Go Thunder WARRIORS!

Poll

Who's going to win tonight?

Game 19 Recap: Boston 105, Oklahoma City 87

Zorgon — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 12:20:47 -0000

More photos » by Sue Ogrocki - AP

The game got so bad that Jeff Green and Russell Westbrook started practicing for the newest Olympic Sport: Synchronized Jumping!

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Yet again, my prediction was barely (4 points in total) off of its mark.

But, it was never close. This was just one of those games. The game that you realize that your young, upstart team aren't Supermen that lose closely because they were away, because of an injury, because the refs weren't on their side. Sometimes, they just flat out lose. And badly.

The game got progressively more and more out of hand as it went on. Sure, the Thunder had a 10-7 lead in the first, and they climbed back to within 6 midway through the 2nd, but the outcome was never really in doubt. By the end of the 3rd, their lead was up to 23, and Doc Rivers put in the Celtics scrubs for the rest of the game.

Below: Analysis, Awards

So, what do we take away from a game like this? Well, we are reminded of the fact that Jeff Green struggles against true power forwards, especially those as skilled as Kevin Garnett. But we already knew that, so it's no surprise he struggled here and receives the Thunder Blunder award. Also, none of our big men even stood a chance against Boston's. Sure, Ibaka had a couple of scores, and D.J. White managed to hit a few jumpshots in garbage time, but compared to 13 and 8 for Perkins, 23 and 8 for Garnett, and 10 and 3 for Wallace, it was a massive failure on the Thunder's part.

This game also shows that no matter how bad the loss gets, or no matter how badly a certain position matches up against the opponent, the Thunder can always count on Kevin Durant. He was the lone bright spot offensively, scoring 41% of the team's Points with 36, and grabbing 5 Rebounds and 2 Steals. He rather uncharacteristically got no assists, but that's because he scored every time he got the ball and, quite frankly, nobody else was able to help him out. It goes without saying that he's tonight's Thunder Wonder.

Thabo always gives 100%! Even in garbage time. Bonus points if you can spot me in the background. Super bonus points if you can spot Okluschen (the other writer who has been lazy about posting on this blog) sitting next to me.

Picking the Thunder Down Under for tonight is like trying to pick the perfect fruit or vegetable in a supermarket. No matter how hard you look, even the best one is going to have some sort of flaw. Russell Westbrook emerges as a potential candidate, but he had 5 turnovers along with dreadful 6-16 shooting. Mike Wilks also emerges as a candidate, but it's really hard to give an award to someone for doing the equivalent of dribbling the ball and not screwing up. Thus, I must give the award to Thabo Sefolosha. I know, he scored 0 points, and he had 3 turnovers. But he had 5 Rebounds, 3 Assists, and 3 Steals. But, most importantly of all, he held Ray Allen to just 11 Points on 4-11 Shooting. Obviously, this was more than made up for by the scoring of Pierce and Garnett, but try to imagine this game without Thabo. Yeah, I'm seeing the 30 Point blowout right now.

On the Celtics side of things, it couldn't have gone more perfectly. The starting lineup had a whopper of a game, the key backups in House and Wallace did what the Celtics needed them to do, and the mop-up crew didn't blow the lead. Marquis Daniels was kind of useless, but not everybody can have a perfect game. But, needless to say, Kevin Garnett was their Thunder Plunderer. 23 Points, 10-11 Shooting, 8 Rebounds, and 3 Assists round out just another day on the job for the Celtics great.

Next Game: Versus the Warriors, Monday, December 7th, at 7 PM Central Standard Time.

Go Warriors!

Poll

Comeon, did you really think the Thunder had a chance at winning this game?

Game 19 Preview: Oklahoma City vs. Boston

Zorgon — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 21:53:42 -0000

More photos » by Michael Dwyer - AP

I was at this game! In truth, I've been to every Thunder-Celtic game ever. Kyle Weaver was simply astonished at my attendance.

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This also counts as an open thread, so feel free to post your thoughts during the game here.

