Feb 20, 2013; Houston, TX, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder power forward Nick Collison (4) signals to a teammate during the fourth quarter against the Houston Rockets at Toyota Center. The Rockets defeated the Thunder 122-119. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

When watching the Thunder two things stick out in my mind. The first is how much isolation basketball they play, and the second is how successful they are at doing it. In general you don’t want to see a basketball team just hand a player the ball and say “take this guy”. Normally it just does not work very well. However, most teams also do not have Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook at their disposal. These guys are so good with the basketball in their hands that it makes it alright to play one-on-one basketball. At times it seems that the Thunder can get through a whole game just by setting Durant on the high post or Westbrook at the top of the key. Durant is a mismatch for pretty much anybody in the league, even the one guy that seems to have a shot at guarding him, Lebron James, still allowed over 30 points to KD in the finals last season. The same type of thing applies to Westbrook. While he does not present the amount of problems as Durant does, Russell is a mismatch for pretty much any point guard that tries to guard him in the NBA. The combination of his athleticism and his ability to pull up in the mid range game is extremely deadly.

With this being said, when these two guys check out of the game the Thunder bench comes on the floor and, at times, really struggles. There is nobody on the second unit that can win the one-on-one match-ups as consistently as KD or Westbrook can. Kevin Martin is a superb player, but he is not on Durant’s or Westbrook’s level in terms of making his own shots. The one guy that may have a possibility of breaking down his defender one-on-one is Reggie Jackson. I really likeJacksonas a player, and I think if Westbrook weren’t on the squadJacksonwould definitely be starting for OKC. However, Jackson is a young guy and really is just beginning to realize his talent.

In my opinion the Thunder bench has to do one thing and one thing only to improve their production when they are on the floor. Pass the basketball. It is as simple as that. Because they lack the individual talent that KD and Westbrook have, they will need to rely on each other to score the basketball. They have the capability of doing it as well. As I said before, Reggie Jackson is a great young player that can get to the basket, and he has shown that he has the presence of mind to kick it out to Martin for a jumper. Of course you have to mention Nick Collison when talking about non selfish basketball. Collison is the epitome of playing for teammates as he demonstrates that every game with his willingness to pass and take charges. Overall, we have seen the Thunder bench do great things this year, but not nearly as consistent as they did it last year. Obviously that has to do with the departure of James Harden, but if the Thunder hope to get back to the finals and maybe defeatMiami, then they will need their bench to produce.

I am not saying that the Thunder bench has to all of a sudden turn into the best bench in the league. All I am saying is that they need to hold their own while KD, Westbrook, Ibaka, and the rest of the starters get their rest. When they go up against a team like the Spurs, who have a ton of depth on their team, KD and Westbrook can’t carry them for the whole game. The Spurs can just keep rolling out new fresh guys that know how to score the basketball while the Thunder keep relying on Durant and Westbrook. If the Thunder’s second unit can move the basketball and create open baskets for teammates, then I think they can take out the Spurs in 5 games or less.

Jerry Lai-US PRESSWIRE

Perry Jones III may very well have been the steal of the draft for the Oklahoma City Thunder, drafting him 28th overall.

The Thunder did not expect to see Jones III on the board at this point but were more than happy to select him.

“We felt very comfortable making this selection at 28,” Thunder GM Sam Presti said. “We looked at all the information that we had available, and we wouldn’t have selected him unless we felt comfortable with all the information.”

Presti went on to say how he saw Jones III in his first ever college practice at Baylor and spoke to his coach there who described Jones III as someone who really cares about what he’s doing on the basketball court and of course, quite the amazing athlete.

The more you think about Jones III on this Thunder team, the more it seems like a perfect fit. His personality should blend right in with the likes of Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden.

“We really see him as a blend player,” Presti said. “We see great value in the fact that he’s incredibly talented, but he’s able to play within a team and understand how he can impact a game. He doesn’t need to be forcing the issue at all times. And with our particular team, we feel like that’s a huge quality that we looked at as a positive for us.”

But how much can we expect from Jones III during his rookie season? There are concerns regarding the health of his knee. Will he make the rotation?

The general consensus right now around the local media that cover the Thunder is that there aren’t a lot of immediate expectations for Jones III and that he may not be in the rotation to start.

“We won’t pigeonhole him,” assistant GM Troy Weaver said of Jones’ future position. “We think he can play anywhere on the front line. He’s a versatile player. The coaches will handle that. But we see his versatility as a strength.”

The Thunder will look to have a 10-man rotation once the season starts and Jones III actually has a very good chance of cutting into it. They will have the same starters as last season with Harden and Nick Collison as the first two off the bench.

Eric Maynor will be back from injury and will take over Derek Fisher’s backup point duties, assuming the Thunder don’t re-sign Fisher. Daequan Cook will continue his role as 3-point specialist leaving one more spot for Jones III to compete for.

Cole Aldrich has been in line waiting to step into the rotation and now with Nazr Mohammed likely gone he may. But Jones III could compete and beat Aldrich for that spot. The best case scenario for the Thunder would be if Jones III does crack the rotation.

You see, Jones III is exactly the type of player OKC was missing in the playoffs. They needed another versatile athlete to throw on LeBron or be able to grab rebounds while also defending quicker players.

In the playoffs, the Kendrick Perkins trade where OKC sent away Jeff Green started to look like a bad idea, if only Green was healthy. The Thunder were really missing that stretch 3-4 guy who can make some plays, defend a lot of positions and rebound.

Jones III can be exactly that for the Thunder. He won’t be the ball handler that Green was but he is bigger and just as athletic if not more. He’s not going to protect the rim like Serge Ibaka but he’ll be better to have out there than Fisher trying to take charges all the time.

We all keep reminding ourselves that Jones III could have been a lottery pick, this year or the last. That means he really should be getting a solid chunk of minutes for the Thunder next season.

“Everybody looks at his talent and says this guy should be dominant,” Weaver said. “But he plays within a teamwork and tries to blend with players and help his team win ballgames.”

One thing is for certain that the Thunder players will embrace him. Any down feelings Jones III had for slipping so late in the first round will be immediately erased when he steps on the floor with the most exciting team in the NBA.

This may be the typical overreaction immediately following the draft but there’s a few things we know about this Thunder team. One is that they will win a championship whether it’s this next season or soon after. Jones III will be integral in helping them do so.

Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE

It’s been a few days now since the Oklahoma City Thunder lost Game 5 of the NBA Finals and lost the series to LeBron James and the Miami Heat.

The last few days have been about mourning, feeling sorry for this team, feeling excited about its future and feeling proud of what they accomplished.

Now we can look back at the series.

The Heat won in five games but it was a lot closer than that. Through the first four games the teams were separated by a total of five points in Miami’s favor. If five or six plays had gone OKC’s way instead of Miami’s, we could be talking about how they won the title this year instead of having to wait until next year.

LeBron James was the MVP of the Finals and deservedly so. He played at an all-time level in the playoffs and that carried straight over into the Finals. His 29-10-7 averages in the five games were one of the best ever.

LeBron adjusted to the series too with what his team needed from him, scoring more in the first few games then playing the role of distributor from the low post in the last two games. It was everything the Heat could have wanted from their MVP.

But the Thunder still could have won the series even with LeBron playing at that level. He was certainly the best player for Miami but take away a few of the X-factors in the series and the Thunder beat the Heat.

Robert Mayer-US PRESSWIRE

The lineups

The lineups situation is probably the biggest regret for Thunder fans. Miami comes out in the series not starting Chris Bosh and going with a small lineup consisting of Shane Battier and LeBron at the forward slots.

It was unknown at first if this would benefit Miami more than hurt them but we quickly found out what would happen. The Heat started off Game 1 hitting a ton of threes led by Battier who was wide open too many times.

The Thunder did not take advantage of their size advantage and that gave Miami a crucial edge.

In a series when someone does something that works, you adjust to it. The Thunder should have done this after at least Game 2. They got out to very slow starts in each of the first three games of the series and their starting lineup was clearly not working.

The Thunder had essentially started the same five guys for a year and a half and Scott Brooks did not want to change what got the Thunder to this point. But he probably should have.

Kendrick Perkins did just about nothing in this series and after the series ended, we found out he was playing with a partially torn groin as well.

Not only should Perkins have played significantly less in this series but there was even an excuse to make that decision. If we saw the last three games with Nick Collison on the floor instead of Perkins for OKC, they might win the series.

Derick E. Hingle-US PRESSWIRE

James Harden

The Beard was not feared in this series because it was basically nonexistent. James Harden averaged 12.4 points in the series, shot .375 percent from the field and .318 from three.

This was nowhere close to the Harden that was sometimes the most important player in the Thunder’s run to the Finals.

Miami was definitely going to be the best defense OKC had played so far in the playoffs and the slow start to the series was understandable for the 22-year old Harden but never finding his groove was unacceptable.

Harden was forced to defend LeBron way too much in the final three games of this series and this may have aided in Harden’s inability to get going on offense.

This Thunder team needed him though not only to score more but become their best playmaker which he was all season. The Thunder averaged just over 15 assists per game in the Finals which was much worse than their season average which was last in the NBA.

The Thunder desperately needed someone who could create offense for others and with Russell Westbrook not exactly being that guy – especially against a Heat defense that does such a good job taking away your number one options – Harden needed to step up.

Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE

Erik Spoelstra

Erik Spoelstra was taking a ton of Heat before this series started and even dating back to last season. He just seemed to be potentially holding this Heat team back or not being dominant enough of a personality to reign in LeBron and Wade.

Spoelstra was significantly outcoached last year in the NBA Finals by Rick Carlisle but that sure wasn’t the case this year.

Beginning with his decision to go small and use LeBron as a point power forward, it felt like Spoelstra made all the right moves while Brooks was kind of stick in neutral.

The Heat roster was not as talented as Oklahoma City’s this year but they were put in the better positions to succeed in these Finals.

Normally, Spoelstra’s lack of a consistent rotation was criticized but whenever he shook things up in this series, the new sub would come in on fire from three whether it was Norris Cole or Mike Miller.

This is what coaching in the NBA is though. You go with your gut on some decisions and when they work (guys make shots) you look like a genius. When they don’t (guys miss shots) you’re an idiot.

Spoelstra had the edge in this series over Brooks and maybe it was just a perfect matchup for Miami. They had the experience, they had LeBron capable of playing the four and not sacrificing anything, and they were more fortunate.

We will remember in this series a few things about the coaches. We’ll remember the moves Spoelstra made all seemingly working and we’ll remember Brooks not pulling the trigger on a couple of things that he probably should have.

So the Heat won and LeBron was the Finals MVP. But they didn’t win just because of him. A million things happened in these five games and if just three or four of them went the Thunder’s way instead of Miami’s, they win the championship.

Alright, that’s enough thinking about what could have been because what will become with this Thunder team can only make you smile.

Robert Mayer-US PRESSWIRE

Kendrick Perkins has been a valuable asset for the Thunder all season. He gave them toughness, set great screens, got under the opponents’ skin.

In the NBA Finals, Perkins was not a factor. Actually, he was a factor only in the negative sense for Oklahoma City.

The Miami Heat and their small ball lineup was not the ideal matchup for Perkins. He clogged up the spacing on offense as the Thunder basically played four on five and on defense he also struggled keeping up with Miami’s pick-and-roll.

All series Thunder fans were calling for more Nick Collison or more small lineup without Perkins. Scott Brooks stuck with him and it might have cost the Thunder the championship.

Now we are learning that Perkins, who injured his groin in Game 4 of the first round against Dallas, was playing the final three rounds of the playoffs with a partially torn groin, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.

What could be more frustrating for Thunder fans? As if it wasn’t enough that Perkins was actually playing and hurting the Thunder while doing so. He was also hurt (and thinking back on the series it kind of showed) and the excuse to play him less and possibly take him out of the starting lineup would have been something totally rational.

You can’t blame Perkins for this. Of course he wanted to play and he’s not one to let on about an injury. He played hard and had his moments. The series just wasn’t for him.

He played 23.4 minutes per game in the Finals, scored 4.8 points per game and grabbed 6.8 rebounds per game.

Nick Collison played 15.8 minutes per game, scored 3.6 points per game and averaged 4.2 rebounds per game.

Playing Collison instead of Perkins could have easily shifted the momentum in OKC’s favor enough for them to pull out the series.

The Thunder traded for Perkins last year to help them get by the Los Angeles Lakers. I guess he helped with that some but there’s no question he did more harm than good in the final two rounds of the playoffs for the Thunder.

He has been a great guy to have on the team. He has value on a basketball court. But right now for this Thunder team, tying his name to the word “amnesty” doesn’t seem like a bad idea.

The Miami Heat have won the last three games of this series after the Thunder took Game 1. They haven’t blown OKC out in any of those games they’ve just shown more poise down the stretch.

The Thunder finally avoided a slow start in Game 4 and actually jumped out to a pretty nice lead themselves, going up 33-16 in the first quarter.

The Thunder know what they need to fix and it’s just a matter of executing it and staying alive to get back home for Game 6.

Let’s start with…

Derick E. Hingle-US PRESSWIRE

Kevin Durant – 30.3 PPG, 2.0 APG, 4.8 RPG, .550 FG%, .370 3PT%, .821 FT%

Kevin Durant was amazing in the first two games of this series, especially in the fourth quarters. But since the series has shifted to Miami, he really hasn’t played that well at all by his standards.

Durant is still scoring 26.5 points per game in Miami and shooting efficiently but the rest of his game is suffering. His rebounding is way down and his defense in general has been suspect.

Playing with a sense of desperation in Game 5 should hopefully cure these things for Durant. It’s really just a matter of being locked in and focused and flying all over the court. Durant has been caught in no man’s land just watching too often on defense.

Perhaps it has to do with how hard he has had to work just to get the ball. Miami is mostly fronting Durant and he isn’t strong enough to make that an easy catch. This has been going on for two games now and it has really hurt the Thunder offense so it will be interesting to see if they can adjust.

Derick E. Hingle-US PRESSWIRE

LeBron James – 29.3 PPG, 6.0 APG, 10.0 RPG, .472 FG%, .231 3PT%, .811 FT%

LeBron had one of his best games in Game 4 against the Thunder. He dominated the game from the low block, picking apart the Thunder defense on kick outs.

LeBron’s greatest strength in recent years has been reading the situation and taking what’s given. The Thunder defense did not defend him well in the post and LeBron made them pay with 26 points and 12 assists.

LeBron then capped off the night by hitting a huge three despite battling cramps and the Heat escaped with the win.

Other than that LeBron wasn’t too dominant. His jump shot hasn’t been deadly in this series and even when he shoots in the post it is worse than it feels.

LeBron didn’t play much of a distributor in the first three games of this series but he became that in Game 4 when Miami needed him too. Letting LeBron play that role and get the role players involved is not a good idea for the Thunder.

The Thunder do not need to double him too much in the post and need to be more concerned with taking away the spot-up shooters.

Durant barely guarded LeBron in Game 4 to avoid any potential foul trouble. If Durant was able to match up with him in the post, the Thunder could play him more straight up. If Game 5 is close and Durant isn’t in foul trouble, we’ll see if Scott Brooks puts him on LeBron in the fourth.

Mike Ehrmann/Pool Photo via US PRESSWIRE

Russell Westbrook – 29.0 PPG, 6.8 APG, 7.0 RPG, .480 FG%, .176 3PT%, .810 FT%

Russell Westbrook is coming off the game of his life in Game 4 scoring 43 points on 20-of-32 shooting.

Westbrook was completely unstoppable as his jump shot was falling as well as his shots at the rim when he attacked at will.

The Thunder probably won’t get 43 points from him again in this series but for the first time he didn’t start the game off missing his first three shots which was a great sign.

Westbrook will now not receive any criticism for his play. He showed in Game 4 he has nights where he is better than Durant and while the Thunder didn’t win, they very easily could have.

Westbrook’s confidence has to be at an all-time high even for him now and that should lead to him becoming a playmaker and opening up even more offense for the Thunder which they desperately need.

Larry W. Smith/Pool Photo via US PRESSWIRE

Dwyane Wade – 23.3 PPG, 5.8 APG, 5.5 RPG, .413 FG%, .400 3PT%, .806 FT%

The Thunder have continued to do a good enough job on Dwyane Wade in this series. Wade did not kill the Thunder as a passer in Game 4 like he did in Game 3 but he still made some big shots.

The Thunder have to live with what Wade has been doing. The one area he has been hurting them lately is getting to the free throw line. Wade attempted 20 free throws in the last two games which is a number the Thunder can cut down.

Whenever Wade finds space, he hurts you. Westbrook has done a good job using his athleticism to guard Wade and he should see him some more in Game 5 too.

Wade is simply not the biggest concern for the Thunder right now.

James Harden – 10.8 PPG, 3.3 APG, 5.0 RPG, .351 FG%, .286 3PT%, .722 FT%

James Harden has still yet to play like himself in the Finals and that’s probably the biggest reason why the Thunder find themselves down 3-1.

If Harden is able to get it going just a little, it could be enough for the Thunder to win. His numbers are far below his normal averages all across the board.

We knew Miami would defend him the best of anyone in the playoffs but it is also in Harden’s head now why he’s not producing.

All it will take is a couple of drives to the basket where he gets fouled or finishes strong and that could get the momentum going for him.

If he doesn’t get his act together though, it’s hard to imagine the Thunder coming back in this series.

Larry W. Smith/Pool Photo via US PRESSWIRE

Chris Bosh – 12.3 PPG, 10.0 RPG, .396 FG%, .250 3PT%, .833 FT%

Chris Bosh isn’t hurting the Thunder in the ways you would have expected in this series. He’s not scoring very much or doing a ton on offense to make things difficult for OKC.

Bosh is hurting the Thunder with his effort, energy and ability to get to those 50-50 balls. Who would have known?

Bosh’s ability to affect the series that way speaks more to the Thunder’s not matching Miami’s intensity in these last few games.

If you don’t notice Bosh in Game 5, the Thunder will win. If he’s a factor, this series might be over.

The Bigs

The play of the bigs for OKC was much less of an issue in Game 4 than the previous two. The Thunder avoided a slow start with their starting lineup and even got some nice production from Nick Collison when he checked in the first quarter.

The Thunder still have yet to really abuse Miami with their big men. They only got eight offensive rebounds in Game 4 and it feels like they need to be closer to 15 to really take advantage of this mismatch.

Kendrick Perkins and Serge Ibaka combined for just eight points and 10 rebounds in Game 4. They’ve had games this postseason where they’ve both been terrific and the Thunder may need that kind of performance to extend this series.

Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE

Spot-up shooters

Shane Battier is no long the sniper he was in Oklahoma City but in Game 4 it was Chalmers who stepped up scoring 25 points.

Miami made 10 threes in the game thanks a lot to LeBron’s work in the post drawing doubles and kicking.

The Heat got too many open looks in the game for the Thunder to be comfortable with their defense and if they are hitting them again in Game 5, things will be very difficult for the Thunder.

The Thunder went just 3-for-16 from three in Game 4. Derek Fisher didn’t attempt any threes and Thabo Sefolosha went 1-for-3.

The Thunder are going to need someone other than Durant and Westbrook to step up in Game 5 if they are going to take this series back to Oklahoma City. Hitting some more threes would be nice.

Prediction

The Thunder have their backs against the wall as much as possible now. They’ve been here before though down two games in a series and responded by winning the next four games against the best team in basketball.