Time: 7:00 PM Central Standard Time

Place: The Ford Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

TV: Fox Sports Oklahoma, Comcast Sports Net New England

Radio: WWLS The Sports Animal (98.1)

Enemy Blog(s): CelticsBlog, CelticsGarden, There's like a Million Others

Matchup: The Celtics are one of, and possibly the best team(s) in the NBA. They've been cruising to the top ever since the season started, and they look to have a better year than last. As everyone knows, last season Kevin Garnett got injured towards the end of the year, leaving them not much better than the lower-seeded Bulls. But, this season, they have added the veteran Rasheed Wallace to their bench, along with Shelden Williams and Marquis Daniels. They come into the Ford Center on a strong 6 game win streak, with their last loss being November 20th to a strong Magic team.

Meanwhile, the Thunder are coming off of a expected win against Philadelphia, and a somewhat dissapointing loss against the Rockets. Don't get me wrong, the Thunder's track record is strong, but it's not nearly as serious as Boston's track record. It's going to be a complete uphill battle.

Below: Matchups, Prediction

Matchups:

Center: Nenad Krstic vs. Kendrick Perkins

It's no secret that Kendrick Perkins is and always has been the weak spot in the Celtics starting lineup. Unfortunately, this year, he's much more than a weak spot, averaging 12 Points and 8 Rebounds. I'd expect him to pretty much dominate Krstic in the post. Hopefully Krstic will be able to step out and shoot his jumpers, but I don't think Boston's front line is as lazy as Philadelphia's.

Power Forward: Jeff Green vs. Kevin Garnett

There's just no possible way I see Jeff Green winning this matchup. He's struggled against worse big men in the past, so I think the struggle will only increase when facing one of the best big men in the NBA.

Small Forward: Kevin Durant vs. Paul Pierce

This is probably the most interesting matchup of the game, as Paul Pierce and Kevin Durant have very similar games. I'd expect Durant to finish better, but only because he has less talent around him than Pierce does.

Shooting Guard: Thabo Sefolosha vs. Ray Allen

Thabo doesn't do well against drivers, but he does do well against shooters. Hopefully he can phase Ray Allen a bit tonight, as it will probably be a big key into winning this game. That being said, expect Ray Allen to blow Sefolosha away in the scoring department, hands down.

Point Guard: Russell Westbrook vs. Rajon Rondo

Rajon Rondo is averaging one less assist than points this year, so he's having his best assist year ever, along with his excellent defensive skills. Expect Russell Westbrook to struggle a lot offensively, yet (hopefully) revert to his assisting form.

Battle of the Benches

The Celtics win here, hands down. They have possibly the best true backup in the league in Rasheed Wallace, a solid streaky shooter in Eddie House, and another solid backup in Marquis Daniels. This isn't even mentioning defensively minded Tony Allen and perennial backup Shelden Williams, who easily beat the guys the Thunder have as 9th and 10th men.

Coaching and Intangibles

The Celtics have everybody healthy sans Glen Davis, and they are in full speed ahead mode as they try to rack up 7 straight and get home court advantage throughout the playoffs. Pretty much every intangible except for the fact that the Thunder are at home and more well-rested is on the Celtics side.

Bottom Line

Last year, we were able to compete with the Celtics for 2-3 quarters or so, but lost badly when they decided to put the accelerator down in the 4th quarter. Look for them to do the same tonight, unless Sefolosha can somehow stop the march of Ray Allen, Krstic can knock down some jumpers, and Westbrook can actually be productive offensively. Still, all of that is pretty doubtful.

Prediction: Boston 103, Oklahoma City 89

Hey, at least we'll be within range at halftime!

How do you think the game will go? Vote in the Poll!

And, again, feel free to drop any comments you might have during, before, or after the game below. I'll be in the Ford Center cheering the team on, but I'll be back to write a recap later tonight. Go Thunder!

Poll

Who's going to win tonight?

Game 18 Recap: Oklahoma City 117, Philadelphia 106

Zorgon — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 18:08:40 -0000

More photos » by Sue Ogrocki - AP

Ew! Get this ball away from me!

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Another Day, Another Dollar.

That saying perfectly describes the game on Wednesday Night. Not boring, not exciting, just a typical game in which you're nervous about the outcome for a bit, but you realize that, in the end, the game will turn out as predicted.

The game was actually pretty darn close for the entire first half, with the 76ers barely re-grasping the lead at the end of the first half. But, once the second half broke out, the Thunder re-took the lead, and the lead never got smaller than 3, towards the end of the 3rd. By the 4th, it was all over, and the 76ers weren't threatening the lead at all.

Below: Analysis, Awards

What?! I made it in?!

Despite my depiction of the plainness of the game, it was actually one of the highest scoring games this year. It was raining 3s, with both teams combining for 47 3 point attempts altogether. Kevin Durant was the main culprit on the Thunder, hitting an amazing 5 of 7, and Jason Kapono and Jrue Holiday were the main culprits on the 76ers, both going 3 of 6. It was kind of refreshing to see that the Thunder were actually capable of keeping up with the other team from the 3 point line, especially when they had sharpshooters like Jason Kapono and Thaddeus Young. Even though we were able to keep up with the other team, I'd venture to say it was through a sheer lack of perimeter defense, rather than the ability of our shooters. I can say this because Sefolosha, Green, and Durant all hit well above their usual percentages, while only Westbrook (who had a really off night), Harden, and Collison (who only shot one 3) shot below par.

It was also nice to see Jeff Green finally come back to form as the second leading scorer of the team, with 19 Points, 6 Rebounds, 4 Assists, and 2 Steals. The bad thing is that he was matched against a comparable opponent for tonight's game. He usually excels against men of his size and stature, but when faced with a bigger opponent (like Elton Brand), he'll usually get into foul trouble and have a game well below-par. I'm not trying to downplay what happened tonight, just tell of something to keep tabs on moving forward.

Wow, that looks painful.

The biggest story of the night was Nick Collison. He easily contended with Philadelphia's low-post monsters (Dalembert and Brand) by getting 18 Points, 7 Rebounds, 1 Steal, 1 Block, and no Turnovers in 20 minutes of action. The only shot he missed was a 3 Pointer, making for possibly his most efficient performance of the year, and grabbing him the Thunder Down Under Award. I'd like to give him the Thunder Wonder just for showing Philadelphia's lazy big men who's boss, but that award has to go to Kevin Durant, who had 33 Points on excellent shooting all-around, 5 Rebounds, 2 Assists, and 3 Steals.

The big failure of the night has to be James Harden. In a game where he would typically excel (poor perimeter defense, lots of opportunities for assists), he flopped, shooting only 3-7, having only 1 assist, and turning it over 3 times in 27 minutes. I may be a bit harsh in giving him the Thunder Blunder Award, but this is a game where virtually everybody contributed offensively, given the amount of time they all played. Sure, Russell Westbrook got only 7 Points and hit only 1-11 Shooting, but his career high of 15 Assists, solid 5 Rebounds, minimal 2 Turnovers, and solid 2 Steals more than make up for it.

Yet another "afraid of the ball" picture.

On the 76ers side of things, I think they're regretting playing the Thunder's game by demoting Elton Brand to the bench and starting Andre Igoudala. As a result, it just showed how ineffective Brand and Dalembert are in the lane without a partner, and what Jeff Green can do to a comparable opponent. Still, there were some good tales to be told, as both Andre Igoudala and Thaddeus Young had great scoring nights, with Igoudala dropping 28 and Young dropping 20. Still, Igoudala's 6 Rebounds and 5 Assists sets him apart, and earns him the Thunder Plunderer Award.

Next Game: Versus the Celtics, Friday, December 4th, at 7 PM Central Standard Time

Game 18 Preview: Oklahoma City vs. Philadelphia

Zorgon — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 13:06:24 -0000

More photos » by Bill Kostroun - AP

Back in action? Nope, not yet!

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This also counts as an open thread, so feel free to post your thoughts during the game here.