The Thunder know they just need to get this series back to Oklahoma City and they will have a great chance to win it. Game 5 will be their best effort of the season, it has to be.

If the Thunder play their best, there will be nothing the Heat can do to stop them too. It’s all up to them.

They haven’t lost four games in a row all season and I don’t think they start now. This series is still going seven. If they win Game 5, they’re not losing Game 6 and then in a Game 7, anything can happen.

This team doesn’t get down on themselves and they know they can beat this team. They’ve taken the next step so many times this season and it’s no time to take another step and win Game 5 in Miami.

The Thunder lost Game 3 in Miami 91-85 and really didn’t play a good game at all. The Heat shot very poorly from outside the paint and the Thunder were in great position to steal one on the road.

The Thunder led by 10 points in the third quarter but foul trouble for Kevin Durant helped allow the Heat to come back and close this one out.

Looking ahead to Game 4, the Thunder are going to need to play a lot better starting with…

Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE

Kevin Durant – 31.0 PPG, 1.7 APG, 5.7 RPG, .574 FG%, .409 3PT%, .737 FT%

Durant may have had his worst game of the playoffs in Game 3 of the NBA Finals. He scored 25 points and went 11-of-19 from the field but he picked up his fourth foul with 5:41 left in the third quarter and was a mess on defense all night.

The Thunder allowed Miami to get 14 offensive rebounds in the game and Durant was a big reason why. Too many times when a shot went up he showed no interest in boxing out or anything.

Durant is only averaging 5.7 rebounds per game in this series and that is something he really needs to improve upon. With the Thunder playing small so much, Durant needs to be super active on defense and rebounding.

Durant isn’t at his best when he is put in this position as an interior help defender but that’s what we have here in the NBA Finals. He needs to step up in that department or the Thunder are going to have a hard time coming back and winning this series.

Durant may be a little drained from defending LeBron James and having to work so hard to get open on offense. In Game 3, the Thunder tried to isolate Durant a little too much and it became very reminiscent of how the New York Knicks were using Carmelo Anthony against the Heat in the first round.

Durant would work so hard just to get an isolation opportunity against the best defender in basketball and it wore him down. And after working so hard to get the ball, you know you’re going to want to shoot every time and it resulted in stagnant offense for the Thunder.

Durant didn’t have any assists in his 39 minutes of action and that’s never a good sign for the Thunder. You really don’t expect the Thunder to win when Durant has this kind of game but the loss still hurts because they had a great chance to anyway.

Durant was unable to muster up any heroics in the fourth this time though. He scored just four points in the period and had two turnovers. He looked like he lost his rhythm after coming out of the game with his fourth foul.

Robert Mayer-US PRESSWIRE

LeBron James – 30.3 PPG, 4.0 APG, 10.3 RPG, .464 FG%, .222 3PT%, .862 FT%

LeBron had another quiet LeBron game in Game 3. He had 29 points and 14 rebounds and it seemed not too spectacular. That’s LeBron for you.

He came out very aggressive again like Game 2 scoring inside and working hard for offensive rebounds. This was something the Thunder could have prevented simply by matching his intensity but they just didn’t have it that night.

LeBron was probably most important defending Durant. He made him work so hard just to get the ball that it took Durant out of the rest of the game in a way.

It is still amazing how Durant can score one-on-one against LeBron so much. You just never expect anyone to do it that way on LeBron and it just goes to show how talented Durant is.

LeBron again had a few transition buckets where the Thunder didn’t pick him up quickly enough down the floor. LeBron does such a good job of taking what’s given to him and it resulted in a lot of easy buckets for him in Game 3 since the Thunder weren’t playing their best.

Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE

Russell Westbrook – 24.3 PPG, 7.3 APG, 7.0 RPG, .412 FG%, .214 3PT%, .778 FT%

Westbrook isn’t going to get the same blame for the Thunder losing Game 2 but he didn’t even play any better.

One of the things that will stick out from Game 3 is Scott Brooks taking Westbrook out at the end of the third and closing the quarter without Westbrook or Durant.

It’s understandable taking Durant out because he had four fouls but that should have meant Westbrook was staying in. The Heat closed out the third 15-3 with the two on the bench and that may very well have lost OKC the game.

Westbrook didn’t end up shooting as much as he did in the first two games and that was unfortunate because the Thunder really could have used him stepping up and having a 30-point game.

Westbrook continues to struggle finishing at the rim and making the best decisions when he is penetrating. He again missed his first three shots of the game which he has done in each game so far in the series.

The Thunder are always at their best when he is aggressive and taking 20-plus shots. He and Durant were both under 20 attempts in Game 3 and it’s hard to imagine them beating the Heat when that is the case.

Derick E. Hingle-US PRESSWIRE

Dwyane Wade – 22.7 PPG, 6.7 APG, 5.7 RPG, .410 FG%, .000 3PT%, .818 FT%

Wade was very aggressively trying to get his shot in Game 3. He took 22 shots and 11 free throws and didn’t hit a high percentage from the field.

It doesn’t feel like he is a huge concern for the Thunder to contain. He doesn’t feel like the same Wade that could go for 40 on any given night like the past.

Westbrook actually did a pretty good job defending him too which is a good sign for the Thunder going forward in the series.

Wade was most effective as a passer in the pick-and-rolls in the game. He did an excellent job finding the roller to the basket a ton and that really hurt the Thunder.

The Thunder seemed to be playing for the pick-and-pop instead of the roll and the Heat took advantage. We’ll see if the Thunder adjust to this as the series goes on.

Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE

James Harden – 11.7 PPG, 3.7 APG, 3.3 RPG, .407 FG%, .333 3PT%, .714 FT%

We’ve seen three games of the NBA Finals and we’re still waiting for James Harden to show up. Harden is far from himself so far against the Heat and that is making things very difficult for the Thunder.

It feels like he hasn’t been able to find where he fits in yet in the series. If he figures it out and starts being himself again it will be great news for the Thunder.

It’s all about getting him going early in the shot clock before the defense is set. He hasn’t gotten a lot of transition opportunities either in the series and that could also help him get going.

Harden has had to guard LeBron a lot in the past two games as well which makes him work that much harder on defense which could also be contributing to his offensive struggles.

He has shown in these playoffs the ability to take over games and the Thunder could really use a game or two like that soon from him.

Derick E. Hingle-US PRESSWIRE

Chris Bosh – 12.0 PPG, 10.3 RPG, .361 FG%, .250 3PT%, .818 FT%

Bosh has been great for the Heat in these past two games. The energy he has played with and relentless effort getting to loose balls and rebounds has been crucial in the Heat winning.

In Game 3, Bosh was used rolling to the rim a lot more in the pick-and-rolls than just popping and the Thunder had a hard time stopping it.

Bosh will continue to be an important X-factor for the Heat and while at home should produce decently.

The Bigs

One of the biggest issues of this series so far has been the substitution patterns for the Thunder. They are sticking with their main starting five featuring Kendrick Perkins and Serge Ibaka and they continually are getting off to slow starts.

Perkins played well for him in Game 3 and it resulted in him getting 34 minutes while Ibaka played just 22 and sat out the entire fourth.

The Thunder need Ibaka to be their fourth best player to win a title and he’s not that while on the bench in a fourth quarter.

Nick Collison has also lessened his impact on the series since Game 1. He got into foul trouble in Game 3 and needs to avoid that a little more as the series goes on.

The Heat essentially aren’t playing any bigs other than Bosh and Udonis Haslem and it has been working for them. This means the Thunder have an advantage on the offensive glass that they aren’t really taking advantage of.

Derick E. Hingle-US PRESSWIRE

Spot-up shooters

Shane Battier finally stopped scoring 17 points per game but still had a decent game for Miami in Game 3.

The Thunder clearly made it a point of emphasis to take away the spot-up shooters in Game 3 and it probably contributed to them giving up so many shots inside the paint.

The Heat are making the Thunder scramble to adjust thanks to great outside shooting and it’s really helping them win this series right now.

Miami shot poorly overall from the outside in Game 3 and that’s part of why they didn’t blow the Thunder out.

OKC is getting some production from Derek Fisher as a spot-up shooter but that’s about it. You can count on Fisher to take and sometimes make the big shot but his minutes should be lessened.

Scott Brooks loves playing him big minutes especially when he hits a shot or two. Fisher should be taken out soon after making a few shots because you know once he’s done that, he’ll start missing. It’s not like he’s going to go off for 20 points while you ride the hot hand.

Prediction

This is a must-win for the Thunder while not so much for the Heat. In these playoffs, the Thunder have always come through in these situations while the Heat have not.

Only twice has the home team in the NBA Finals since 1985 won Games 3, 4 and 5. The Thunder are hardly a candidate for a team to be victim to that.

Game 4 is the one the Thunder will win. This series has seven games written all over it and OKC tying the series at 2-2 is the next step in making that happen.

The Thunder did not play very well in Game 3 and it could give the Heat some false confidence with how they played being enough to give them another win.

The Thunder should play better and if they do, the Heat might not know what hit them.

Mark D. Smith-US PRESSWIRE

The Oklahoma City Thunder have a decision to make, or at least they should. Their starting lineup has not gotten off to good starts in the first two games of the NBA Finals.

The Thunder fell behind 20-10 in the first quarter of Game 1 and 18-2 in the first quarter of Game 2.

Should the Thunder change their starting lineup? Absolutely. Will they? Nope.

“My mind is not racing that I’m going to throw everything out that we’ve worked on all year that we’ve got to this point with,” head coach Scott Brooks said. “I just want to do things better, and I think that’s always been our battle cry. Every time we have a tough stretch of the season, just get back to what we do and let’s just do it better, and I think that’s what we’re going to do into (Sunday) night’s game.”

Kendrick Perkins is the problem with their starting lineup. He has basically done nothing for the Thunder so far in this series. It’s just not a good matchup for him.

Perkins does three things well on a basketball court: defend the post, set screens and be annoyingly physical. That’s it. He’s been unable make an impact doing those things so far against the Heat and instead has been exploited by the Miami starting five.

Many are calling for the Thunder to change their starting lineup to a smaller one to match the Heat. This would mean inserting James Harden for Perkins and sliding Kevin Durant down to the four.

Starting Harden would not be the answer either. It might help at the beginning of the game but bringing Harden off the bench is one of the Thunder’s greatest strengths.

Nick Collison would make a much better option starting for the Thunder. Collison has the best plus-minus of any Thunder player so far in this series while playing less than 20 minutes per game.

Collison is versatile enough too to match up with Shane Battier spotting up or defend Chris Bosh in the pick-and-roll. He and Serge Ibaka are also the Thunder’s two best offensive rebounders so they’d still be able to hopefully take advantage of that as well.

“When we don’t play well, we usually don’t point to lineups, play-calling, things like that,” Collison said. “Usually it’s because of our effort or our focus. We just watched film of the first quarter (in Game 2), and the mistakes we made had nothing to do with lineups or anything else. It was between our ears and how mentally focused we need to play better. Those are the things we worry about more.”

Starting Collison is an extremely necessary move for the Thunder. If they don’t, and they probably won’t, they will continue to struggle at the start of games which isn’t ok at all.

It almost feels like it would be better for the Thunder to get out to another horrible start in Game 3 just so that Brooks has no choice but to change the starters for the rest of the series.

Championship chances don’t come around every year, even for a team as young as the Thunder you never know when you’ll be back. The time is now to adjust and if the Thunder don’t, they will be wasting a prime chance at a title.

The Thunder took Game 1 then fell in too big a hole in Game 2 to complete the comeback. Slow starts have been a big issue for the Thunder so far in this series and Miami’s small starting lineups are a big reason why they’ve jumped out to early leads.

The Thunder have actually been pretty impressive in that they’ve even been able to come back against the Heat who are such a good team playing with the lead. Being at home aided in that ability and the Thunder will not have that luxury for the next three games.

The winner of Game 3 in 1-1 NBA Finals series go on to win the series 85 percent of the time. So this is an important game and both teams know it.

Let’s start with …

Jerome Miron-US PRESSWIRE

Kevin Durant – 34.0 PPG, 2.5 APG, 5.5 RPG, .571 FG%, .444 3PT%, .800 FT%

Durant has played great so far for the Thunder, especially in the fourth quarters. He scored 17 then 16 points in each fourth quarter which is the most by any player in the first two games of the Finals since the merger.

Durant was great all-around in Game 1 defending LeBron well also but in Game 2 took a step back in that department. Too often he and the Thunder defense gave LeBron space in semi-transition looks basically enticing LeBron to drive.

Durant will likely continue to still guard LeBron a lot and will have to be more locked in than he was in Game 2 if he’s going to do a good job.

In the first half of Game 2, Durant got into foul trouble and only scored six points. The Thunder are going to need a lot more from him on the road if they’re going to win any more games. The Thunder starting lineup has been atrocious on offense and if they don’t change it, Durant is the only one who can cure it on his own.

Durant is getting his 34 points per game on 21 shots per game. A lot of people would like to see him shoot more.

The real key would be if Durant could get to the line a little more and put more pressure on the Heat defense. He is attempting just 7.5 free throws per game and only averaging 2.5 assists per game. If both of those numbers go up, the Thunder will start winning with more ease.

Jim Young/Pool Photo via US PRESSWIRE

LeBron James – 31.0 PPG, 4.5 APG, 8.5 RPG, .457 FG%, .200 3PT%, .905 FT%

LeBron has quietly gotten his so far in these Finals and maybe that is a good thing. The spotlight is coming off him some and more towards the Thunder for their struggles.

Meanwhile, LeBron is getting his 31-9-5 and the Heat successfully stole a game on the road already in this series. What more do you want? Maybe we don’t need to want more but the Heat might need more at some point and LeBron will have to be ready to step up.

It does feel like LeBron could explode a little more in this matchup. It would come by getting to the line a ton kind of like what he did in Game 2 going 12-for-12 from the stripe.

The Heat have gotten great production from their role players so far on the road in this series, something that usually is reserved for home games. If that production drops at all, eyes will shift to LeBron to pick up the slack.

The Heat are at their best right now with LeBron doing everything for them and he’s been able to stick to his all-around attack so far in the series. He hasn’t had to completely focus on a one-on-one matchup with Durant and that is a good thing.

The Heat would like to avoid that and let LeBron keep doing his thing where he does a little bit of everything. That will require players like Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh to play like they did in Game 2 though.

Derick E. Hingle-US PRESSWIRE

Russell Westbrook – 27.0 PPG, 9.0 APG, 8.0 RPG, .400 FG%, .200 FT%, .750 FT%

So the Thunder lose a game and guess who gets the heat? Of course it’s Westbrook.

While looking at his 27-9-8 line is extremely impressive, Westbrook does have some areas where he can improve and that’s part of being as talented as he is. We’re not comparing your numbers against NBA history. We’re looking at them within the series you are playing in.

Westbrook can and may need to have a gigantic series for the Thunder to win. We have pretty much seen that the Heat can’t matchup with his athleticism so now it’s just up to Westbrook to figure out the best way to hurt the Heat. Two days off from Game 2 should help him.

He is attempting four more shots per game than Durant so far and has even taken more free throws. It would be nice if the Thunder could find a balance where Durant gets more shots but that’s not what this team has been about all year.

Westbrook will continue in this matchup to get a lot of shot attempts and he just needs to start making a few more of them. After two games, he should have a better feel for what works and what doesn’t. The Heat will always be on their heels when covering him and in the long run, that has to be a good thing for the Thunder.

Best case scenario for the Thunder would actually be Westbrook going off while Durant remains an efficient scorer. Westbrook really has the potential for a 40-point game or two in this series and he’s the kind of guy with an attitude made for an “Eff-you” road game.

As long as he starts being more efficient than 40-20-75, the Thunder should be in good shape.

Mark D. Smith-US PRESSWIRE

Dwyane Wade – 21.5 PPG, 6.5 APG, 5.0 RPG, .436 FG%, .000 3PT%, .818 FT%

Wade was bad in Game 1 then much better in Game 2. His great start was integral for the Heat winning.

The good news for the Thunder is that they’ve contained him pretty well in the first two games. The bad news is that if he has one of those Wade games where he really goes off, the Thunder might not be able to overcome it.

Like a lot of players, when Wade is hitting his jump shot, he becomes really tough to defend. It feels like he can get his jumper any time too so it’s kind of up to him.

The Thunder really just need to play disciplined defense against him and not go for his shot fakes. This is a focus thing that is harder on the road and the whistles are more likely to go Wade’s way in South Beach.

LeBron asked for Wade’s help in Game 2 and got it. If he’s expecting it for the rest of the series and the Thunder can contain him, they can win a game or two in Miami.

Once again, LeBron-Durant is the key matchup for headlines but the winner of Wade-Westbrook has won each game so far this series.

Mark D. Smith-US PRESSWIRE

James Harden – 13.0 PPG, 2.5 APG, 2.0 RPG, .529 FG%, .600 3PT%, .714 FT%

Harden has been pretty quiet so far in this series. His 5-point Game 1 where he got in foul trouble was avoided because of a great effort from Thabo Sefolosha.

Harden came in Game 2 and brought the Thunder back but disappeared some in the second half.

Harden is always the key for the Thunder becoming great and he is the one player of their Big Three with the biggest room for improvement from his current Finals numbers to his usual averages.

We knew the Heat would defend him better than anyone yet, but Harden improved in Game 2 and that is a good sign. The same thing happened for him in the San Antonio series, having a bad Game 1 then figuring them out and bouncing back.

Harden needs to do the same against the Heat. The role players will fade away even more than they have on the road and the Thunder Big Three will have to carry the load even more than usual.

When Harden gets it rolling, he’s like a snowball rolling down a hill. Not even the Heat will be able to stop him. The two games off to watch film are something that Harden can really benefit from.

He has been shooting the ball well and that is great, but it’s when he’s getting to the line that he makes the Thunder the best possible team they can be. He’s averaging just 3.5 free throw attempts per game in the series and he’s capable of going double-digits any night.

He has to attack earlier to hurt this Heat defense. When they are set up, it’s very hard to get into the lane against them. But if Harden can get going early in the shot clock and get into the paint easier, his game could really explode especially because the Heat don’t have any great shot blockers.

Jeff Robertson/Pool Photo via US PRESSWIRE

Chris Bosh – 13.0 PPG, 10.0 RPG, .417 FG%, .250 3PT%, .714 FT%

Bosh came off the bench in Game 1 then started Game 2. Consider the Thunder lucky he didn’t start both.

The Heat are obviously better when he starts and he had a pretty big Game 2 with 16 points and 15 rebounds. The big rebound total was more from the Thunder missing a ton than him being dominant but nonetheless, he is by far the Heat’s best big man and played well.

The Thunder shouldn’t have to worry too much about Bosh going off or anything. They can defend him well enough but they just can’t allow him anything easy. If he stays on the perimeter shooting jump shots and isn’t getting to the line, the Thunder have to live with that.

Whoever gets the better of Harden-Bosh, might start to really become a big difference maker here in Miami. The Thunder desperately need Harden to play much better than Bosh to win games. If Bosh is putting up better numbers than Harden, the Thunder probably won’t be winning.

Derick E. Hingle-US PRESSWIRE

The Bigs

The Heat have done a great job making “The Bigs” become less of a factor in this series. If they weren’t playing so many small lineups and starting Joel Anthony or Ronny Turiaf alongside Bosh, the Thunder would probably be up 2-0 in this series.

The lineup with Serge Ibaka and Kendrick Perkins for OKC is not working out. The floor spacing isn’t good enough and they aren’t capitalizing on their ability to get offensive rebounds.