Time: 7:00 PM Central Standard Time

Place: The Ford Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

TV: Fox Sports Oklahoma, Comcast Sports Philadelphia, NBATV

Radio: WWLS The Sports Animal (98.1)

Enemy Blog(s): Liberty Ballers, Sixers4guidos, DepressedFan

Backstory: The 76ers are a surprise dissapointment among all of the good surprises that have happened this year. Someone has to fall, right? Granted, Elton Brand and Louis Williams have been injured....but that's only been recently. The bottom line is that they lost Andre Miller. And with him, they lost the glue that held the team together. Even in the latest 2 point loss to the Mavericks, the team had 4 more turnovers than assists. That isn't a recipe for winning, and it's bad news for a team that thought they could make the playoffs. Indeed, in the last two years they have made the playoffs, but it looks like they'll have to do even more post-Allen Iverson rebuilding. And no, getting Allen Iverson back doesn't count!

Meanwhile, the Thunder are a shade over .500, and they're looking to keep it that way. They've taken care of business against teams like the 76ers in the past, and the game is at home, so things are looking up. Still, injuries to Nick Collison (possibly out tonight), Kyle Weaver, Kevin Ollie, and Shaun Livingston haven't helped matters, so it remains to be seen whether they have the depth of talent to win this game.

Below: Matchups, Prediction

Matchups:

Center: Nenad Krstic vs. Samuel Dalembert

Luckily, Nenad Krstic will be back tonight, along with a possible chance of Nick Collison. The thunder will need all of the help they can get, because Samuel Dalembert is a mean machine in the post, along with being the 2nd greatest basketball player ever to come out of Canada. I'd expect Krstic to be able to score, since both Dalembert and Brand are immobile centers, but I'd also expect Dalembert lay the smack down in the post.

Power Forward: Jeff Green vs. Elton Brand

Yet another mismatch. Jeff Green will have to make sure to stay out of foul trouble, and Elton Brand will have to make sure to guard Green on the perimeter. Expect Green to have the upper hand if he can stay out of foul trouble.

Small Forward: Kevin Durant vs. Thaddeus Young

Heh, good luck Thaddeus. He'll have a better 3 Point percentage than Durant, but not much else.

Shooting Guard: Thabo Sefolosha vs. Andre Igoudala

This is yet another tough matchup for Sefolosha, as Igoudala is the primary scorer of the 76ers. Still, he won't walk all over Sefolosha, like Ariza did. Rather, I think Sefolosha will be able to shut him down in some cases and force turnovers.

Point Guard: Russell Westbrook vs. Jrue Holiday (Possibly Willie Green)

I don't think either one of these guys is any better than Westbrook. Willie Green is a scoring-type bigger guard, and Jrue Holiday is still a Rookie, with not many stats to his name. This is a real opportunity for Russell Westbrook to shine, get those assists, and score well.

Battle of the Benches

I'll breathe a huge sigh of relief if Nick Collison gets to play tonight, as he'll help out a lot down low. Still, despite all of their badness, the 76ers have a solid bench, with young life-long backup Center Jason Smith, 3 Point Sharpshooter Kapono, and solid scoring guard Willie Green. But Royal Ivey sucks. It's not a bench that blows you away with depth, but they don't really take a huge hit in talent when their backups are on the floor, and they all have clearly defined roles. Their bench gets the win over ours, because I'd say Kapono and Green pretty much own their equivalents on our team.

Coaching and Intangibles

The 76ers have just signed Allen Iverson, so the team might go into "cruise control", as they have some sort of savior coming to the team on Monday. On the other hand, they might be motivated to perform well before he gets there, but that's something I'm doubting. On top of that, they've lost 7 straight, and are away from home. The intangibles are definitely on the side of the Thunder.

Bottom Line

The real danger of the 76ers is their big post guys. If they can dominate inside, and out-rebound us, then we might have a game on our hands. Yet, if they just let Jeff Green and Nenad Krstic nail mid-range jumpers all day, then this could very easily turn into a blowout.

Prediction: Oklahoma City 100, Philadelphia 86

I haven't predicted an over 10 point victory since the Kings game....let's hope I haven't jinxed anything.