Scott Brooks will likely not change his starting lineup unless it becomes extremely obvious that he must after Game 3, which means the Thunder will have to survive when their starters are out there. That doesn’t sound good does it?

This puts more pressure on Ibaka making his jump shot. That is really the only thing that is consistently open against the Heat when the starters are in. He needs to either be making that shot or attacking the glass on offense, he can’t be doing neither.

Nick Collison is one of the keys for Oklahoma City. The more minutes he gets, the better for them. He played 21 minutes in Game 1, scored eight points to go with 10 rebounds (5 offensive). In Game 2, he played just 15 minutes, didn’t score and had just three rebounds.

If Collison and Perkins switched their minutes, the Thunder won’t lose any more in this series. It’s that simple.

Jerome Miron-US PRESSWIRE

Spot-up shooters

Shane Battier is averaging 17 points per game in this series and shooting .692 percent from the 3-point line. Those numbers have to go down somewhat but it’s not as if he hasn’t earned those points by spacing the floor great and getting wide open looks.

The problem is it was supposed to be in Miami when Battier had those games, not in Oklahoma City. Even if he’s not 17 PPG for the rest of this series, he could still be a big factor for the Heat if he keeps playing this way.

The more the Thunder have to think about Battier, the worse. Taking him out of the game starts on offense, making more shots and not giving up so many transition opportunities for the Heat where they can take advantage of switches on defense.

The Thunder could also use more from Thabo Sefolosha and Derek Fisher in terms of making some shots. They were 2-for-10 and 1-for-7 from three combined in Game 2. That’s no help.

Anything they give the Thunder is icing especially on the road and the Thunder may need them to win one or two of these next three.

Prediction

If there was ever a game to pick against the Thunder in this series, this one kind of seems like it. The Heat did their job winning one of the first two and now get to go back home where they should play a little better and the Thunder could be worse.

The Thunder have been one of the most resilient teams in the NBA this season and it’s not easy to beat them twice in a row. They are the more talented team too and if they correct a few of the things they did wrong, should be able to win no matter where the game is played.

The one thing that isn’t happening tonight is the Thunder aren’t blowing the Heat out. You could see the Heat maybe running away with this game or it will be a very close one. If the Thunder keep it close, they have the best fourth quarter player in the league and they won’t be disappointed having to live with what he does late.

The game will tip at 8 p.m. EST on ABC. The Miami fans will show up at 9 p.m. EST.

Mark D. Smith-US PRESSWIRE

The Thunder and Heat split the first two games of the NBA Finals in Oklahoma City and now the series goes to Miami for three straight games.

It’s disappointing from a Thunder perspective to lose one at home but the series is by no means over. They need to beware though because they will go 10 days between playing at home if the series goes to a Game 6. Momentum and the entire feel of a series can change in that amount of time especially with all of the games on the road.

The Thunder had the same problem in Games 1 and 2 getting off to slow starts against the Heat. The Heat are starting a small lineup with LeBron James at the four and it has helped them spread the floor to get open 3-point shooters and also render Kendrick Perkins useless.

Perkins was matched up with Chris Bosh to start Game 2 at center which isn’t a great matchup for him. Perkins’ value comes in defending the post, setting screens and annoying opponents with physical contact that can help get some offensive rebounds.

Perkins played 20 minutes in Game 2 and scored four points to go with eight rebounds, four of which were offensive. The Thunder were minus-16 in those 20 minutes.

It seems there is no place for Perkins in this series and the Thunder should seriously consider removing him from the starting lineup, although that will probably not happen.

If Perkins continues to start, the Thunder will likely continue to deal with slow starts from their offense and possible defense too. These are holes you never want to be in, especially on the road against the best front-running team in the league.

Russell Westbrook has been the Thunder player most noticeable in these slow starts as well. Westbrook has gone just 5-for-20 from the field in the first halves of Games 1 and 2 and in both games missed at least his first four shots.

Westbrook plays his best in space and Perkins minimizes that for the Thunder offense. That’s why we’ve seen Westbrook struggling to get clean looks and appear to be forcing a lot.

The other problem for the Thunder early on is the offensive sets they run. They aren’t exactly the same sets they run all game.

The most common one is when they set a cross screen to try and get Kevin Durant a post-up. With LeBron guarding him in Game 2, they never successfully got this look from this set and it led to Westbrook having to create with nothing in front of him a few times.

LeBron can obviously out-physical Durant some and the other Heat defenders can help a ton against this set especially when Perkins is in and the floor spacing is worse.

Getting your best player post touches early in the first quarter is a common thing for a lot of teams but given the Thunder’s matchup with the Heat, it isn’t a great idea.

If Perkins continues to start, the best bet for the Thunder will be getting either Westbrook or Durant on the move and in pick-and-rolls with Serge Ibaka.

The Thunder often run a version of the Spurs’ weak set that does just this for Westbrook. They haven’t been doing it enough early in the game with this lineup but it may be one of the only sets that could be effective to start out the game and might get Westbrook into some rhythm.

It is frustrating watching this series so far for the Thunder. It was great that they were able to win Game 1 and almost came back in Game 2 but it doesn’t have to be this way. Perkins simply needs to be benched and it doesn’t even have to be for James Harden.

If the Thunder used Nick Collison instead of Perkins, it would make a world of difference. Collison would have no trouble matching up with Shane Battier on defense and always makes the Thunder defense better with his great understanding of rotations.

It’s ok to make drastic starting lineup changes in the NBA Finals too. The Dallas Mavericks did it last year inserting J.J. Barea for DeShawn Stevenson in the middle of the series and it became a very crucial decision that helped them beat the Heat.

One of the only good things about losing a game in a series is that you have the luxury of being able to adjust for the next game and possible catch your opponent back on their heels.

The winner of Game 3 in NBA Finals tied 1-1 goes on to win the series 85 percent of the time. It may be now or never for the Thunder to adjust. Another slow start could cost them a championship.

Bosh played 34 minutes off the bench in Game 1 and scored 10 points to go with five rebounds.

“How we use Chris might be a little bit more like how we used him during the regular season,” Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra said.

Bosh will replace Udonis Haslem and start at center which means the Heat will remain with their small starting lineup consisting of Shane Battier and LeBron James at the forward positions.

That small lineup allowed the Heat a lot of open spot-up looks in Game 1 which helped them get out to an early lead.

Bosh has not been exactly the same since returning from injury in the Boston series. He’s been more of a spot-up shooter with less offense running through him.

The Heat are going to need him to return to All-Star form if they’re going to have a chance at beating the Thunder.

Kendrick Perkins will likely start out on Bosh with Serge Ibaka guarding Battier.

The Thunder did not take advantage much of their size advantage in Game 1 and had just two offensive rebounds in the first half.

The Thunder started hitting the glass when Nick Collison checked in. Collison had 10 rebounds in the game with five of them coming on the offensive side.

The Thunder might match up better with the Heat starters starting Collison instead of Perkins but that will unlikely not happen.

The only real way Perkins can affect the game against the Heat starters is by hitting the glass and if he doesn’t then the Heat may have the upper hand.

The Thunder won what was an extremely important game for them. Being in their first NBA Finals you expected them to come out and maybe not play their best with all of the excitement.

That’s kind of what happened with the Heat getting out to an early lead too.

In the second half the Thunder really got their act together led by their two stars: Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook.

Let’s start with…

Derick E. Hingle-US PRESSWIRE

Kevin Durant

All eyes in the NBA Finals are going to be on Kevin Durant and LeBron James. In Game 1, Durant got the best of LeBron as the Thunder win.

Durant guarded LeBron for most of the first three quarters and did a nice job on him.

Durant carried the Thunder on offense to start the game and then finished strong for them with 17 points in the fourth quarter.

Durant went 12-for-20 in the game and got his points pretty easily. LeBron didn’t guard him much in the game either which may have contributed to that some.

The Thunder needed that kind of game from Durant to win Game 1 and they will hope for him to get more help the rest of the series.

Durant does not need to make a lot of adjustments for Game 2. It would be nice if he could continue shooting the ball this well.

Durant can expect better defense from the Heat in Game 2 and expect more pressure. He turned the ball over only twice in Game 1 and will need to keep that number low if the Thunder are going to keep winning games.

Derick E. Hingle-US PRESSWIRE

LeBron James

LeBron wasn’t bad in Game 1 for Miami scoring 30 points to go with nine rebounds and four assists. Durant was just better.

While Durant scored 17 in the fourth, LeBron only scored seven points.

LeBron is going to have to outplay Durant by a significant margin for the Heat to ever beat the Thunder. That’s going to start with LeBron defending Durant more in Game 2.

LeBron started out defending Kendrick Perkins in Game 1 with Shane Battier matched up with Durant. The Heat need LeBron to do a lot of things for them on defense but it looks like now the most important thing will be guarding Durant more.

LeBron was very disruptive against the Thunder pick-and-rolls in Game 1 and if he is guarding Durant more in Game 2, the Heat will sacrifice that defense some.

This should open up more for Russell Westbrook and James Harden to attack and the Thunder need to be ready to take advantage of it.

Offensively, LeBron will simply need to continue scoring 30 or more every game. He is capable of it but it will be interesting to see if defending Durant more tires him out any on the offensive end.

LeBron shot nine free throws in Game 1 so the aggressiveness was there somewhat. He still appears to only attack when he has a definitive advantage and never forces things which is good in some ways but it often feels like he should try and force more.

Derick E. Hingle-US PRESSWIRE

Russell Westbrook

Westbrook was maybe the biggest reason why the Thunder won Game 1. Durant was great but the help he got from Westbrook was more important.

Westbrook scored 27 points with 18 coming in the second half after he got out to a slow shooting start. Westbrook also dished out 11 assists which is a fantastic number for him.

If Westbrook can keep putting up better numbers than Wade then the Thunder should keep winning. He looked very confident in the second half and needs to carry that over to Game 2.

Dwyane Wade

Wade needs to give the Heat a lot more to beat the Thunder. He scored just 19 points in Game 1 on 19 shots. That wasn’t even close to enough.

LeBron has said that he knows Wade still has some great games left in him and the Heat could sure use one on the road for Game 2 tonight.

Wade didn’t get any easy buckets in Game 1 and shot a lot of jumpers instead. He should come out more in attack mode for Game 2 and if he is getting calls, it will be huge for Miami.

Jerome Miron-US PRESSWIRE

James Harden

Harden only scored five points in Game 1 and it kind of went unnoticed because the Thunder still won. He’s definitely going to need more than five for the Thunder to keep winning games in this series.

There wasn’t a lot for Harden to work with in the pick-and-rolls in Game 1 and he will need to adjust his plan of attack tonight. The Heat try and take the ball out of Harden’s hands in the pick-and-roll and it worked well in Game 1.

Harden needs to try and attack earlier in the shot clock and in transition to get going in this series. Harden got off to a similar slow start in the Spurs series and adjusted fine after Game 1. He should do the same against the Heat.

Chris Bosh

Bosh didn’t start Game 1 and played 34 minutes and scored 10 points to go with five boards. It wasn’t nearly enough for the Heat to win.

It is still uncertain whether he will start Game 2 or not but either way he needs to make a much larger impact if the Heat are going to win.

Bosh seems to only give the Heat spot-up shooting right now and he needs to find other ways to score and be effective.

His real value needs to come on defense. The Thunder scored 56 points in the paint in Game 1 and with Joel Anthony getting little run, Bosh is the only real rim protector for the Heat and needs to do a better job tonight.

Jerome Miron-US PRESSWIRE

The Bigs

The Thunder still have a big advantage in this department in the series even though they didn’t take advantage too much of it in Game 1.

The Thunder had 10 offensive rebounds in Game 1 but are capable of much more with the Heat playing so many small lineups.

Nick Collison had a great first game with eight points and 10 rebounds (five offensive) and the more minutes he gets, the better for OKC.

Perkins does not seem to have much effect against the Heat because he struggles against the pick-and-roll on defense and it allowed for a lot of open threes for Miami.

Serge Ibaka didn’t block a shot for the first time in 45 games for the Thunder. He played well on offense though attacking the rim especially and scored 10 points.

Other than Bosh, Haslem was the only real big to play for Miami and didn’t do much. If somehow he can have a solid night, the Thunder could be in trouble because they should dominate these positions.

Mark D. Smith-US PRESSWIRE

Spot-up shooters

Miami started out Game 1 great with the production of their spot-up shooters. Battier in particular made his first three 3-pointers in the game and finished with four on the night and 17 points.

The Thunder struggled with Perkins on the floor to get out on Miami’s shooters. The Heat did a nice job too of finding them in semi-transition opportunities after Thunder misses.

Derek Fisher and Thabo Sefolosha stepped up nicely for the Thunder when they needed them. They combined for 15 points.

Sefolosha was key on defense guarding LeBron for most of the fourth and containing him nicely. It will be interesting to see if Sefolosha guards LeBron more tonight.

The Thunder always feel like they’re better with Sefolosha closing out games which will be the case if he guards LeBron in the fourth again.

The best Thunder lineup is usually Westbrook-Harden-Thabo-Durant-Ibaka/Collison. They will get the chance to play this lineup a lot with the Heat going small so much.

Prediction

Before the series started, I predicted the Thunder would win the first two games with Game 1 being the toughest. They overcame a halftime deficit to win that one and I think they have an easier time winning tonight.

At home, it’s always hard to imagine the Thunder losing especially because they have been able to come back so many times.

They have blown out a team at least once in each series this year in the playoffs and I think Game 2 could be one of those games for them.

This game is so important too because all the Heat really have to do is win once on the road to get home court advantage and with the next three games being in Miami, the Thunder can’t afford to lose any momentum.

Players other than Durant will need to play well for the Thunder to win and I think they will. We shouldn’t see another slow start for the Thunder and expect a better performance from Harden and the bigs offensive rebounding.

Miami’s best chances will be 40-plus point nights from either LeBron or Wade. It could happen but it seems less likely than the Thunder playing a more complete game.

Even with a win tonight and going up 2-0, the Thunder’s work will be far from over.

Be sure to head to FanSidedRadio.com to listen to more of The John Ackeren Show and the rest of the FanSided Radio Network.

You can also follow The John Ackeren Show on Podomatic.

Follow FanSided Radio on Twitter too for all of the latest episodes around the FanSided Network.

The Thunder and the Heat are the matchup the fans wanted. They are the two most talented teams each with one of the two most talented players in the league.

There are a ton of matchups to look at in this series and ton of important factors that will affect who wins.

Let’s start with…

Kevin Jairaj-US PRESSWIRE

Kevin Durant

Kevin Durant and LeBron James are the headline of this series. They are the two best players in the NBA and will be matched up for most of the series. It’s not all about which one is better though.

LeBron is better overall than Durant but Durant has the potential to outplay LeBron on any given night. And on those nights, the Thunder should win.

In the regular season, that’s exactly what happened. Durant outplayed LeBron in the first meeting and the Thunder won 103-87 at home then LeBron outplayed Durant the next time in Miami and the Heat won 98-93.

Durant’s first challenge will be scoring efficiently with LeBron guarding him. LeBron has essentially turned into the best defensive player in the NBA whose strength and power could bother Durant.

Durant needs to not be hesitant on his catch-and-shoot opportunities which should be plenty with the way Miami plays defense. Durant is the best in the league at those kinds of shots and taking them usually helps him find his rhythm.

Durant can get in trouble with LeBron on him when he tries to drive. LeBron will be physical with him and Durant isn’t going to get a ton of calls with LeBron on him. Durant commits most of his turnovers on drives and when he does against Miami, it will quickly turn into points at the other end.

Durant will need to continue with his improved passing especially in the pick-and-roll. Miami is going to hedge hard and double on the pick-and-roll ball handler and it will be crucial for Durant to make the smart pass when that happens and he doesn’t have an opportunity to look for his shot.

On defense, Durant has his work cut out for him…

Robert Mayer-US PRESSWIRE

LeBron James

LeBron won his third MVP this season and has been playing the best basketball of his life of late. He averaged 33.6 points, 11.0 rebounds and 3.9 assists while shooting .527 percent from the field in the Eastern Conference Finals against Boston.

LeBron is going to need numbers close to that for Miami to beat the Thunder but it won’t be as easy for him. Durant is an underrated defender when it comes to matching up with LeBron. He can bother him with his length and doesn’t have to play as close on him.

The goal for the Thunder will be to make LeBron a jump shooter. They will play him straight up too which will make it harder for LeBron to have his big assist nights which usually come when he sees a lot of doubles.

If LeBron gets out on the break a ton and gets easy baskets that way, it will spell trouble for the Thunder. All easy baskets for LeBron need to be limited by Oklahoma City for them to win. Kendrick Perkins and Nick Collison know this and will be fouling hard every chance they get when LeBron is open inside.

For Miami to beat the Thunder, LeBron has to put him a stat line close to 32-10-6. Anything less and the Thunder should have the advantage.

LeBron does everything for this Heat team and while that is impressive, it will be harder for him to do so in the Finals when he is matched up with Durant. So much of LeBron’s energy will be spent on stopping Durant or scoring on Durant that it could make his overall impact less.

Kevin Jairaj-US PRESSWIRE

Russell Westbrook

The Thunder were able to beat the Spurs in six games with Westbrook not being the scorer he was all season long. Westbrook averaged 23.6 points per game in the regular season but just 18.2 in the Western Conference Finals. Westbrook did become more of a point guard against the Spurs averaging 7.3 assists per game.

With Mario Chalmers matched up with him, Westbrook will have to assume more of a scorer’s mentality against the Heat. He is at his best aggressively looking for his midrange pull-up jump shot and he should be able to get that shot a lot when Chalmers is on him.

If Westbrook can start hitting that shot, it will open up the rest of his game and likely force Dwyane Wade to start covering him. Wade did a nice job on Westbrook in the regular season but if he has to expend energy on defense, it will take away from his offensive production.

Turnovers are still probably the biggest concern with Westbrook though. While he has improved in this department, he is still capable of big turnover games when he becomes frustrated. Miami is the wrong team to do that against so staying under control and taking good, calculated shots will be extremely important for Westbrook.

Robert Mayer-US PRESSWIRE

Dwyane Wade

While LeBron has been on a tear this season and in the playoffs, Wade has had a drop in his production. Wade averaged 21.4 points per game in the Boston series and shot just .444 percent from the field.

Oklahoma City has a much better cast of defenders to throw at Wade than Boston did. Things will become more difficult for him and if he has a bad series, Miami may have no chance.

There is a lot of talk surrounding the LeBron-Durant matchup but it’s really Wade vs. Westbrook that may be more important. If Westbrook has better numbers than Wade, can you really imagine the Heat winning the series?

Wade has improved his post game this season and that’s where he could really hurt the Thunder. If Westbrook or James Harden is forced to try and handle Wade in the post, it will be really tough on the entire Thunder defense.

Mark D. Smith-US PRESSWIRE

James Harden

The Beard has taken the next step toward stardom as the Thunder have been taking the next steps toward becoming a champion. Harden has increased his output in the playoffs too and has not shied away from the big moment when OKC has called on him.

Harden is always important for the Thunder and their second unit and that won’t change in this series. In the regular season, Shane Battier often guarded Harden and did a very good job on him, reading his moves and anticipating passes and getting deflections. If Battier draws the assignment of Harden, expect things to be difficult for him.

Harden should be able to figure it out though and the further this series goes on, the better he will get. That’s what we saw against the Spurs. Harden attempted zero free throws in Game 1 of that series then figured out their defense, adjusted and started getting back to the line.

One area where Harden can struggle is on defense. We saw him have his troubles against Kobe Bryant two series ago and in crunch time, he may have to guard Wade some. Wade can hurt Harden with his back to the basket in a similar way that Kobe did and that may be a tough thing for the Thunder to overcome at times.

Robert Mayer-US PRESSWIRE

Chris Bosh

Bosh got injured in Game 1 of Miami’s series with Indiana and didn’t return until Game 5 against Boston. He played great in the final two games of that series and was a big reason as to why the Heat won.

If Bosh isn’t 100 percent, the Heat will have a near impossible time beating the Thunder in the Finals. Bosh needs to be hitting his spot-up jumpers which will pull Serge Ibaka away from protecting the paint and he also needs to be active on the boards.

Bosh is also going to be the Heat’s last line of defense a lot of times as Miami will play small a lot in this series. If Bosh is unable to make it hard on Durant, Westbrook and Harden to attack the rim, Miami will be in trouble.

The Bigs

The Thunder have a big advantage against Miami in how physical their big men are. Perkins and Ibaka will look to bang and crash the glass at will against a slim Miami frontline. If they can help the Thunder produce double-digit offensive rebound games, it will be a big advantage for the Thunder.

Ibaka and Perkins will also have a lot of opportunities to score like they did in Game 4 against the Spurs. Miami will want to take the ball out of the hands of the pick-and-roll ball handler which will open up lanes for Ibaka and Perkins. If they are active and look to score they could play a huge factor in the series.

Kevin Jairaj-US PRESSWIRE

Spot-up shooters

The spot-up shooters from both teams could swing a game or two in this series. Miami relies on spot-up shooting much more than Oklahoma City and will definitely have to hit their open threes to win games.

The Thunder are very used to defending spot-up shooting after playing six games against the Spurs so they should be able to do a decent job against Miami in this department.

Derek Fisher is the X-factor in terms of a spot-up shooter for the Thunder. We know Scott Brooks will play him crunch time minutes and the opportunities will be there for him to hit big shots, which he’s done before.

Prediction

This series is going to be a close one. Both teams are very good with stars on the roster and neither should get blown out in any way.

Home court advantage will be huge for the Thunder. It is hard to imagine them losing a game at home but with the Finals and its 2-3-2 format, there will be a lot of pressure for the Thunder to win both of the first two games.

Miami could be drained from the Boston series but the Thunder have never been to the Finals before so we might see some overexcitement from them early on in Game 1. You don’t want to get behind the Heat because they are the best team in the NBA at playing with a lead, although the Thunder can come back on anyone behind their home crowd.

I think the Thunder win the first two at home then Miami comes back to tie the series 2-2. I think the Thunder pull out Game 5 on the road then Miami hands Oklahoma City their first home loss of the playoffs in Game 6.

That will set up the ever epic Game 7 in Oklahoma City.

My money’s on the Thunder.

Brendan Maloney-US PRESSWIRE

The Oklahoma City Thunder are down 0-2 to the San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference Finals but get a chance to bounce back in the series at home tonight for Game 3.

The Thunder have always played much better at home than on the road and that has a lot to do with how great their fans and home crowd always is.

The Thunder can use all the help they can get as they are up against the hottest team in the NBA right now. The Spurs haven’t lost since April 11 and have won 20 straight games, tied for the third longest streak in NBA history.

The Spurs traditionally made their championship runs behind a great defense but this year it’s their offense that is leading the way, especially in this series. The Spurs have shot 60.2 percent in the last five quarters of this series and the Thunder haven’t had an answer for them.

OKC showed a small glimpse of how to stop the Spurs’ offense as they furiously tried to come back in the fourth quarter of Game 2. The Thunder played a small lineup switching every pick-and-roll and forced a lot of deflections and tougher shots than the Spurs were used to.

The Thunder will have to bottle up that energy for most of a game if they want to slow down the Spurs’ offense.

But Scott Brooks elected to play Derek Fisher with that small lineup instead of Thabo Sefolosha and it really held the Thunder back. If Fisher continues to get bigger minutes than Sefolosha, the Thunder will continue to not reach their potential in this series.

The other worry is that the Thunder big three played pretty well in Game 2 and they still lost. Kevin Durant scored 31, Russell Westbrook scored 27 and James Harden scored 30. It wasn’t enough.

Durant has put up huge overall numbers but has been quiet in the fourth quarter scoring just a total of 10 points so far in the two games. He’s not LeBron so it’s not that big of a deal though.

Westbrook will be the key in Game 3 though as Durant and Harden have figured out how to be efficient, Westbrook has yet to.

Westbrook will need to be aggressive taking his midrange pull-up jump shot. He hasn’t been hitting it so far in this series and it has turned him into the reckless rim attacker that OKC doesn’t want to see.

The Spurs are defending the pick-and-roll in a way to allow for the midrange pull-up to be available too. Harden adjusted in Game 2 and it resulted in a big game for him. Westbrook needs to do the same to help the Thunder turn the tide in this series.

The Thunder will continue to play small and do so with Serge Ibaka. That was an adjustment in Game 2 that was obvious and worked better than when the Thunder went small in Game 1 with Kendrick Perkins instead of Ibaka.

Perkins is not made for this series. The Thunder traded for him last year to get by the Lakers. Against the Spurs, the Thunder would be better off with Jeff Green since they are playing small ball.

Perkins is the Thunder’s best post defender but the Spurs aren’t even posting up. They’ve taken just seven shots on post-ups so far in this series and made only two.

The Spurs are doing almost nothing but pick-and-rolls and that’s where Perkins struggles because he doesn’t move well laterally. The Spurs have made 23-of-37 shots in the pick-and-roll in the first two games. Ibaka and Nick Collison do a much better job than Perkins defending those plays.

Tony Parker torched the Thunder in the pick-and-roll in Game 2 scoring 34 points on 16-for-21 shooting.

The Thunder have too slowly been making adjustments in this series and that’s part of why they are down 0-2. Coming back home should help but they need a complete game every night to comeback in this series.

The Thunder can’t afford to take a step back on offense and need to play better defensively. It wasn’t going to be easy to beat the Spurs but now it feels closer to impossible.

Soobum-Im-US PRESSWIRE

The Oklahoma City Thunder led the San Antonio Spurs 71-62 after three quarters and looked well on their way toward stealing Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals on the road.

Then the Spurs came back. Their offense came alive and the Thunder’s became stagnant, looking like the isolation-heavy late-game offense they’ve been criticized for in the past.

The Thunder losing the game mostly had to do with allowing 39 points in the fourth quarter. But they weren’t playing their best defensive lineup as Serge Ibaka sat the entire fourth and they still could have won the game or kept it closer had they executed down the stretch themselves.

The Thunder started the fourth small and finished it the same way with Kevin Durant playing the four. They begin the fourth with Fisher-Harden-Cook-Durant-Collison. So basically, no chance against the Spurs’ pick-and-roll as Durant and Harden really don’t enjoy rotating over.

The Thunder begin the quarter trying to get Harden going who was struggling up to this point. They run his pick-and-roll play from the right wing on the first two possessions. He makes a pull-up jumper on the first then on a very similar situation, tries to drive at Tiago Splitter and picks up a charge on the next play.

The Spurs are defending the pick-and-roll by allowing the ball handler to freely come off the pick and sagging into the paint to prevent them getting a good angle to attack the rim. The Thunder did not see this kind of defense against the pick-and-roll in the first round and weren’t sure what to do at times it seemed.

Harden found himself open for a lot of midrange jumpers, a shot he rarely takes. Harden only attempted 1.1 shots per game from between 10-to-23 feet in the regular season. This helped result in Harden pressing and forcing contested layups over prepared bigs.

On the next possession, the Thunder post-up Durant on the left side about 12-feet out. This is the only time they would do this in the quarter. Durant finds Collison cutting in the paint here but Collison misses a tough shot at the rim.

Stephen Jackson was guarding Durant the entire fourth quarter and is getting a lot of credit for the way he defended him. It was a lot like how he defended Dirk Nowitzki back in 2007 when the Warriors knocked of the Mavericks in the first round. He was getting up into him closely and allowing Durant to attempt to drive left.

Durant is much worse driving left when he is looking to attack the rim. He always prefers to drive right to get a layup. When Durant goes left, he is much more efficient going for a pull-up or stepback jump shot.

Russell Westbrook now checks in for Daequan Cook as the Spurs are now within five points.

Westbrook has also been relatively struggling at this point in the game. They run a play where Durant comes up from a downscreen to pick for Westbrook at the top of the key. This usually leaves room for Westbrook to look to attack on this play but Tony Parker defends it well and contests a Westbrook pull-up that he misses.

The Thunder try and get Westbrook going again on the next possession and let him isolate at the top of the key. He misses a wild runner going to his left. Westbrook is always better when able to play on offense under control and look for his pull-up. The Spurs enticed him to attack the rim a lot in Game 1 and he became out of control and inefficient.

The Thunder get a rare second half transition opportunity next but Harden doesn’t take advantage and charges on Gary Neal. Harden didn’t have a ton of room here and it was clear Neal was prepared for Harden to eurostep to his left. He anticipated it to draw the charge. Harden was out of rhythm all game and should have seen to eurostep to his right and would have finished the layup.

On the next possession, Westbrook misses another erratic layup attempt going to his left. The Thunder decide here to try and go back to Harden some in the pick-and-roll.

Harden runs a pick-and-pop with Durant and passes Durant which he almost always does on this play. Harden is pretty much never looking to drive when he runs the pick-and-pop with Durant. He may not like the angles he gets because Durant never really sets a solid screen and just pops.

Durant ends up having to isolate again with Jackson doing a good job of crowding him beyond the 3-point line. Durant tries to clear some space and catches Jackson with an elbow and the foul is called on Durant.

The Thunder do not go to Harden as the ball handler in pick-and-rolls the rest of the game now with 7:41 left and the score tied at 73.

The Thunder try Westbrook getting a pick from Durant at the top of the key twice more over the next three possessions. Westbrook is in driving mode now and the Thunder do end up scoring twice off his passes.

The Thunder then have two possessions where the play turns into a Durant isolation when that wasn’t totally the design of the play. This is when the standing around and lack of ball movement really begins.

Durant isn’t even inefficient when this happens and he got fouled a lot in the quarter which isn’t all bad but it seemed to affect the Thunder offense in that they were now just standing around watching. Westbrook and Harden knew they didn’t have it and were completely deferring to Durant.

The Thunder were forced into nothing but half court offense down the stretch and with Harden not playing well, it became a huge issue. They weren’t getting stops so they weren’t getting fast break opportunities and since they were playing so small, they weren’t getting any offensive rebounds either.

This is when people say the Thunder hurt because they don’t have someone to post-up. It’s not that they don’t have someone, it’s that they don’t go to him in the post. Durant had an advantage over Jackson inside and they only posted him up once. Jackson was doing a nice job on Durant but fouled him four times in the quarter.

The Thunder should have posted up Durant even though he’s not totally comfortable down there yet and that isn’t their identity yet. It was an adjustment that would have countered the way Jackson was defending Durant and could have gotten Durant a few more trips to the line and kept the game within striking distance.

The Thunder did not adjust though in the fourth quarter whether it was posting Durant up or bringing back Ibaka. The adjustments will have to wait for Game 2 and if they don’t come then, this series could end up being a short one for OKC.

Soobum-Im-US PRESSWIRE

The Oklahoma City Thunder led 71-62 after three quarters in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals in San Antonio. They had a great chance to steal one on the road and blew it.

The Spurs outscored the Thunder 39-27 in the fourth as they made a ton of their field goals at the rim.

Serge Ibaka only played 22 minutes in the game and didn’t play at all in the fourth quarter. Scott Brooks decided to go small more than usual and it ended up costing the Thunder the game.

The obvious adjustment as the Spurs were coming back in the fourth was to bring Ibaka back in. When the other team is relentlessly getting shots at the rim, you bring in the best shot blocker in the NBA.

The Thunder defense is much worse when they go small with Kevin Durant at the four. The only reason Brooks likes to go small is that he feels their offense improves with Durant at the four but that wasn’t the case last night either.

The Thunder became stagnant down the stretch as Russell Westbrook and James Harden did not have it going. The offense turned into nothing but isolation for Durant and while he was forced to play the entire second half and try and be the guy rotating over all the time on defense it just became too much.

The Thunder also had nine offensive rebounds in the first half and none in the second. As they weren’t hitting their shots, another reason to come back with Ibaka would have been to help crash the glass.

One of the possible reasons why Brooks elected to remain with the small lineup may have been because San Antonio was playing small with a lineup of Parker-Neal-Ginobili-Jackson-Duncan. That means Ibaka would have had to match up with a spot-up shooter, either Neal or Jackson, and Brooks maybe didn’t like the idea of that.

In a series, when one team is dictating lineup decisions or style of play, it always bodes well for that team. It would have been tough to cover all of the shooters with Ibaka on the floor with Kendrick Perkins but the Spurs would have had to adjust on the other end of the floor too. The Thunder were going to sacrifice something in this matchup no matter what.

People are going to point to Perkins being on the floor instead of Ibaka but that really wasn’t the problem. Perkins is a better post defender than Ibaka and that’s why Brooks had him out there instead.

Nick Collison may have been a better choice than Perkins to some as well but they give up a lot of rebounding when Collison is in so that totally would not have solved their problem either.

Derek Fisher and Thabo Sefolosha were the ones getting run instead of Ibaka. Fisher and Sefolosha both had good nights and that is also possibly why Brooks was okay staying with them.

The Thunder’s best lineup to close games is one we rarely see. It’s the obvious Durant-Westbrook-Harden trio with Ibaka and Collison. Instead, the Thunder are usually either small with Fisher or Perkins instead of Collison.

The Spurs run more pick-and-rolls than almost anyone and having the best pick-and-roll defenders on the floor is really important if the Thunder are going to win this series. Collison is the best at defending the pick-and-roll and Ibaka is the best at coming over for weak side blocks.

The Thunder are capable of winning this series but last night we didn’t really see the Thunder. That’s why it’s hard to take this Game 1 completely serious. Sure, the Spurs executed great down the stretch but we knew they would. It’s all about how the Thunder combat the Spurs’ offense.

They dropped the ball in Game 1 remaining small and it cost them an extremely important game. Without home court, the Thunder will have to win at least one in San Antonio to win the series.

If they can steal Game 2 then they’d need to win three straight against the Spurs if they also plan to protect home court. The Spurs have now won a franchise-best 19 straight games and haven’t lost since April 11.

It’s easy to overreact after one game in a series and it’s easy to have a hard time imagining a team adjusting well enough to win right after a loss.

The Thunder have the tools though. This team has surprised all year long with their growing maturity and path toward becoming a champion. Winning Game 2 in San Antonio is part of them taking the next step.

The Thunder are eager to get back on the court but are also thankful for the rest so that their starting center, Kendrick Perkins, could rest after injuring his hip in Game 4 against the Dallas Mavericks. It is still uncertain if he will play tonight.

The Thunder have been taking steps very quickly over the past few years toward becoming a true title contender. They made it to the Western Conference Finals last year, swept the defending champs in Round 1 and now will look to take that next step beating the mighty Los Angeles Lakers.

The Thunder are favored in this series and should be. They’ve been one of the best teams all season long really coming to play each and every night while the Lakers are a team known to take nights off.

The Lakers had their ups and downs in their first round series against the Denver Nuggets who took them to seven games. The Lakers were able to take advantage of their considerable size advantage in the final game and close out the pesky, energetic Nuggets.

The Lakers will not have that luxury now in Round 2 against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-US PRESSWIRE

The Big Men

The play of the bigs in this series is going to be one of the most important matchups to watch. Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol are both All-Star caliber players but don’t always play like it.

The Thunder don’t get much offense from their bigs but Kendrick Perkins, Serge Ibaka and Nick Collison are all very vital to the team’s success and will be even more so in this series.

Perkins’ status is still uncertain but very crucial for the Thunder. They traded for Perkins last year for this specific matchup with the Lakers and for his defense on Bynum.

Perkins averaged 26.8 minutes per game in the regular season but played 36.0 minutes per game in three meetings against the Lakers.

Ibaka will also be very important and not just on defense. He led the league in blocks and finished second in the Defensive Player of the Year voting and has had success against the Lakers in the past.

Ibaka had a sort of coming out party is rookie season in the playoffs against the Lakers blocking seven shots in one of the games. Ibaka is always an X-factor for the Thunder and if the Thunder can get him some scoring opportunities as well it will bode well for Ibaka’s confidence on both ends of the floor.

Ibaka had the impossible task of guarding Dirk Nowitzki in Round 1 so it will be somewhat easier checking Gasol now who hasn’t been playing his best ball of late.

In three games against the Lakers this season, Ibaka averaged 12.3 points, 12.0 rebounds and 4.3 blocks. He steps up his game against L.A., there’s no question.

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-US PRESSWIRE

Russell Westbrook

Russell Westbrook is going to need to be huge in this series to ensure a Thunder victory. The Lakers do not have the point guards to matchup with Westbrook and he will need to take advantage.

Westbrook had a nice series against Dallas and reverted to sort of a defensive stopper as the series progressed, shutting down Jason Terry. He won’t be asked to play as much defense against the Lakers however.

The litmus test for Westbrook’s game is always his midrange pull-up jump shot. It was on point against Dallas as he noticeably was shooting it with better form. He’s going to be able to get to his spots and take that shot in this series. Whether or not it is going in early on will tell you a lot about how he will play.

When Westbrook is not making that shot he gets out of rhythm and less under control and begins forcing drives and throwing his body at those protecting the paint. He can have success doing this too and getting to the line but it will be a tough challenge against the Lakers and Bynum and Gasol.

We may see Kobe Bryant on Westbrook some in this series too and he did a nice job against him in the last regular season meeting between these teams. Westbrook went 3-for-22 in that game and gets out of sorts against defenders like Kobe or even Dwyane Wade.

It is unlikely however that the Lakers will want to put Kobe on Westbrook too much because they are going to need him to be more efficient on offense.

Kobe Bryant

Kobe shot just 30 percent against the Thunder in the regular season. He’s been playing better of late but the Thunder have more to throw at him than Denver did.

Thabo Sefolosha can play Kobe straight up without a double team which will lure Kobe into becoming a high-volume shooter at times and that’s what Oklahoma City wants.

Kobe was very clutch at the end of the last meeting between these teams and hit a ton of big shots and the Lakers might be able to count on him in situations like that. But since Oklahoma City should be able to contain the Lakers bigs it will be up to Kobe to be a more efficient scorer for them or for the role players to really step up, but that seems even more unlikely.

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-US PRESSWIRE

Kevin Durant vs. Metta World Peace

Kevin Durant is going to be important like he always is for the Thunder but it won’t be the prettiest we see him play, that’s for sure.

Metta World Peace has always done a solid job on Durant and physical defenders usually have the most success against him. Durant really struggled in the playoffs two years ago against World Peace but he has improved in that department since.

The Thunder did a lot of posting up of Durant in the first round and against World Peace that will be a tough thing to rely on. He is in the best shape he has been in awhile and unless referees are really bailing Durant out, it’s unlikely he will be too productive from there. Durant has a long way to go with his post game and he might be more effective looking to score from the perimeter in this series.