How do you think the game will go? Vote in the Poll!

Poll

Who's going to win tonight?

Game 17 Recap: Houston 100, Oklahoma City 91

Zorgon — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 05:07:51 -0000

More photos » by Sue Ogrocki - AP

The sad thing is, Ariza missed this dunk....and got his own rebound.

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So....we lost, and my prediction was only 2 points off. Why was my prediction so close to reality? Well, it because this game went almost exactly like this one. Sure, we were ahead most of the time, Jeff green scored a little more, and Aaron Brooks scored instead of Luis Scola, but it was still the same game. Lots of inside scoring, the Thunder's complete inability to rebound, and the complete lack of an X-Factor on our side made for a very familiar story. Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant both spent the game driving inside and gaining points, while every time we tried to shoot anywhere but the paint, it was almost a sure miss. 1-15 from the 3 Point Line? Yikes!

Below: Anaylsis, Awards

But, the question remains, how did we keep ahead for such a long period of time? Well, the answer is simple: They were adjusting to having to play without Luis Scola. He left very early in the first quarter with an injury, and Houston was struggling to find an inside scorer to replace him.

The bottom line is this: No matter what stands in the way, our team is always going to be susceptible to the Rockets style of play. They know how to penetrate inside far too well, they actually hit their 3 pointers, and the whole team participates in rebounding. I predict that we'll lose to them in every game for the rest of the season.

Awards:

Thunder Wonder: Russell Westbrook, 20 Points, 2 Rebounds, 5 Assists, 4 Turnovers, and 2 Blocks. The turnovers are bad, but not extremely bad for a point guard. The fact remains that without his scoring, the team would have not stayed ahead for as long as he did.

Thunder Down Under: Kevin Durant, 25 Points, 9 Rebounds, 6 Assists, 6 Turnovers, 2 Steals, and 3 Blocks. Kevin Durant did really, really well, but 6 Turnovers is just inexcusable, especially for someone who shouldn't be a play-maker. Yeesh.

Thunder Blunder: Thabo Sefolosha, 2-7 Field Goals, 6 Points, 6 Rebounds, 4 Assists, and 4 Turnovers. Yet again, he has an embarassingly bad performance against the Rockets, having a bad shooting night, and letting Trevor Ariza score all over us.

Thunder Plunderer: Trevor Ariza, 17 Points, 2 Rebounds, 3 Assists, 4 Steals, and 2 Blocks.

Poll

Will the Thunder beat the Rockets in the 2009-2010 season?

Game 17 Preview: Oklahoma City vs. Houston

Zorgon — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 22:08:07 -0000

More photos » by Pat Sullivan - AP

Let's hope that Etan Thomas has more stylish blocks in his arsenal!

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This also counts as an open thread, so feel free to post your thoughts during the game here.

Time: 6:00 PM Central Standard Time

Place: The Ford Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

TV: Fox Sports Oklahoma, Fox Sports Houston

Radio: WWLS The Sports Animal (98.1)

Enemy Blog(s): The Dream Shake

Backstory: Ah, so we meet the Rockets again, trying for our 3rd consecutive victory, something that hasn't happened since Ray Allen played for the team. Last time we saw them, we were pretty unsure of our future, as we had no real big name wins to our name, and we were in danger of losing 3 straight. But now, we feel a bit more confident. We're 9-7, which is good enough to make the NFL playoffs in some years, and we're coming off of quality wins against the Bucks and Jazz. Thus, the momentum is on our side.

The Rockets have stepped down from being an early season surprise, and are now just considered to be average. They've won the games that they should have (with recent wins against Minnesota and Sacramento) and lost the games that they should have (with losses against Phoenix, Atlanta, Dallas, and San Antonio). They have beaten the Lakers, Spurs, and Trailblazers in the past, which shows that they can compete, but not conquer.

Below: Matchups, Prediction

Matchups:

Center: Nenad Krstic vs. Chuck Hayes

Last time, both Hayes and Krstic completely failed at scoring, leaving their backups, Carl Landry and Nick Collison, to do the dirty work for them. I'd expect it to turn out the same way for Nenad Krstic, who can't do very well against quick defending centers, but I'd expect Hayes to do better this time, especially against Krstic's soft defense.

Power Forward: Jeff Green vs. Luis Scola

Last time, Luis Scola took Jeff Green to town, and completely shut him down. If Jeff Green's 3s don't fall, the same will happen again. Scola is just that much better inside.

Small Forward: Kevin Durant vs. Shane Battier

Kevin Durant is the clear winner here, ass he's a much better scorer and rebounder. Shane Battier will still get his fair share of buckets, but I wouldn't expect a lot of rebounds.

Shooting Guard: Thabo Sefolosha vs. Trevor Ariza

Last time these two met, it was probably Thabos worst performance all year. Ariza went off for 21 Points, 5 Rebounds, and 6 Assists. This will probably be the key matchup. Can Thabo stop Ariza's relentless drives, or are we in for another scorefest? If I was a betting man, I'd opt for the later option. This could be Thabo's weakness - high flying dunkers.

Point Guard: Russell Westbrook vs. Aaron Brooks

Westbrook completely owned Brooks last time, as he was much quicker to the hoop, and he forced Brooks into 6 turnovers. I'd expect the same to happen here, as this is a game that favors drivers over shooters.

Battle of the Benches

The Rockets have a thin bench, consisting mostly of Landry, Budinger, and Lowry. But, they're well rested, so I wouldn't think of it as too much of a concern. The thunder need to make sure that their backup big men can stop Landry inside, and Budinger outside, as they're both excellent scorers off of the bench.On our side, I wouldn't expect anybody to add anything meaningful offensively except Collison, since he's an inside banger.

Coaching and Intangibles

They're both equally rested, but the Thunder are at home and on a two game win streak. I'd say the intangibles go our way.

Bottom Line

I'm sorry to say that I think this is where our win streak ends. The Rockets are a fast, inside scoring team that can dominate us inside or outside. The only way we can win is if Sefolosha can stop Ariza from scoring, but since he has no help off of the bench, I don't think that's likely.

Prediction:

Rockets 102, Thunder 91

How do you think the game will go? Vote in the Poll!

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Who's going to win tonight?

Game 16 Recap: Oklahoma City 108, Milwaukee 90

Zorgon — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 20:39:13 -0000

More photos » by Sue Ogrocki - AP

Whoh.

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Yahoo! Sports Box Score:

As I entered this game and saw the Bucks making a late first quarter run, all I could think about was how good the ball movement was on that team. Fortunately, while good ball movement may look pretty when they actually do score, it doesn't do a lot for winning games if the scorers aren't there. The team seemed to rely on a certain scorer getting hot an fueling the team. In the first, that guy was Carlos Delfino. In the second, that guy was Ersan Ilyasova. In the third, that guy was nobody. Nobody. They didn't score a point until there was 5:45 left to go in the third. Talk about total collapse. Needless to say, from that point on, the games was mostly garbage time, and the bucks never got closer than 10 from that point on.

You have to admire the complete shut down of Brandon Jennings. I really thought he'd take advantage of the fact that Mike Wilks was on the floor, but Wilks managed to hold his ground. I guess it was just an off night for him.

One has to admire the quality of post play that occurred on our side of the ball. Nenad Krstic was getting blocks and rebounds, Sefolosha got a double double, and, as a team, the Thunder destroyed them in the rebounding department. Ilyasova mostly concentrated on his mid-range game, Gadzuric was totally useless, Kurt Thomas is old, and former SuperSonic Francisco Elson only played in garbage time. This left all of the inside work to the undersized Hakim Warrick, who managed to do some extremely fancy dunks (one of which resulted in a BS technical foul call for hanging on the rim). Because of this, he earns tonight's Thunder Plunderer award. Unfortunately, he alone could not stem the tide of inside exploitation by the Thunder.