Durant – like Westbrook – really struggled from the field in the last game the Thunder played the Lakers. But he got a ton of open jumpers that he normally doesn’t miss. Durant has been more locked in during the postseason and if he’s getting those looks consistently in this series, points will come very easy to him.

Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

The Beard

James Harden went to another level in Game 4 against the Dallas Mavericks scoring 15 points in the final quarter to help the Thunder erase a 13-point deficit and win.

Thunder fans will know though that Harden has been at this level all season. The key is that the Thunder are willing to go to him down the stretch even with Durant and Westbrook on the floor with him.

Harden is certainly the biggest X-factor for the Thunder. We all know what happened the last time he stepped on the floor with Metta World Peace so don’t think Harden won’t be extra motivated in this series.

While Harden was needed to step up against the Mavericks it may not be as necessary against the Lakers mainly because Westbrook should be having a big series offensively. Harden will still be needed to be a reliable 3-point shooter and run the offense well with the second unit.

The Crowd

The Oklahoma City Thunder have the best crowd in the NBA. They aren’t going to be too welcoming toward Metta World Peace when he is announced as a starter for Game 1 either.

This probably won’t do much to World Peace (you know, because he’s insane), but some extra rowdiness will be a great thing for the Thunder players.

The Thunder may not come out as sharp as usual with such a long layoff in between games so having the crowd on another level will be a great advantage for the Thunder to avoid losing one of these first two games.

The Verdict

The Thunder should win this series and if the Lakers didn’t have Kobe and didn’t have the history, no one would be questioning the outcome.

Everything is happening so fast though for the Thunder. They are still so young and no matter how talented you are, there are growing pains. If Kobe can miraculously lead this Lakers squad to upset the Thunder it wouldn’t be totally unbelieveable.

That shouldn’t happen though. Not to this Thunder team. They may still have some growing pains ahead of them before they can win a title but that’s not going to be now.

After beating these Lakers on the grand stage that it will be on, whoever has to play OKC in the next round should be a lot scared of them.

Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

Kendrick Perkins has been a crucial part of the Oklahoma City Thunder all season. His value doesn’t always show up in the stat sheet but it’s definitely there.

Perkins injured his right hip in the first quarter of Game 4 vs. Dallas on May 5 and did not return in the game. The injury would normally keep a player out 10-14 days.

The Thunder will play the Lakers in Game 1 of the conference semifinals tomorrow night at 9:30 p.m. EST, Monday, May 14. That’s nine days since the injury making it seem unlikely that Perkins will be at 100 percent tomorrow night.

He could still play though if he’s not at 100 percent as it is playoff basketball. He was last seen Friday afternoon at the Thunder practice walking without crutches and with no noticeable limp. This type of injury would not necessarily make you walk different but when you are in the game running, getting into a defensive stance and banging is when it would be noticeable.

The Thunder made a tough decision last season to trade Jeff Green to Boston to acquire Perkins. They did it for this specific matchup with the Lakers. They lost to Los Angeles the year before in the first round and it was clear that they needed to get bigger to compete with the then two-time defending champs.

In Game 7 against Denver, the Lakers flexed their sizable advantage as Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum combined for 39 points, 35 rebounds (20 offensive) and 10 blocks. Denver doesn’t have the size that Oklahoma City would have even without Perkins but Gasol and Bynum are going to be quite a load to handle either way.

Perkins averaged 26.8 minutes per game this season but against the Lakers three times he averaged 36.0 minutes. He played well against L.A. averaging 6.3 points, 9.0 rebounds (3.3 offensive) and shot .571 percent from the floor.

Bynum averaged 16.3 points, 11.0 rebounds (3.7 offensive) and shot .444 percent from the field against the Thunder this season. Gasol averaged 18.3 points, 9.7 rebounds and shot .465 percent from the field.

The Lakers’ big men produced against the Thunder this season and needed to partly because of Kobe Bryant’s struggles. Kobe averaged 24.3 points against OKC and shot .307 percent from the field.

The Thunder won two of the three meetings this season against the Lakers and nearly swept them falling in double overtime in the final meeting. The shooting percentages of the Lakers big three were all considerably lower than their averages against the Thunder.

Without Perkins, the Thunder would likely start Nazr Mohammed and continue with their rotation bringing Nick Collison off the bench. Expect the Thunder to go small as much as possible too. Gasol usually starts the fourth quarter without Bynum on the floor so expect Scott Brooks to try and take advantage of that lineup by starting Kevin Durant in that quarter as well.

The Thunder will have a much tougher time matching up with the Lakers if they are without Perkins or he is playing much less than 100 percent. They should still be favored to win the series and win it without question.

The Lakers have much bigger issues in terms of matching up with Oklahoma City’s big three and that advantage for the Thunder should be enough for them to win the series.

Matthew Emmons-US PRESSWIRE

The Oklahoma City Thunder announced Sunday that Kendrick Perkins had suffered a right hip muscle strain in the first quarter of Game 4 against the Dallas Mavericks and is now listed as day-to-day.

Perkins likely would not have been able to play in any more of the Dallas series and may even miss some of the next round. That just adds to the importance of the Thunder’s 13-point fourth quarter comeback in Game 4.

Perkins had been the primary defender Oklahoma City used on Dirk Nowitzki in the series and Perkins’ value as a post defender may be in even higher demand if the Thunder play the Lakers in the second round, and it looks like they will.

Perkins’ return to play will be based on his progress and recovery in the coming days. Recovery time would normally take a week or longer for this type of injury but you’d have to assume that is he is close to being able to go then he will even if it’s a little too soon.

Day-to-day is not very telling of the injury as Thunder guard Thabo Sefolosha missed over a month while being listed day-to-day.

The Thunder would have to play next as early as this coming Saturday (7 days after the injury) or as late as next Monday or Tuesday (9 or 10 days).

The Thunder will have home court no matter what but dealing with the Lakers’ frontline of Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum won’t be easy without Perkins. The Lakers have the best 4-5 combo in the NBA and part of Oklahoma City’s success against Los Angeles has been their ability to contain the duo with Perkins and Serge Ibaka.

In the second half of Game 4 against Dallas, Brooks started Nazr Mohammed to stick with the usual rotation of bringing Nick Collison off the bench. If Perkins is not ready to play by Game 1 you would expect Brooks to do the same because you wouldn’t want to sacrifice the chemistry Collison and James Harden have with the second unit.

The Thunder should still be favored in a series with the Lakers even without Perkins but remember last year Oklahoma City traded Jeff Green for Perkins for this exact matchup with the Lakers.

Oklahoma City Thunder center Kendrick Perkins suffered a right hip strain in the first quarter of Game 4 against the Dallas Mavericks and will not return to the game.

The Thunder lead Dallas 26-24 after one quarter. Perkins had two assists and two rebounds in the quarter and has been the player assigned to cover Dirk Nowitzki the most this series.

Perkins has done a nice job on Dirk but Nick Collison traditionally does the best job on Dirk and certainly will play more minutes with Perkins out.

The Thunder have gone small a lot in this series playing Kevin Durant at the four and inserting Derek Fisher into the lineup. Expect to see that again tonight.

Oklahoma City is looking to sweep Dallas tonight and the Mavericks have come out tonight a lot better than they did in Game 3. The defending champs obviously won’t go down without a fight.

Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

The Oklahoma City Thunder will go into Dallas tonight with a chance to take a commanding 3-0 series lead. They did well surviving the first two games and coming away with victories.

Kevin Durant struggled mightily shooting in the first two games with a 10-of-27 showing in Game 1 and 5-for-17 mark in Game 2.

One would thing Durant has to improve a lot on those numbers tonight. He has gotten a lot of looks and taken mostly jump shots. His teammates did a good job of playing well to help the Thunder win despite his low shooting nights but now on the road Durant will have to start knocking down those looks.

Russell Westbrook has been great so far leading the Thunder in scoring. He really has his midrange pull-up working which is always the test for how well he is playing. As long as he can keep that going tonight his entire game will continue to click.

Dirk Nowitzki has averaged 28 per game so far in this series but he just doesn’t seem as dominant as last year. It is still a journey to figure out who will guard him in the post. Dirk seems to have Serge Ibaka’s number and Kendrick Perkins has had some success.

Nick Collison seems to do the best job against Dirk but he does give up a lot of height. The best lineup for the Thunder when it comes to defending Dirk might be Collison and Ibaka on the floor together which seems to never happen.

James Harden has played very well in the first two games of the series and is leading the Thunder in assists. But Harden always tails off some on the road so we will see if he can continue to be aggressive with the ball tonight or if his game seems more subdued.

A key for Dallas will be making three-point shots. Dallas has the personnel to convert open threes so it will be on the Thunder’s watch to play hard defense for the entire shot clock and hustle hard to get out and contest ever shot. The Thunder have done well in this department in the last six quarters of this series.

The Thunder obviously don’t have to win tonight being up 2-0 but it is quite the opportunity to go up 3-0 against the defending champs. A loss wouldn’t be devastating but we’ve seen how Dallas can take over control of a series after winning a game and the Thunder need to avoid that at all costs.

Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

Yet again, the Dallas Mavericks held a lead in the final minute of the game. They led 97-96 before the Thunder hit four free throws.

Jason Terry hit a layup when down three, James Harden followed with two more free throws and the Mavs ended up with a shot to tie it with the shot clock off.

Terry missed two long 3-pointers at the buzzer and Oklahoma City held home court as they won Game 2, 102-99.

The game started out unusually as Kendrick Perkins scored seven of the Thunder’s first nine points. It looked like they were going to blowout the Mavericks during the second quarter when they took a 16-point lead.

Dallas brought the lead down to seven by halftime and took a lead just over four minutes into the third. From then on out it was a dogfight.

The refs called a very tight game; there were 54 total fouls, incredibly unusual for a playoff game. OKC shot 39 free throws to Dallas’ 32.

This series heads to Dallas for Game 3 on Thursday at 8:30 local time.

Kevin Durant- B     26pts/10reb/1ast/2stl

Very similarly to Game 1, Durant struggled to hit jump shots. Shawn Marion is a very solid wing defender, and has help Durant to just 34.1% shooting so far this series. Being the scoring champ, Kevin Durant is not going to shoot poorly forever, so it is a good sign that the team is winning despite his performances.

Russell Westbrook- B+    29pts/2reb/2ast

Westbrook played well on both sides of the ball tonight. He was put on Jason Terry and he shut him down for the most part. On offense, Westbrook was able to get to the rim and get fouled as well as hit the mid-range jumpers.

Kendrick Perkins- A-     13pts/6reb/1blk

I was really surprised by the beginning of the game. Perkins actually scored, and it was with efficiency. He ended up with 13 points on five shots. The Mavericks went small, which forced the Thunder to not play Perkins on Dirk that much. In 27 minutes, Perkins played some solid defense to go along with the weird scoring output.

Serge Ibaka- D     2pts/4reb/1ast/1blk

There wasn’t much to take from Ibaka’s game this time. He didn’t play all too much, and didn’t have an impact when he did. Again Ibaka struggled guarding Nowitzki out on the wing. He only blocked one shot and grabbed four rebounds to go with his two points. Not the best game for the young big man while he gains playoff experience.

James Harden- A     15pts/7reb/5ast/3stl

So far in this series, James Harden has taken 20 free throws, and only 14 field goal attempts. The Mavericks have not figured out how to prevent him from getting to the rim due to their lack of size in the paint. Harden is has been the X-Factor in these game by finding ways to score, even if he’s not hitting his shots.

Rest of the Thunder- B+

Finally the bench got it going. James Harden was the only bench player to score in Game 1, while in Game 2, the non-Harden bench scored 17 points. Derek Fisher led the way with 11 of his own, including a late 3 and a buzzer beater at the end of the first half. Fisher showed flashes from his previous playoff accomplishments, and he looks to continue to contribute positively to another title run. Nick Collison was assigned the task of stopping Dirk Nowitzki for most of the game. He was doing very well until fouling out with nine minutes left in the game.

Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

It’s been quite a season for the Oklahoma City Thunder. Coming off a Western Conference Finals berth, Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook were looking to take the next step as they gained another year of experience.

The lockout halted all basketball action for a while until the new CBA was settled. Finally, ten teams including the Thunder, opened up the season on Christmas Day relieving the six-month wait for basketball fans across the country.

The excitement in Oklahoma City was greater than it has ever been. For the first time since moving from Seattle, this franchise was a favorite to represent the West in the NBA Finals. They got off to an incredible start, winning 16 of their first 19 games and solidifying themselves as championship contenders.

The Thunder hit an early speed bump when backup point guard Eric Maynor went down for the season with a torn ACL. An already shaky bench situation was thrown for a loop. Reggie Jackson had to suffice as Westbrook picked up more minutes.

The season went on and the Thunder won more games. Then Thabo Sefolosha went down for around six weeks, forcing Daequan Cook to start while James Harden continued to come off the bench.

Both Durant and Westbrook gained All-Star nominations, with Harden just missing out. The Thunder went into the break at 27-7 and were on their way for the #1 seed in the conference.

A 7-5 start once the season resumed brought the team back down to Earth. Wins against the Miami Heat, Los Angeles Lakers, and Chicago Bulls in an eight-day period were the peak of the season. Kevin Durant looked like the MVP and the Thunder were settled in the top spot in the West.

Unfortunately, they lost their next three games leading to a 7-7 finish in which they ended up as the #2 seed in the conference. Still, 47 wins in a shortened season isn’t half bad and the Thunder have a great shot at making the NBA Finals.

Their road to the Finals begins on Saturday against either the Denver Nuggets or defending champion Dallas Mavericks, whom they beat 2-1 and 3-1 in the season series, respectively.

Now let’s give these guys some grades.

Kevin Durant- A+     28.0pts/8.0reb/3.5ast/1.4stl/1.2blk   26.2 PER

Having established himself as one of the elite players in the league with many individual awards, Kevin Durant is ready to take his achievements to a team level. He quickly turned the Thunder into a legit Finals contender with an MVP-type season.

Unless Kobe Bryant scores 38 or more points tonight, KD will win his third straight scoring title, and will most likely be selected to the All-NBA team again.

He set career highs in rebounds, assists, and FG%. What really made this season different for Durant was his improvement defensively. His isolation defense is ranked 20th in the league, at 0.57 points per possession compared to 0.74 last season.

Mark J. Rebilas-US PRESSWIRE

The main reason that Durant most likely will not win the MVP is because of LeBron’s defensive advantage. Even so, the gap is closing, with his athleticism and length Kevin can be a top notch defender which will lead to a few MVPs and hopefully some NBA titles.

Quite possibly the high point of the season for the Thunder star was scoring a career best 51 points against Denver in February. He had four 40+-point games to go along 18 double doubles. Missing that elusive triple double, Durant came within three assists three times.

Now, all of these stats and awards will mean nothing if the Thunder get knocked out in the first round of the playoffs. Basketball is a team game, and Durant will need to be a leader to take his team all the way.

Russell Westbrook- A     23.6pts/4.6reb/5.5ast/1.7stl   22.9 PER

Another great season for Russell Westbrook. Coming off a playoff run where he gained a lot of criticism for his shooting tendencies, Westbrook put that all behind him and played wonderfully.

He was rewarded with a second straight All-Star appearance while he continues to improve his play.

Shooting the ball at a higher rate, he raised his FG% 15 points. Although this led to a pretty significant drop in his AST%, his turnover rate dropped from 15.9 to 14.2.

As Westbrook continues to cutback on the turnovers, his play will get much better and more efficient. The Thunder run one of the most isolation dependent offenses in the league, which will lead to a lower Assist/Turnover ratio. Just over thirteen percent of the plays run are isolations, usually by Durant, Westbrook, or Harden.

For a point guard on one of the top teams in the league, you would think it’s surprising that Westbrook only had four games with double-digit assists, and none with more than 11. Honestly, I don’t see that as a problem for the Thunder. They are going to score at any rate, and he is really more of a shoot first point guard.

What to look for from Westbrook going into the playoffs is how spread out the scoring is. The Thunder will be under a huge spotlight due to their star power, and people will pay attention to how many shots he takes in relation to Durant. As long as they are both in the upper teens-20s, and are making shots, it shouldn’t be a problem.

James Harden- A     16.8pts/4.1reb/3.7ast/1.0stl   21.1 PER

Five days ago the Thunder were in great shape going into the playoffs. Nobody was injured and the players were getting ready to make a playoff run. Then Harden took an elbow to the head from Ron Artest (he was suspended 7 games), missing the final two games of the season while recovering from a concussion.

Now, Harden is cleared to play in the first round, but concussions are always a touchy subject. It’s hard to tell how effected a person is by a hit to the head, whether they can play to their full ability or not. We’ll see how he reacts to the injury when he plays this weekend.

Besides this unfortunate incident, James Harden has had an incredible season. After a great showing in last year’s playoffs, he was met with expectations of becoming that third All-Star caliber player for the Thunder.

He did just that.

Harden is a shoe-in for 6th Man of the Year, along with being a candidate for Most Improved Player. He could start for pretty much any team that isn’t the Heat, Lakers or Spurs, but coming off the bench is what the Thunder need from him. When Durant and Westbrook are out of the game, he gives the team multiple ways to score.

For a while now I have been saying that James Harden is the best passer on the Thunder. He is able to run a quality offense with what little offensive talent the Thunder bench holds, and is given the point in many clutch situations.

Once Eric Maynor went down, Harden was on his own in the backcourt. He either assisted or scored a majority of the points while the bench unit was in the game. Nick Collison was the only other person on the bench to play significant minutes and be productive.

Averaging 16.8 points while shooting 49.1%, Harden just missed out on an All-Star berth. Surely he will make plenty in the future if he keeps on improving at this pace.

In just his third season in the league, Harden has become one of the most efficient scorers in the NBA. His points per possession of 1.12 ranks seventh in the league, his .660 TS% is the best for a backcourt player in the league’s history. True Shooting percentage incorporates FG%, 3P% and FT%, which means he gets to the charity stripe often, and can hit shots from anywhere on the court with consistency.

A prime example of his efficiency is the stat line Harden put up against the Phoenix Suns eight days ago. In one of the most exciting games this season, James Harden scored a career high 40 points on just 17 shots. He hit five of eight 3-point attempts, and all 11 free throw tries.

This type of play is the reason why he will be the X-Factor for the Thunder going into the playoffs. If Durant or Westbrook struggle, they can count on Harden to score and take over the game if necessary.

Serge Ibaka- B+     9.1pts/7.5reb/0.4ast/0.5stl/3.7blk   19.0 PER

IBLOCKA!

You may have heard this a bit this year. Serge Ibaka has become the blocking king of the league. Averaging close to four blocks per game, he became the first person to block 241 shots since Marcus Camby in 07-08, and that’s even with the shortened season.

The breakout game for the 22(???) year old big man came on a day where the Thunder had two 40+-point scorers. Ibaka collected his first triple double by blocking 11 shots to go along with 14 points and 15 rebounds.

Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

When someone is that dominant in the paint, they usually get looks for Defensive Player of the Year. Certainly people will give Serge votes, but it’s not time for that, yet. He really needs to improve all of the other parts of his defensive game, including pick and rolls, guarding smaller players, and not biting on pump fakes.

What I was really impressed with was Serge’s production on the offensive end. He may have dropped around a point per game from last year, but that really isn’t what matters with all of the scorers on the team.

The way he advanced his game was by adding more ways to score. His post moves are improving at a nice rate, and he has found a mid-ranged jumper. He hit shots from 16-21 feet at 45.5%, up from 41.8% last season. With more practice, his shot selection will improve, increasing his FG% and scoring average.

Against some of the smaller teams, we have seen Ibaka’s minutes go down under 20 due to his struggles guarding players outside the paint. With more time, he will be fit to play 30+ minutes every game.

We will see what Scott Brooks does once the playoffs start. Will he trust Ibaka to play a majority of the game with the season on the line?

Kendrick Perkins- C     5.1pts/6.6reb/1.2ast/0.4stl/1.1blk   8.7 PER

I don’t have a problem with Kendrick Perkins starting and only scoring five points, IF the only shots he gets are off offensive rebounds and the occasional wide open dunk. The worst thing the Thunder can do, is give the ball to Perk in the post, because he has ZERO post moves. It’s painful watching it.

Now on the defensive end, Perkins is really good. He is a solid pick and roll defender, and very good in isolation. That is how the Thunder will get the most out of the former Celtic. Keep him out of the offense and let him do his thing on defense.

This season, Perkins only scored double digit points eight times this year, with all but two of them coming after March 22nd. He also led the league with 13 technical fouls.

Kendrick Perkins doesn’t fill up the stat sheet, but he is still an above average NBA player, and is an able start for a championship contender.

Thabo Sefolosha- B     4.8pts/3.0reb/1.1ast/0.9stl/0.4blk   9.8 PER

Thabo played about just under 2/3 of this shortened season. His foot hindered him; he missed six weeks at the end of January into early March. The Thunder’s defense was affected by his absence, as Sefolosha is one of the premier wing defenders in the league.

Against smaller, faster teams, like the Nuggets, Sefolosha plays a more important part. When he is in along side Durant, Harden, and Westbrook, the Thunder’s defensive rating is better than normal at 1.01 ppp.

Thabo can hit 3-pointers at a nice rate. He shot 43.7% from beyond the arc, shooting 1.7 per game. His FT% is also in the upper 80s, so he isn’t a problem late in close games.

Defense wins championships, so Thabo will be an integral part in the Thunder’s run to the Finals.

Nick Collison- B+     4.5pts/4.3reb/1.3ast/0.5stl/0.4blk   12.1 PER

Mark J. Rebilas-US PRESSWIRE

I have really enjoyed watching Nick Collison come off the bench. He has good chemistry with James Harden, and is a stickler on defense.

When the bench comes in, the main offense run by the unit is either Harden isolation, or the two-man game with Harden and Collison. He may not score much, but he is very effective in running a system and helping players get open shots. Evidenced by his 121 offensive rating (basketball-reference).

I like to think Collison is a similar player as Joakim Noah. He may not have the same talent, but they play the same type of game. Both players have high motors, will do the dirty work necessary to be a factor in the game. Every team needs that guy who hustles 100% of the time, and Nick is that guy for the Thunder.

Daequan Cook- C-     5.5pts/2.1reb/0.3ast/0.4stl/0.2blk   9.2 PER

The thing with PER is, it only takes into account quantifiable stats. So the only defense it uses is blocks and steals, that’s why Perkins and Sefolosha have a lower PER, their defensive skills are more than just statistics.

Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for Daequan Cook. He is nowhere near a quality defensive player, and really isn’t even that good on offense.

Cook is supposed to be a 3-point specialist, that is why, of his 5.2 shots per games, 4 of them are 3-pointers. The best 3-point shooters are in the mid-40% range, above average shooters are in the upper-30s. Generally, if you are only on the team to make 3′s, you should be in one of those two categories.

Daequan Cook shot just 34.6% from range this year. That is not good. It’s not even like he just had a down year, he is a career 36.5% 3-point shooter.

When Thabo went down, and Cook had to step in and start, that’s when it got bad. There was a stretch of six games in the middle of February, where Cook made 4 of 34 attempts from beyond the arc. That is not good.

His minutes will be way down for the playoffs. I would be surprised if he got more than 10 minutes in any game that isn’t a blowout.

Eric Maynor-        pts/ reb/ ast/ stl/ blk   PER

In case you couldn’t tell, talking about Eric Maynor makes me sad. He was one of the best backup point guards in the league, and was really fun to watch. He would’ve helped this Thunder team out a bunch, by taking some of the load off James Harden with the bench unit, and also spelling Russell Westbrook at times.

Most of all, if Eric Maynor had not torn his ACL after nine games, the Thunder WOULD NOT HAVE DEREK FISHER. More on that coming later.

We can only sit and wait until next year to see Maynor play again. It should be a joyful time, and very Fisher-less.

Nazr Mohammad, Royal Ivey, Reggie Jackson, Cole Aldrich- C

This bench unit was not very productive this year, outside of Harden and Collison. Reggie Jackson was getting some minutes until Fisher showed up. He showed some skill, but apparently not enough, as he hasn’t played much since the Thunder brought in the 5-ringed veteran.

Nazr Mohammad appeared in most games, yet had minimum impact. He scored just 2.7 points and grabbed 2.7 rebounds.

These guys won’t get more than five minutes in any playoff game, barring injury, and shouldn’t have an impact on how the Thunder’s season turns out.

Derek Fisher- D     4.9pts/1.5reb/1.4ast/0.6stl/0.1blk   5.9 PER  (20 games for OKC)

Halfway through writing my feelings on Derek Fisher, I decided to quit and save it for another time. It was getting too long, and it needs to be justified.

So I’ll just give some quick little notes on Derek Fisher’s season with the Thunder.

The positive impact Fisher brings to the team is purely his veteran leadership. He has been to the NBA Finals multiple times, and if the Thunder happen to end up there this season, that’s where he will help.

On the court, Fisher has not played well at all. He shot 34.3% from the floor on 5.4 shots. Any respectable player, playing over 15 minutes a game, should be shooting much better. That isn’t even that good for a 3-point%.

His defense isn’t much better. Fisher gets beat by quicker guards all of the time, and doesn’t have much to give on the defensive side of the ball.

I’m not a fan of giving Derek Fisher minutes, but if Coach Brooks isn’t going to play Reggie Jackson, then somebody has to do fill that backup PG spot, and it might as well be him.

Mark J. Rebilas-US PRESSWIRE

It was a career night as James Harden returned to Arizona, where he played college ball for Arizona State (boo!).

Harden scored his career best 40 points on just 17 shots as the Thunder take out the Phoenix Suns 109-97.

The Suns had four technical fouls, by Steve Nash, Sebastian Telfair, Robin Lopez and Coach Alvin Gentry.

Jared Dudley led the Suns with 21 points. No one else scored more than 13.

The Thunder continue their quest for the 1 seed Friday in Sacramento.

 Kevin Durant- B+     29pts/11reb/5ast/2blk

Going for his third straight scoring title, Kevin Durant got his due scoring 29 points in a game where it was all James Harden. He added 11 rebounds and a couple blocks in a big win that keeps the Thunder in the race for home court.

 Russell Westbrook- D     15pts/6reb/5ast/2stl

Westbrook struggled throughout the game, even getting benched for a while during the second half. He only played 31 minutes and shot at a 37.5% clip. It seemed like Russell, along with the rest of the team, just took a backseat tonight.

 Serge Ibaka- C     9pts/3reb/1blk

In just 18 minutes, Ibaka couldn’t have much of an impact on the game. He garnered just one block and only grabbed three rebounds. The Suns are a generally small team, so having Ibaka in there wasn’t helping them on the defensive end. Once he works on his perimeter defense, he won’t have to be taken out in these situations.

 Kendrick Perkins- B     5pts/9reb

The Thunder big men have not been a factor on the offensive end this year, but what they do is lock down the paint. Marcin Gortat, who scored 28 points in their last meeting, could not hit anything tonight. Thanks to the effort from Perkins and Ibaka, the Suns were forced to take their game to the perimeter, where they shot 6-20 from 3-point range.

 James Harden- A++     40pts/7reb/3ast/4stl

WOW! James Harden showed why he is going to be one of the premier 2-guards in the NBA for years to come. He was hitting on all cylinders tonight. Leading the league in TS% from the guard position, Harden scored with incredible efficiency. One of the main reasons he is able to take over a game is his ability to get to the free throw line. He made all 11 of his attempts from the charity stripe, to go along with seven rebounds and four steals. Great games like these from Harden are the reason the Thunder will be so dangerous in the playoffs.

 Rest of the Thunder- C+

I can’t stand Derek Fisher right now. He took seven shots and didn’t come close on any except for the one he made at the end of the first half. He’s in there to be a veteran and not make mistakes, not take shots he isn’t going to make. Nick Collison ended up playing more minutes than Serge Ibaka, and played well. A high motor guy who isn’t afriad to set a screen and take charges is a player that all championship teams need.

Jesse Johnson-US PRESSWIRE

Even though it was much closer than it should’ve been, the Oklahoma City Thunder are one step closing to securing home court advantage throughout the Western Conference playoffs.

Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant combined 78 points, so you would think they should win big.

Unfortunately, with James Harden struggling after sitting out yesterday, the Wolves’ bench outscored the Thunder’s, 54-18. The Thunder were able to hold on, winning by a score of 115-110.

They next play in Los Angeles on Monday, against the Clippers.

Kevin Durant- A+     43pts/7reb/1ast/1blk

Another MVP-like performance for the Thunder superstar. Durant scored with crazy efficiency. He scored 43 points on just 23 shots. His offense tonight makes up for bit of his defense that was lacking from this game. Against much better teams, this defensive effort will not cut it.

Russell Westbrook- A     35pts/1reb/8ast/2stl

People will complain that, yet again, Russell Westbrook took more shots than Durant. This isn’t as big of a problem as people make it out to be. He is going to get his shots, because he is just so good at creating his own. What gets overlooked is that fact that Westbrook has eight assists tonight. So, Russell, keep on shooting.

Serge Ibaka- B+     8pts/12reb/2ast/5blk

With 5 blocks and 12 rebounds, Ibaka did well for the most part for the Thunder. The bad part? Blocks are not the only thing that is good for defense. Ibaka has really struggled this year when the other team’s PF plays on the wing. Teams like the Rockets, Nuggets, and Timberwolves have an advantage against the Thunder when they go small, because of Ibaka. He is still young, and has plenty of time to improve, but this may cause problems come playoff time.

Kendrick Perkins- C     2pts/10reb/1stl

Typical Perkins game. Played some solid defense, was terrible on offense, and grabbed a few rebounds.

James Harden- F     6pts/4reb/3ast/1stl

Oh wow was this game ugly for Mr. Harden. Coming off sitting out a game, Harden struggled to find the bottom of the net. He made just one of his 11 field goal attempts, including eight 3-point tries. Lucky for him, his two star teammates picked up the slack for his lack of scoring.

Rest of the Thunder- C-

Nick Collison is one of the only bright spots for the rest of the Thunder this season. He, along with Thabo Sefolosha scored 19 of the 27 points from the non-Harden bench and Thabo. Derek Fisher gave the Thunder 20 minutes, but failed to score and only managed one assist. The Derek Fisher experiment seems to have failed so far, and I’m not surprised at all.

Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

The Oklahoma City Thunder snapped their three-game losing streak beating the Toronto Raptors 91-75 Sunday night.

The Thunder led Toronto 58-55 with 6:05 left in the third quarter and would then go on a 24-0 run that lasted into the fourth quarter. The Thunder starters did not have to play in the final period.

Kevin Durant led the way for Oklahoma City scoring 23 points and making 4-of-6 threes. Russell Westbrook looked like he might be on pace for a triple-double early and finished with 15 points, six assists and six rebounds.

The Thunder bench was the difference in this one, along with the fact that the Raptors might have the worst roster in the NBA. James Harden, Nick Collison, Daequan Cook and Derek Fisher were all plus-16 or better while on the floor.

Harden had only five points through three quarters but turned it up in the fourth and finished with 17 points and four assists. Collison was a beast on the glass with nine rebounds, seven of which came on the offensive end. Cook had his highest scoring output since early March with eight points including two treys.

The Thunder were going through a tough stretch losing their last three games and they really didn’t look all that great tonight. They scored just 91 points which is right around what they’ve been averaging in their losing streak. The Thunder also committed 16 turnovers in the game tonight.

Three-point shooting helped Oklahoma City out tonight as they made 10-of-23 attempts. On defense they held Toronto to 37.2 percent shooting with Serge Ibaka spearheading the attack with five blocks.

The Thunder (41-15) will travel tomorrow to play in Milwaukee (28-28).

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-US PRESSWIRE

Derek Fisher got his standing ovation and a video montage, and the Oklahoma City Thunder got another win over a championship caliber team in the Los Angeles Lakers.

Surprisingly, Fisher only played 11 minutes against his former team, when he played over 15 in each of previous four games.

The Thunder started off terribly, they showed little energy and got outrebounded by eight in the first quarter.

After a little better performance in the following period, and a Serge Ibaka jumper at the buzzer, the Thunder went into halftime with only a five point deficit.

Then, Russell Westbrook went off. He scored 17 points in the third quarter, including a long three as time ran out, to give the Thunder a 78-68 lead going into the fourth.

Los Angeles had no answer for Westbrook, as he scored 36 points in the 102-93 win for Oklahoma City.

Kevin Durant- B-     21pts/11reb/5ast/2blk

Kevin Durant struggled early tonight. He couldn’t find the bottom of the net, missing his first eight shots. Durant picked it up a bit in the second half and ended up with 21 points and 11 rebounds. He also picked up a technically, after complaining about a foul called against him.

Russell Westbrook- A+     36pts/1reb/6ast/2stl

Westbrook carried the Thunder to a victory with his 36 points, 27 of them in the second half. He showed his speed by blowing by Laker defenders for easy layups. The best part about Westbrook’s night was that he only had one turnover. Turnovers have big a big problem for him this year, and limiting teams to only a few fast break points is key to the Thunder’s success.

Serge Ibaka- B-     8pts/9reb/1ast/3blk

Not the best game for Serge Ibaka. There wasn’t much offense from him with his eight point showing. His defense was good for the most part, but because of Perkins playing really well, and the Lakers going somewhat small, Ibaka only got 19 minutes on the floor. Still he managed to block three shots and grab nine boards.

Kendrick Perkins- A     12pts/8reb/2blk

Again, Perkins had a nice game for the Thunder. He has been picking up his overall play recently, adding some offensive moves and scoring for the Thunder. Now I don’t think relying on him is ever a good idea, but it’s nice to get some production on both ends of the floor. On the defensive end, he along Nick Collison and Ibaka forced Bynum to work for his baskets; they played tough solid defense after the sloppy first quarter.

James Harden- C    9pts/2reb/4ast/1stl

Harden played the three at points in the game, which meant Metta World Peace was guarding him. This led to him struggling on the offensive end of the floor. Last game against the Lakers, Harden got in Kobe’s face after a big game. This time around he talked a bit after an early 3-pointer, but the Lakers’ lead shut down any attempts to talk trash by Harden.

Rest of the Thunder- B+

Thabo Sefolosha played some really nice defense on Kobe, forcing him to go 7-25 from the field. After a rough first half for Nick Collison, he really picked up his effort and defense, holding down the paint in his 20 minutes. Collison was a big factor in the Thunder’s rebound advantage, pulling down eight total, five on the offensive glass. Nazr Mohammed added four blocks, most of them on one possession.

Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

In a potential Finals preview against the Miami Heat, the Oklahoma City Thunder played like a championship team tonight.

The Thunder moved the ball much better than usual tonight, and involved everyone on the team.

The game was close through the first quarter then the Thunder got going, and went on a run that led to an 11-point halftime lead.

The Heat only managed to get within eight points the rest of the way, as the Thunder cruised to a 103-87 win over one of the NBA’s premier teams.

Oklahoma City heads to Portland on Tuesday to face the Trail Blazers.

Kevin Durant- A+     28pts/9reb/8ast/2stl

Against the MVP-frontrunner, Durant showed the nation why he should also be considered for the award. Coming just shy of his first career triple double, he led the team to a victory over the preseason favorite to win the Finals. Durant got the ball moving, which is rare for the Thunder, a team that runs isolations as much as possible.

Russell Westbrook- C     13pts/3reb/6ast/3stl

It seems like every national TV game, the Thunder have to have somebody that has an off night. Tonight that was Russell Westbrook. He shot an abysmal 4-16 from the floor, scoring just 13 points, along with four turnovers. Part of the reason for Westbrook’s struggles was the fact that he picked up his third foul halfway through the second quarter.

Kendrick Perkins- A     16pts/6reb/2ast/1stl

What a wonderful game for the Thunder big man. Perkins recorded his season high in points, the most he’s scored since January 10^th, 2010, with the Boston Celtics. This is the first time he has had back-to-back double digit scoring games all season.

Serge Ibaka- A     19pts/10reb/1ast/1blk

For really the first time in a while, the Thunder had TWO big men score effectively. This is what the Thunder have been lacking to become a complete team. Ibaka’s jumper is starting to look automatic, and his inside defense is great as usual.

James Harden-B     19pts/3reb/6ast/2stl

Harden was great at some points, and not so much at others. When he was cast of the point guard, he facilitated well, moving the ball and involving everyone. To go with those six assists were a career high seven turnovers. If there is one team you don’t want to turn it over against, it’s the Miami Heat. You need to force them to beat you in the halfcourt, and giving them free points on fast breaks isn’t going to do that.

Rest of the Thunder- C

We didn’t see much of the bench, which should also happen once the playoffs come along. Derek Fisher played another 18 minutes, doing absolutely nothing, and Nick Collison gave the Thunder his usual hard work in his 19 minutes. When it comes down to it, the Thunder will have to play Durant and Westbrook 40+ minutes in the playoffs to get it done.

Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE

Thunder (2-game winning streak)
107.5 Offensive Efficiency (1st)
100.3 Defensive Efficiency (12th)
95.9 Pace (5th)
57.2 True Shooting % (1st)
51.4 Rebound Rate (5th)

Heat (4-game winning streak)
106.6 Offensive Efficiency (2nd)
96.6 Defensive Efficiency (3rd)
94.3 Pace (12th)
56.2 True Shooting % (2nd)
51.2 Rebound Rate (7th)

The Oklahoma City Thunder and Miami Heat will play for the first time this season in what is most likely going to be a preview of this year’s NBA Finals.

The Thunder are currently the number one seed in the West with the Heat slotted as the two-seed in the East behind only Chicago. Both teams are also near the top of nearly every efficiency category.

They are the two best offensive teams in the NBA and when you have six of the best individual scorers it’s not hard to see why. Both teams boast a Big Three that is averaging right around 70 points per game.

Both teams are thus very similar in their makeup with Miami probably holding the edge in experience.

The Heat hold a significant edge over the Thunder in getting offense from spot-up shooting attempts, which is where the Heat get most of their offense. This is no surprise with LeBron James being one of the top passers in the NBA and the Heat roster surrounding him with a ton of spot-up guys.

The Thunder rely mostly on isolation and pick-and-roll opportunities. This basically means that the defense knows what’s coming but the Thunder are so talented it doesn’t matter. The Heat can match their talent tonight so we’ll see if the Thunder are able to get the same scoring looks as usual.

The Heat also go into the post a lot more than the Thunder and they do it with James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. James and Wade are the two most efficient post scorers in the NBA this season.

Kevin Durant and James will likely be guarding each other all game long. I think both give each other trouble on defense. James holds a big weight advantage over Durant and Durant is so long and underrated on defense that he can bother some of James’ looks as well.