On our side of things, the game couldn't have gone more perfectly. Kevin Durant had another superb performance, with 33 Points, 12 Rebounds, and 5 Assists. That easily gets him the Thunder Wonder Award. And, as good of a job Sefolosha did going 13 and 11, I have to give the Thunder Down Under award to Russell Westbrook, for not only getting 20 Points, 6 rebounds, 7 Assists, and 2 Blocks, but also fro completely outdoing Brandon Jennings, who only had 12 Points, 3 Assists, and 3 Turnovers.

The Thunder Blunder of tonight is D.J. White, who did a bad job filling in for Nick Collison, who has a sore knee. 10 Minutes, 1-5 Shooting, 2 Rebounds, and 1 Assist? Eh. At least Ibaka, who didn't have too good of a game himself, managed to get 7 rebounds. Need evidence as to why both of these guys don't get minutes? Look no further than here, where they totally managed to screw it up on a day where the inside play was plentiful.

Also, you have to give props to the crowd. Obviously, they put on their best masks tonight, as it never would have been this loud if the Thunder were playing the Bucks normally. Still, it's nice to see them shop up when it's most needed, and show the nation what we're made of. I'll never re-watch the game on TV, as ESPNs coverage of the NBA is putrid, but I'm sure the announcers spent about 10 minutes commenting on "how loud it is in the Ford Center". And that's a good thing!

Next Game: Versus the Rockets, Sunday, November 29th, at 6 PM Central Standard Time

Bah, yet another annoyingly early 6 PM home game....at least I can look forward to what could become our tenth win!

Poll

If I told you we'd be 9-7 after 16 games, would you believe me?

Game 16 Preview: Oklahoma City vs. Milwaukee

Zorgon — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 08:55:54 -0000

More photos » by Darren Hauck - AP

Neither of these guys will be playing tonight, which could, in itself, explain why we lost to the Bucks twice last year.

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This also counts as an open thread, so feel free to post your thoughts during the game here.

Time: 8:30 PM Central Standard Time

Place: The Ford Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

TV: Fox Sports Oklahoma, ESPN

Radio: WWLS The Sports Animal (98.1)

Enemy Blog(s): BrewHoop, Bucks Diary, The Bob Boozer Jinx, Bucksketball

Backstory: Well, it's that time of year again. Everybody has loaded up on Turkey, I'm ready to go buy discounted video games like some sort of crazed mad man, and the Thunder are getting ready to take on the hot hot Bucks on National Television. Wait, what was that third one?

That's right, the Thunder are on National Television. After an impressive 8-7 start, ESPN finally considers them to be hot material, at least, hotter than a blowout matchup between the Suns and Timberwolves. And rightfully so. This matchup, in an national perspective, could be seen as a proving ground for both teams. Both are playoff teams right now, which nobody expected at the start of the season. And both are probably not considered to be long-term success teams. That is, most are expecting them to fall into the lottery by the time the season is over. So, who's expected to win?

To be honest, they should expect us to win. The Bucks do have a better record, but their wins have only come over Detroit, Minnesota, Denver, Golden State, New Jersey, Charlotte, and Memphis. Aside from the win against Denver, they've pretty much won against all of the NBAs current doormats. And their losses don't look that much more impressive, with losses to the sub-.500 76ers, Bulls, and Hornets, with the only other losses coming to the struggling Spurs and the rather good Mavericks. Thus, if you put it all together, the only good teams they've played have been Denver and the Mavericks. They've visited almost every non-playoff team in the East (besides the Wizards) and almost every non-playoff team in the West (besides the Clippers, Kings, and Jazz). Now, I'm not saying that the Bucks continuing their run of success in the weaker East isn't possible, I'm just saying that this team isn't the powerhouse we thought they were. Combine that with the loss of Andrew Bogut and possible loss of Luc Richard Mbah A Moute, and you have one giant over-hyped sandwich.

On our side of things, things feel much more real. We're coming off of a huge wins in Utah and Miami, with a more minor win against the Wizards and losses against the Magic and Lakers. All of that doesn't look bad on paper, but it covers up our past losses to teams like the Clippers and Kings. If we can win this game, it will put us at 2 games above .500, and in a very good position moving forward. Thus, this game will decide, on a national stage, whether we are just another bad team having a good early season run, or whether we really are ready for the playoffs.