The Thunder have a cast of bigs they can throw at Bosh but Bosh does most of his damage on pick-and-pops. Expect Serge Ibaka to not defend well enough on Bosh and for Nick Collison to be called upon for a lot of minutes.

Russell Westbrook won’t always be matched up on Wade but will from time to time, especially if the Thunder go small with Derek Fisher on the floor. It is amazing how much bigger Wade is than Westbrook and Wade will go to the post if this matchup occurs and likely abuse Westbrook.

Westbrook will be on offense however the toughest cover for Miami. Mario Chalmers and Wade are good defenders but Westbrook will be able to get looks all night. He’s been hitting his pull-up jumper lately and will need to be on with that shot tonight for the Thunder to win.

Both teams play a lot of up-tempo ball but in this matchup it may turn into more of a half court setting. Both teams will surely be up for the game so expect defensive intensity to appear playoff-like.

At home the Thunder should have a slight edge over the Heat but it is their toughest matchup. If they’re making the open jump shots they should get, then they can win. Otherwise, Miami may be walking out of Chesapeake Arena with the victory tonight.

Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

Wow. There are not enough adjectives in the English language to fully describe how awesome ThunderWolves was last night.

For the second time this year, the Thunder were involved in a game where there was a 50-point scorer, a 40-point scorer (two this time), and someone with a triple double.

Kevin Love scored a career and franchise-high 51, JJ Barea has 25 points, 14 assists, and 10 rebounds for the Timberwolves.

Russell Westbrook netted a career-high 45 points, followed by Kevin Durant with his second 40+ point game this season.

The game was highlights by three 3-pointers, the first by Durant with 3 seconds to go in regulation to take a three point lead. Kevin Love answered immediately, sending the game into overtime with a three of his own.

Then in the first overtime, Durant came up in the clutch again, hitting a game-tying three with 10 seconds left in the first extra period. The Thunder seemed to have all of the energy in the world, driving past the Wolves defense to pull out a nine point victory in 2OT, 149-140.

Minnesota was playing their last game of a seven game road trip, where they went 2-5, falling farther behind in the playoff race. Oklahoma City won two games in a row for the first time since March 7^th.

The Thunder have a day to rest, before Miami comes to town for a potential NBA Finals preview.

Kevin Durant- A+     40pts/17reb/5ast/3stl

There isn’t much of a race for MVP, with LeBron James having a historically amazing season, but Kevin Durant is doing all he can to get his name in there. This is only the 13^th time in league history that a player had at least 40/17/5, and the first since 2007.

Russell Westbrook- A+     45pts/4reb/6ast/2stl

Westbrook seemed to have all of the energy in the world, out there. In the second overtime, he was driving past a tired Wolves defense for easy layups, and giving the Thunder the energy they needed to finally pull away. Russell shot with wonderful efficiency, going 61% from the floor, and making all nine attempts from the line. This may have been the best game Russell Westbrook has ever played.

Serge Ibaka- B     8pts/9reb/2stl/5blk

Because of the Wolves smaller lineup, Coach Brooks decided to go small for a majority of the game. Serge only played 25 minutes of a 58 minute game. Still, the Thunder big man managed to block five shots, and grab nine rebounds.

Kendrick Perkins- B+     12pts/5reb/0ast/0blk

I was very surprised with Perk last night, for the first (and only third this season) time since February 10^th he scored more than 10 points. Making a contribution on the offensive end is very rare for Perkins, but it was nice to see. Along with Ibaka, Perkins got limited minutes due to the size of the Timberwolves.

James Harden- A     25pts/6reb/6ast/1stl

I love that Harden was given control of the ball late in the game. This is becoming more of a regular thing for the Thunder, and it usually turns out well. Harden has been a better passer than Westbrook, and can also create for himself. Harden scored his 25 on just 17 shots, and co-led the team in assists with six. Harden’s passing has really helped the bench get more involved in the scoring for the Thunder.

Derek Fisher- D-     5pts/2reb/3ast/1stl

Man, did Fisher annoy me this game. It seemed like he wanted to take every big shot like it was the 2004 Western Conference Playoffs. He was 1-10 before he finally made a meaningless 3-pointer at the end of 2OT. As I stated in the Fisher roundtable, he shouldn’t come near the ball in clutch situations, and the very next day, the opposite happens. I don’t understand why he was given 36 minutes, when Reggie Jackson DID NOT PLAY. Honestly I would have rather had Royal Ivey out there; at least he makes shots occasionally. Ahh, the Derek Fisher Experiment is going to be the end of me.

Rest of the Thunder (pretty much just Nick Collison) – B+

Collison played a great game, and is showing why he deserves 20 minutes a game. Harden and Collison make a good duo off the bench, and are really improving over the course of the year. Not Ibaka, not Perkins, but Nick Collison was left in the game during overtime. The Thunder trust him to do his job, and not make any crucial mistakes when on the floor. He scored 11 points, along with three of each, rebounds, assists, and steals.

My goal was simple: clear enough cap to keep James Harden and Serge Ibaka along with Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. This isn’t that hard to do in NBA 2K12. You can rip off the computer teams pretty easy with trades and get rid of bad contracts too.

I did it. After two seasons I had to trade away Kendrick Perkins, Nick Collison and Thabo Sefolosha in exchange for basically nothing. After the 2013-14 season, I had only five players under contract and was prepared to offer everything for Harden and Ibaka.

The two seasons before extending Harden and Ibaka, the Thunder made it to the NBA Finals and lost each time. After signing them, the Thunder went on to win the next three NBA titles.

Why? Well, because they had a top five player at four different positions! At least according to NBA 2K12 they did and you know what, maybe according to the real life future too.

It’s really crazy to think about how good a Durant-Westbrook-Harden-Ibaka core could be five years from now. It would be unprecedented with how talented those top four could become.

For some perspective let’s look at who the top five players are by position in the NBA right now.

Point guard: Derrick Rose, Chris Paul, Russell Westbrook, Deron Williams, Rajon Rondo.

Shooting guard: Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade, Joe Johnson, Manu Ginobili, James Harden.

Small forward: LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Carmelo Anthony, Paul Pierce, Andre Iguodala.

Power forward: Dirk Nowitzki, Kevin Love, Pau Gasol, Blake Griffin, Chris Bosh.

Center: Dwight Howard, Andrew Bynum, Marc Gasol, Joakim Noah, Al Jefferson.

Okay so the Thunder have four players in the top five at their respective positions. I think Harden is a top five shooting guard right now. John Hollinger’s PER rating agrees with me.

So what might the makeup of the league look like five years from now, the 2016-17 season? Bear in mind that five years is a long time. Five years ago the Spurs won their last NBA title. As projected by me and NBA 2K12:

Point guard: Derrick Rose, Russell Westbrook, Deron Williams, Kyrie Irving, John Wall, Stephen Curry, Rajon Rondo, Ricky Rubio.

Shooting guard: James Harden, Dwyane Wade, Tyreke Evans, Paul George, Kobe Bryant, Eric Gordon, O.J. Mayo, MarShon Brooks.

Small forward: Kevin Durant, LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Andre Iguodala, Rudy Gay, Danny Granger, Luol Deng, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist.

Power forward: Kevin Love, Blake Griffin, Chris Bosh, LaMarcus Aldridge, Serge Ibaka, Josh Smith, Anthony Davis, Thaddeus Young.

Center: Dwight Howard, Marc Gasol, Andrew Bynum, DeMarcus Cousins, Roy Hibbert, Al Horford, Joakim Noah, Greg Monroe.

How could any other team possibly compete with the Thunder if they keep Durant-Westbrook-Harden-Ibaka?

The Thunder need to start planning now to keep this core (and I’m sure they are). The Thunder have a good chance to win the title this year but if they don’t then it’s time to start planning for keeping Harden and Ibaka. Three more years of this core will become much more valuable than trying to slightly improve your team to win one title and sacrificing a future with Harden or Ibaka.

Who knows what will happen? I have a feeling when the time comes they won’t be able to keep both. But hopefully they can at least hang on to one.

The Thunder cut that deficit to three with just over 30 seconds left then made a great defensive stop to force a turnover and give themselves a chance to tie the game and send it into another overtime.

With 16.1 seconds left and trailing 129-126, James Harden inbounded from half court for the Thunder. The play had Kevin Durant set up at the right (near) elbow, Russell Westbrook on the far wing, Derek Fisher in the far corner and Nick Collison on the near block.

From this set up the Thunder could have done a number of things. Earlier in regulation, Durant already hit a three in the final seconds after isolating at the top of the key and taking Anthony Tolliver off the dribble. Minnesota was probably expecting that again.

Durant comes to the ball and receives the inbound from Harden. Instead of isolating his man, Durant hands back to Harden who takes his dribble to the top of the key as Durant fades to the right wing.

Collison comes up to set a back screen on Durant’s man who is playing him very close and isn’t in good position to see Collison coming until it is too late. Kevin Love, who is guarding Collison, has a lot of space between him. With Harden at the top of the key there is still a chance that the Thunder may be going for a quick two, so Love can’t sell out on helping Durant.

This is a mistake as Harden delivers a perfect feed to Durant in the corner and Love is late getting too him.

Standing at 7-foot tall, Durant only needs a moment to get a clean look at the rim and stroke the three that would tie the game and send it into another overtime.

I like this play by the Thunder mainly because of the fact that they actually ran a play instead of just relying on isolation scoring. With Harden coming to the top of the key and time still remaining for the possible quick two, the set was designed nicely for Minnesota to not really know what was coming.

Harden is very good at the type of pass he hit Durant with which is the same pass he signaturely pulls off on the OKC skip pass play between him and Daequan Cook. Westbrook may not have been the right guy to make that pass and was a better decoy threat on the opposite wing playing off the ball.

Brooks did a good job in the overtimes using Harden’s playmaking ability to help win this game. Harden and his passing is going to be a crucial ingredient for any type of playoff run the Thunder can potentially pull off later this year.

Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

The Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 149-140 in double overtime in what might have been the best game in the NBA this season.

The Thunder won despite a career-high and franchise record 51 points from Kevin Love to go along with 14 rebounds and the game-tying three-point shot with 1.0 second left in regulation to send the game into its first overtime.

Oklahoma City got a career-high of 45 points out of Russell Westbrook and 40 points from Kevin Durant who also pulled down 17 rebounds in 52 minutes of action.

Durant dueled from deep with Love at the end of regulation and the first overtime. Before Love’s game-tying trey with a second left in regulation, Durant drilled a stepback bomb from straight away 25-feet to put the Thunder ahead 116-113.

The Thunder trailed by five with 46 seconds left of the first overtime following a breakaway dunk by Anthony Tolliver. Westbrook scored on a runner with 36 seconds left to cut the deficit to 129-126. Then Durant provided perfect pick-and-roll help defense on Love in the paint forcing a traveling violation.

With 10 seconds left, James Harden found Durant in the right corner for the game-tying three to send this game into another overtime.

It was all Thunder in the second overtime, outscoring Minnesota 20-11 with Westbrook leading the way. Russell refused to fatigue scoring nine points in the final overtime and everything coming from strong drives to the rim.

Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

Down the stretch, Scott Brooks elected to go with Derek Fisher and Nick Collison alongside Durant-Westbrook-Harden. Fisher couldn’t buy a basket and was 2-for-11 from the floor and 1-for-5 on threes in the game. Collison plays hard but every now and then you can’t help but notice his undersized frame costing the Thunder on the 50-50 rebounds they easily consume via Serge Ibaka.

In the final overtime, the Thunder offense ran through Harden and executed with the same poetic feel that Harden brings to the floor every night. Harden put together a great all-around game tonight scoring 25 points to go with six rebounds and six assists.

It should be mentioned that in Ricky Rubio’s absence the Minnesota Timberwolves called upon 47 minutes of J.J. Barea tonight and he came through with his first career triple-double notching 25 points, 14 assists and 10 boards.

The Thunder have yielded many great box scores this regular season. It is yet to be decided if this is a good thing or not. One thing is certain and that is that the Thunder are the most exciting team in basketball this year.

Oklahoma City (36-12) is off tomorrow and then will square off in possibly their toughest test yet hosting the Miami Heat (35-11) Sunday night.

Russ Isabella-US PRESSWIRE

With this loss to the Utah Jazz, the Thunder are just .500 in their last 10 games following a seven game winning streak wrapped around the All-Star break.

After a combined 23 point first quarter for Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant, they went cold the rest of the game, scoring just 18 more points.

They turned it over 20 times, and only had 15 assists, with no one having more than three.

Even after this tough stretch, the Thunder are still 3.5 games ahead of the Spurs for first place in the West.

Kevin Durant- C-     18pts/6reb/2ast/1stl

Durant really struggled to find the bottom of the net tonight. It took him 22 shots to score 18 points, and he added in six turnovers. I don’t know what it was about the Jazz defense, but something got to him that made him miss shots.

Russell Westbrook- A     23pts/4reb/3ast

After hitting his first four shots, Westbrook cooled down a bit, not scoring at all in the 2^nd quarter. It seemed weird that Westbrook only took 11 shots. The way he was shooting, he could’ve taken a lot more and been effective. He deferred to Harden at times in the second half, and it may have been that, that led to his efficiency tonight.

Thabo Sefolosha- B-     1pt/1reb/1ast/1stl

Coach Brooks is still easing Thabo into the rotation, playing just 15 minutes tonight. He looked pretty good on the defensive end, and took just one shot. It was nice to see Thabo out there again.

Serge Ibaka- B+     13pts/10reb/1ast/4blk

Serge put up another solid game for the Thunder tonight. He is getting points more consistently, and was a monster in the paint, as always. Al Jefferson, being a little more mobile than most players Serge guards, was able to score on him a little more than the Thunder are used to. With the picked up offense, his defense has been slacking a little bit.

Kendrick Perkins- B-     5pts/8reb/1ast/1blk

It was pretty much an average game for Perk. Some solid defensive play, with little offense added. The Thunder don’t really need much more from him on most nights.

James Harden- B+     17pts/4reb/2ast/

James made some really nice passes with the second unit, especially to Nick Collison. He put in his usual 17 points, hitting three of six 3-point attempts. The four turnovers by Harden didn’t help the cause, as it seemed nobody could hold onto the ball tonight.

Rest of the Thunder- A

Nick Collison had a really solid game. He got wide open at times, for easy buckets, and played more quality defense. Daequan Cook hit two shots in the 2^nd quarter when the stars were struggling, and Reggie Jackson is making his case to remain the backup point guard, instead of bringing in Derek Fisher. We’ll see what the Thunder do with that situation within the next couple days.

Gary A. Vasquez-US PRESSWIRE

ESPN’s Marc Stein is reporting that the Oklahoma City Thunder and Miami Heat are the front-runners for signing veteran point guard Derek Fisher.

Fisher was traded from the Lakers after 13 seasons with the team to the Houston Rockets at the deadline last Thursday along with a first-round pick for Jordan Hill.

The Rockets have since waived Fisher making him available to anyone other than the Lakers once he clears waivers on Wednesday.

The Thunder have a sure need for a backup point guard since losing Eric Maynor earlier this season with an injury. Rookie Reggie Jackson has been playing in his place and has been unable to produce very much.

Fisher seems like an obvious upgrade at this spot for the Thunder. Fisher also has the same agent as Kevin Durant now.

The Thunder’s best four players are either 23 or 22. Fisher could definitely bring some leadership and experience to the team with the best record in the Western Conference.

The only concern for Thunder fans would be exactly how much Fisher would play. He averaged over 25 minutes per game with the Lakers this season but would likely be getting 15 or under with the Thunder.

Scott Brooks seems to have an affinity for players like Fisher and may even be prone to play him more. That might not be a great thing for the Thunder. It’s not like they’d want Fisher in their crunch time lineup.

Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

Russell Westbrook routinely plays over 40 minutes per game especially with Jackson as his backup. Westbrook really has no problem doing this and when the playoffs come around will probably be asked to play over 40 minutes per game.

It is unlikely that Fisher would do anything to interfere with a title run for the Thunder and may even extremely benefit it tootling Westbrook to some degree.

Imagine a lineup with Westbrook playing off the ball next to Fisher-Harden-Durant-Ibaka. That’s a decent closing lineup if the Thunder can afford to go small. I think I’d rather see Fisher on the floor instead of Daequan Cook in some cases.

I’m just not totally in love with the Thunder closing games by going small and if they add Fisher, I feel they will always do this. I love what Kendrick Perkins or Nick Collison can bring on defense and I don’t know if it is worth it to exchange them for smaller players who stretch the floor on offense.

I’m still more excited about Thabo Sefolosha becoming the fifth crunch time player because of his defense and ability to let the Thunder switch on perimeter players on defense.

We will find out Wednesday if Fisher chooses Oklahoma City. Miami is obviously another place he will consider and would probably be a better fit for him.

Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

Just like last time, the Thunder suffer a one point loss to the Houston Rockets, 104-103.

The game was close throughout, until the Thunder took an 11 point lead with 2:29 to go in the game.

Their only basket from there on out was a Russell Westbrook free throw. The Thunder were outscored 13-1 to end the game.

Kevin Durant had the opportunity to win the game, but missed a jumper.

Serge Ibaka got the rebound and was blocked on the Thunder’s final attempt to score.

Similarly to the game against the Cavs, they struggled to close out Rockets late in the game. Durant led the team in scoring with 28, followed by Westbrook’s 19.

Kevin Durant- A-     28pts/12reb/4ast/1stl

Durant had a pretty average game for him this season, scoring 28 points on 18 shots. He took advantage of the smaller Rockets lineup to grab 12 boards. The four turnovers did not help, but overall a solid game from Durant.

Russell Westbrook- C     19pts/4reb/4ast/1stl

Not a very good shooting night for Westbrook, shooting only 39% from the floor, missing all of his 3-point attempts. He also only had four of the team’s 22 assists. When Kendrick Perkins has more assists than Russell Westbrook, it is either a really good game, or a really bad game, the latter being the case last night.

Serge Ibaka- B-     12pts/8reb/1ast/2blk

When Chandler Parsons went to the four, at times, Ibaka was forced to go out to the perimeter to guard him. That spread out the defense, allowing the Rockets to have more options on offense. Ibaka is the key to the Thunder defense, holding down the paint, to give the guards a little more leeway. Again, Ibaka’s jumper has been great, as of late, he hit two more 15-footers this game.

Kendrick Perkins-B     2pts/4reb/5ast/1stl

Perkins played 30 more minutes of solid defense for the Thunder. His offense was nowhere to be found, but it’s never really been there, so I’ve given up on that. With the trade deadline looming, it doesn’t seem likely that anyone gets moved, but you never know what could happen.

James Harden- C+     16pts/4reb/7ast/1stl

It seems like Harden never shoots that well against the Rockets. They have good guards, defensively, and it looks like they have figured out how to guard him when he is the only threat on the court. He will always find ways to score, but he needs a little help off the bench to be more efficient.

Rest of the Thunder- B+

As a group, everyone else really stepped up their game last night. They combined for 24 points, which isn’t all that great, but a lot better than usual. Nazr Mohammed led the group with 10 points and 6 rebounds. Nick Collison put in some quality minutes, as well.

Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

After going up 85-82 with 3:14 to go in the game, the Thunder just shut down offensively.They didn’t score again until they were down eight with 24 seconds left, and by then, the game was over.

Kevin Durant led the Thunder in scoring with 23 points, Russell Westbrook has 19.