Below: Matchups, Prediction

Matchups:

Center: Nenad Krstic vs. Dan Gadzuric

Ah, the Bucks resident backup Center, Dan Gadzuric. He could double-double in this game, if he gets enough minutes in which to do so. However, I'm pretty sure Krstic will have the better scoring night, as no one knows Gadzuric as a defensive stalwart or anything.

Power Forward: Jeff Green vs. Ersan Ilyasova

Ilyasova is a rare example of how going back to the Euroleague can help your game, He was drafted in 05, played only in the D-League, and then played only sparingly in 06-07. Since he wasn't happy with his situation, he went to play for F.C. Barcelona, averaged decent stats for two years, improved his game, and then came back to the Bucks, where he's now a rather successful Power Forward, averaging 10 Points, 7 Rebounds, and 1 Assist per game in only 22 minutes. Still, this is weaker matchup for Jeff Green, so if he can stay out of foul trouble, he should manage to put up good numbers, and can probably beat Ilyasova in every category.

Small Forward: Kevin Durant vs. Carlos Delfino

You read correctly, Carlos Delfino is indeed playing Small Forward. He went to play in Russia last year and averaged decent statistics, but Delfino is already a known quantity, so that only served to raise his stock and get him decent pay. Nevertheless, even though Delfino is a jack of all trades who will produce in every category, he will almost certainly be overpowered by Kevin Durant and scored upon many times.

Shooting Guard: Thabo Sefolosha vs. Charlie Bell

Charlie Bell, at one point, was the worst shooter in the NBA. He's improved since, but he's not going to be a scoring threat any time soon. He'll fill up the intangibles, just as Thabo will, making this matchup a draw.

Point Guard: Russell Westbrook vs. Brandon Jennings

And here is the matchup of the hour. Brandon Jennings is the super rookie who decided to play in Europe for a year, and, boy, has it paid off. He has averaged 23 Points, 5 Rebounds, and 6 Assists in his rookie campaign, all while sporting very stylish haircuts (I've seen him with the flat top, the faux-hawk, and whatever you call the badass hair-style he has now). If Scott Brooks is smart, he'll have Thabo defending this guy, because Russell Westbrook doesn't have a chance in hell of stopping him. Jennings wins this matchup easily, and I shudder to think what will happen if Mike Wilks is forced to step on the floor.

Battle of the Benches:

This is a complete waste of time. Even without Mbah A Moute and Bogut, the Bucks still have a much more powerful bench, containing former SuperSonic Luke Ridnour, former Raptors star Roko Ukic, former Grizzlies star Hakim Warrick, and Kurt Thomas. We have Harden, Etan Thomas, Collison.....and Mike Wilks. Oh yeah, they still have Michael Redd off the bench, too. I'd say they get the win.

Coaching and Intangibles:

The one intangible on the Thunders side to pay attention to is Mike Wilks. It's not know if we'll have to play him, but if we do, the situation could get drastic, especially against the amazing Brandon Jennings. On the Bucks side, it's not know if Michael Redd can return to his former scoring form yet. If he can, it would certainly create a dynamic duo of a back court, making our situation even more desperate. Where's Kyle Weaver when you need him?

Bottom Line:

The Bucks are like the Raptors of a couple of years ago. They signed foreign talent, combined it with what they had, and became a threat to win on any given night. But, the team is flawed. If Michael Redd can't find his stride, then Brandon Jennings is the only serious scorer on the roster. If Thabo shuts him down to an extent, we can get an easy win. But, if they can get both of their scorers going and have another X-Factor step up, then we're screwed. Also, watch Mike Wilks. If he plays, he could be a huge liability when defending Brandon Jennings. Hopefully, it won't come to that.

Prediction: Oklahoma City 110, Milwaukee 105

Sorry, Bucks fans. I think we've got this one in the bag. Too bad the game is on the worst sports broadcaster of all time.

How do you think the game will go? Vote in the Poll!

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