At points in the game, it seemed as if the Thunder were blowing out the Cavs, but the game was still close throughout. Oklahoma City turned the ball over 17 times, and were outrebounded 51-40 in the 96-90 loss.

On Saturday, the Thunder continue the home stand with the Charlotte Bobcats coming to town.

Kevin Durant- B+     23pts/8reb/8ast/3blk

Even in bad games, Durant finds ways to score. After making only one of his seven 3-point attempts, he still managed to shoot 50% overall. The team leader filled up the stat sheet again, adding in eight rebounds and assists, along with three blocks. Still, he needs to be more careful with the ball, turning it over six times.

Russell Westbrook- B-     19pts/2reb/4ast/1stl

The trade deadline is around the corner, and as always, Russell Westbrook’s name is getting thrown around. It is not likely that he gets traded, but there isn’t much doubt he would excel as the number one option. Westbrook only dished out four assists, but limited his turnovers to three.

Serge Ibaka- A     13pts/7reb/1ast/6blk

Serge had a sequence where he blocked three shots in a row. That kind of defensive presence creates fear of the paint for opposing teams. Not only did Ibaka lockdown the paint, he added 13 points on 6-8 shooting. His jumper is getting to be more reliable, and continues to raise his stock.

James Harden- B     15pts/6reb/2ast/2blk

Just kind of an “eh” game for James Harden, he contributed five field goals for 15 points, and six rebounds. It’s hard to take much from single games this season, with the lockout and all.

Kendrick Perkins- B-     6pts/4reb/1ast/2blk

I liked what I saw from Perkins tonight. His effort on the offensive end was much better than it usually is, hitting three shots. Perkins added two blocks, and just played an average game overall.

Rest of the Thunder- C-      

Nick Collison gave the Thunder 20 quality minutes, grabbing six boards and blocking two shots. Everybody else did nothing, as usual, and did not shoot well at all. The rest of the team shot just 32%, including Daequan Cook’s 1-6 from 3-point land. It was an incredibly average game for the Thunder, and the Cavs came to play.

Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook couldn’t throw it in the ocean and Dirk Nowitzki took over in the fourth quarter. Oklahoma City still hung on to win 95-91, good for their 13th straight home win this season.

Nowitzki scored 12 of his 27 points in the fourth quarter, all of which came off three-pointers. His final three put Dallas ahead 91-87 with 2:46 left in the game. The Mavericks wouldn’t score the rest of the game.

After a scrambled possession by Oklahoma City, James Harden found Westbrook on the right wing for a three-pointer to cut the Thunder deficit to a point with 2:24 to play.

With 46 seconds left, Durant drove by Jason Kidd and dished off in the paint to Serge Ibaka who drew a foul by Nowitzki and proceeded to hit both free throws to give Oklahoma City the lead.

The Thunder played great defense on the next possession shooting passing lanes and forcing Jason Terry to throw up a desperation jumper over Kendrick Perkins as the shot clock expired.

The Thunder made enough free throws the rest of the game to come away with the victory.

Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

Durant shot 6-of-18 in the game and Westbrook 6-of-20. Harden was the key in the fourth as he scored 12 points in the first four minutes of the final quarter.

The Thunder have traditionally had turnover problems when playing Dallas but tonight turned it over 15 times compared to 12 for the Mavericks.

The Thunder held a huge advantage at the line going 29-for-33 from the stripe while Dallas only got there 10 times.

Oklahoma City really played great defense all night as Nowitzki was visibly frustrated for most of the game with the kind of physical contact he received. Serge Ibaka and Nick Collison did a solid job on Nowitzki as Ibaka made six blocks in the game.

It seemed like a game the Thunder really wanted to win from the start. Durant and Westbrook looked focused and were maybe too intense and not loose enough for the game. Dallas has Oklahoma City’s number in some regard despite the Thunder taking the season series this year winning three of the four matchups.

The Thunder can feel good after this one though. They definitely have exercised some demons beating the Mavericks tonight and weathering the Nowitzki hot streak from beyond the arc in the fourth.

Oklahoma City (30-8) will host Phoenix (17-20) Wednesday night for their next game.

Matthew Emmons-US PRESSWIRE

Thunder (1-game losing streak)
106.2 Offensive Efficiency (2nd)
99.2 Defensive Efficiency (13th)
96.0 Pace (6th)
56.8 True Shooting % (1st)
51.5 Rebound Rate (4th)

Mavericks (1-game winning streak)
99.4 Offensive Efficiency (19th)
96.4 Defensive Efficiency (4th)
94.0 Pace (15th)
51.8 True Shooting % (17th)
49.4 Rebound Rate (20th)

The Thunder lost for the first time in eight games two days ago in Atlanta. The Hawks were without Joe Johnson but got a great game from Josh Smith and the Thunder couldn’t hit any shots down the stretch.

The Thunder had turnover problems in the game and settled for too many jumpers. Those are also the kind of things that the Mavericks might make the Thunder do tonight.

Tonight will be a rematch of the Western Conference Finals where the Thunder committed a ton of turnovers and didn’t have an answer for Dirk Nowitzki.

On paper, Dallas seems like a team that Oklahoma City should be able to handle and they have this season beating them two of three times including the first time when Kevin Durant did this.

Dallas has really hit their stride of late and is finally looking like the defending champs. Nowitzki scored a season-high 40 in their last game when they beat Utah 102-96.

Tonight, Nowitzki will have to contend with Serge Ibaka, Kendrick Perkins and Nick Collison to get his points. Ibaka is having the best season of his career at least in terms of defense as he leads the NBA in blocks per game. Ibaka had 10 blocks against the Mavs the last time these teams played.

The last time these teams played Oklahoma City won 95-86 and Durant and Russell Westbrook each had big games.

Durant had 23 and 13 while Westbrook led the team with 33 points but had six turnovers to just four assists.

Westbrook has been averaging more assists lately however and is taking better care of the ball as well.

Nowitzki went 2-of-15 in that game and scored just eight points. That probably won’t happen tonight so the Thunder should be ready to play a better all-around game.

A problem of late for Oklahoma City especially when they are on the road is finding scoring from anyone other than their Big Three.

James Harden plays great against Dallas but will need to be a playmaker as well with the second unit so that the Thunder can get some production from that lineup. Last time Harden struggled from the field but did have nine assists against Dallas.

The Thunder are 15-1 at home this season and are looking to record the franchise’s first 13-game home win streak with a win tonight.

Bob Donnan-US PRESSWIRE

The Oklahoma City Thunder have had their best start to the season this year since the Kevin Durant-era began. Oklahoma City has the best record in the West and tied for best in the league with Miami at 27-7 this year.

But the Thunder are far from perfect. There are many questions that need to be asked and answered about this team.

The staff at Thunderous Intentions is here to answer these questions for you. Below are the 10 most pressing questions about the Thunder this season and our responses:

What is Oklahoma City’s biggest weakness?

Andrew Kennedy: Post offense. I don’t see it as much of a weakness but rather that they just don’t do it enough. Durant is great in the post but just doesn’t go down their enough. Posting Durant and Westbrook needs to be a staple of the Thunder’s crunch time offense if they’re going to win a title.

Cody Brees: Turnovers. Offensive rebounding isn’t a good area either, mostly because the Thunder like to get out and run and Ibaka tries to flatten every ball that is shot in the paint. If the Thunder can at least limit their live ball turnovers that should give them a better chance to set up the defense being the playoffs become a much more half court game.

Blake Potash: The offensive post play is by far the Thunder’s weakest point. They can’t score in the paint against teams with two above-average big men. Kendrick Perkins is not the player he once was, and Serge Ibaka is still young, and developing post moves.

Are the Thunder going to have the same problems in the playoffs this year as they did last year?

AK: I don’t think so. I’m not as worried about the turnovers this year and definitely not as worried about Westbrook. I think the criticism he got for not getting the ball to Durant was too harsh and untrue. The OKC offense was very stagnant last postseason and has since improved. Durant and Westbrook are great friends too so I don’t think they will have any issues sharing the ball even in crunch time.

CB: Depends on the match up. If the Thunder play the Lakers and Westbrook has to watch Durant try to get Metta World Peace off him for 15 seconds before blowing by Derek Fisher, then yes. Durant has been a lot better at getting to his spots inside the arc which should help him get more shots. But I could see a stronger physical defender still giving Durant a lot of problems come playoff time.

BP: It looks like the ball movement has improved a bit this year, but the offense still seems rather one-dimensional. Still, that one dimension is very good, and can get the Thunder to the NBA Finals, depending on matchups. Westbrook needs to be more of a point guard than a scorer to be more successful when the playoffs come around.

Spruce Derden-US PRESSWIRE

How much does Oklahoma City miss Eric Maynor?

AK: They miss him a lot. If Maynor never got injured than this Oklahoma City team may have won a few more games already and definitely more this season. There are a lot of games now where Westbrook has to come back very quickly after coming out of the game because Reggie Jackson isn’t Eric Maynor. Maynor was one of the best backup points in the league and the only actual point guard on the Thunder roster. If not for James Harden’s emergence as the second unit playmaker this injury could have been drastic for OKC.

CB: About as much as LeBron misses his hairline. I wrote an article earlier about the struggles of rookie point guard Reggie Jackson and how the Thunder miss Maynor, and unfortunately Jackson hasn’t improved too much. The one diamond in the rough is that this might prevent a team from throwing Mike Conley money at Maynor next year when he’s a restricted free agent.

BP: Eric Maynor was a key part of the bench unit with James Harden, giving the Thunder two options off the bench. Since his injury, the non-Harden bench has been failing to make impacts on games, and Harden has had to dominate the ball when Durant and Westbrook aren’t on the floor. Maynor’s absence may not be the reason the Thunder don’t win the Finals, but he sure is missed.

What would be the best addition the Thunder could make?

AK: The Thunder need to figure out their fifth guy for crunch time. Durant-Westbrook-Harden-Ibaka is great but between Perkins, Cook and Sefolosha it may not be enough to win a title. A better spot-up shooter than Cook or athletic slasher of some sort would be great for this team.

CB: Probably Eric Maynor. Once the playoffs start teams won’t be forces to go to their bench so much with actual days off between games. I still wouldn’t mind a 1-2 combo guard off the bench that can shoot. Mostly because Jackson and Ivey have been terrible.

BP: If the Thunder could make a move to get Pau Gasol, their Finals hopes would become a lot more realistic. I doubt they would want to move Ibaka and/or Harden, so all the Thunder can do is try and get a power forward or center that can give them some depth and scoring in the paint. I can’t see the Thunder making any trades though.

Are Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook the most lethal one-two punch in the NBA?

AK: Yes because they complement each other better than LeBron and Wade. LeBron and Wade basically do the same thing as each other. Durant and Westbrook are a little different. Are they as talented overall as LeBron and Wade? Maybe not yet. But I wouldn’t take any other duo in the league right now moving forward.

CB: I would say yes based on the variety of ways those two can score. They can both get to the rim, shoot a lot of free throws, have a good mid range game and can hit you from deep. The other key reason is LeBron and Wade are shooting 35 percent and 33 percent respectively from the field this year in clutch situations. Thunder in the clutch? Durant is shooting at 43 percent and Westbrook an even greater 50 percent.

BP: In a few years this may be the case, but LeBron and Wade are by far the best one-two punch in the NBA. Westbrook still needs to learn how to work well with Durant during clutch moments. The shot distribution is a little off of what it needs to be to make this a very efficient combo.

Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

Do the Thunder have enough scoring options to win a title?

AK: Yes. I wrote earlier last week how the scrutiny about this was a little harsh. They definitely have enough scoring prowess the only issue is if they can score in as many different ways as may be necessary to win a title this year.

CB: Options? Yes. Balance is what I am not sure about. If you watched the finals last year in clutch time it was give the ball to Dirk and get out of the way. Same should be for Durant this year. The problem might be getting to clutch time without running Durant into the ground. The Thunder are going to need about 50 points a game from Ibaka, Cook, and the bench if they want to be an elite offensive team.

BP: Yes, and no. Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, and James Harden can all put up plenty of points, and take control of the game. That can work getting to the Finals, but if they want to win it, Ibaka will need to show a little more offensive prowess.

What needs to happen for Kevin Durant to win the MVP?

AK: If the Heat slip up some and the Thunder finish with the best record in the NBA then Durant has a chance. It’ll be just like Derrick Rose winning last year. Durant has been on the rise in terms of scoring of late too. If he finishes the year averaging 30 a game then he’ll have to average around 33 a night in the second half of the season. That will be impressive and won’t go unnoticed.

CB: LeBron gets hit by a bus.

BP: LeBron James needs to get hurt, or forget how to play basketball. Surprisingly under the radar, LeBron is having one of the best seasons the NBA has ever seen. It doesn’t look like he is going to slow down any, and unless voters penalize him for being on the same team as Dwyane Wade, LeBron is going to win this year’s MVP.

Who is the team to beat in the Western Conference?

AK: The Thunder are and only because Dallas isn’t the same team as last year. People forget how close this Thunder team was to making it to the Finals last year. They have the best record in the conference and deserved to be recognized as the best team in it.

CB: The Thunder, but not by much. If you made me bet I would still take the field, but the improvements that KD and Russ have made this year with scoring efficiency should really make the difference down the stretch.

BP: The Thunder. With the best current record in the West, the Thunder have control of the conference, and are the front-runners to make the Finals at the moment. Durant and Westbrook can both take over games, and are impossible matchups for the other contenders.

Steve Dykes-US PRESSWIRE

Which team in the Western Conference would be the worst playoff matchup for the Thunder?

AK: Portland. There would be nothing worse for Oklahoma City than having to play Portland in round one. They are such a physical team on defense and when healthy have a lot of tools that give the Thunder fits.

CB: Portland scares me the most. Perkins doesn’t do much since Camby won’t shoot much. Ibaka has problems guarding power forward’s with range. Gerald Wallace is the type of big, strong, athletic defender that could give Durant problems.

BP: The Los Angeles Lakers. Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol are tough matchups for Ibaka and Perkins, on both ends of the floor. The Thunder big men would struggle to score, and they would have to rely and Durant, Westbrook, and Harden to carry them through the series. Fortunately, the Lakers don’t have a very strong defensive backcourt, and Harden played a great defensive game against Kobe in their last meeting. The Thunder would still be the favorite, but you can never count out Kobe Bryant in the playoffs.

How far will the Thunder go in the playoffs this year?

AK: I think they make it to the NBA Finals. After that it depends who they play if they win or not. I think the Thunder can beat Chicago in a 7-game series but I’m not sure about Miami yet. If I had to pick one team to win the title right now I’d pick Oklahoma City based on the fact that I think they have the best chance of any team in the league simply to make it to the Finals.

CB: As far and Durant and Westbrook take them. Sorry for the cliché answer but it’s the truth. If they are both on their A game the Thunder are unbeatable. Miami appears to be the biggest hurdle right now, but a lot can change before the trade deadline.

BP: The Thunder will make the NBA Finals and lose to the Heat/Bulls. They are just one piece away from taking that next step, but for now, they don’t match up well with either team that will come out of the east. The Thunder won’t fare well against these elite defenses, and don’t have the defense themselves to slow down Rose or LeBron-Wade.

David Butler II-US PRESSWIRE

Thunder (3-game winning streak)
106.1 Offensive Efficiency (2nd)
99.2 Defensive Efficiency (14th)
96.2 Pace (4th)

Celtics (4-game losing streak)
97.9 Offensive Efficiency (23rd)
95.3 Defensive Efficiency (3rd)
91.0 Pace (29th)

The Thunder have been hot of late and the Celtics haven’t. The Celtics have had to deal with a lot of injuries and other reason for players missing games and have lost their last four. Kevin Garnett missed the last two games for personal reasons but is expected to return tonight. Rajon Rondo will also be out tonight serving the second game of a two-game suspension from earlier this week for throwing a ball at a referee. The odds are really stacked against the Celtics and the Thunder should have no problems tonight. James Harden and Nick Collison sat out two nights ago for the Thunder but neither had serious injuries and both could play tonight.

Thunder keys to the game

1. Durant and Westbrook

No duo has been hotter in the NBA than Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook and there’s no reason they shouldn’t continue to ride this hot streak right into the All-Star Break. The duo each scored 31 points in the Thunder’s win over New Orleans Monday night and combined for 91 the night before against Denver. In the first meeting against Boston this season when the Thunder won 97-88, Durant scored 28 and Westbrook 26, including a barrage of threes to close out the Celtics late in the fourth quarter. Tonight will be impressive to watch Westbrook as Avery Bradley will likely be assigned the task of guarding him. Bradley is one of the better defenders in the league and an athlete but he will just look like a poor man’s Westbrook tonight.

2. Fast break

The Celtics are one of the older teams in the league and play the second slowest pace. The Thunder are at their bets when they get out and run and without Rondo tonight Boston should really have trouble trying to keep up with the Thunder. Look for the Thunder to run every chance they get even more so than usual tonight.

3. Contesting every shot

It sounds simple but it is really important when playing to Boston to sell out and get a hand up on every shot. The Celtics are the worst team in the league on the offensive glass so it all comes down to stopping that first option on offense when playing them. Without Rondo the Celtics shouldn’t be able to get as many good looks as they normally would. Paul Pierce played his bets game of the season up to that point the first time these teams met and the load will be even heavier for him tonight. Oklahoma City just needs to make everything difficult and they should have no trouble blowing out Boston tonight.

Prediction: Oklahoma City wins 103-79.

Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

So far this season no duo has scored more points than Oklahoma City’s Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. Durant is averaging 27.7 points per game and Westbrook 23.4 for a combined 51.1.

The two have both been very hot of late with each scoring 31 in the Thunder’s 101-93 win over the Hornets last night. Two nights ago the duo combined for 91 against the Nuggets.

Is it too much? Do they really need more scoring options to win a title?

The third leading scorer for Oklahoma City is James Harden averaging 16.8 points per game off the bench. Harden is basically a starter however and actually leads the NBA in fourth quarter minutes per game.

After Harden the Thunder scoring really drops off with Serge Ibaka averaging just 8.3 points per game and then Daequan Cook at 5.6.

In a podcast with Bob Ryan last week, Bill Simmons discussed how he felt the Thunder just didn’t have enough scoring options to win a title this year. He suggested adding a piece like Ray Allen — just as an example, not a likely move — would be a perfect fit for the team.

The issue arises in crunch time when Oklahoma City struts out Kendrick Perkins alongside the obvious Durant-Westbrook-Harden-Ibaka core. Perkins is not a threat on offense to score at all but does provide an underrated value when it comes to setting screens for Durant and banging for rebounds.

The Thunder will play small sometimes down the stretch with Durant at the four and Cook on the floor instead of Perkins, or Thabo Sefolosha when healthy. This lineup makes the Thunder much weaker on defense but with more spot-up shooters.

But I think Simmons may really be nitpicking with the Thunder this year. Sure you can question things like Westbrook not always making the best decisions or that they are too much of a jump-shooting team but to say that they don’t have enough scoring options simply isn’t true.

There’s only one Miami Heat out there with three true scoring options but the Thunder are now the closest thing to that with Harden’s emergence this year. And who says having three scoring options is even a good thing? Isn’t it better to have one or two guys who are going to create their own shot and then surround them with a bunch of shooters and rebounders? Isn’t that what the Thunder have?

Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

The real thing the Thunder need to work on is getting more scoring out of the post. They don’t need to look for someone else to give them this but rather have Durant and Westbrook look to score down there more often.

They definitely have done this more often this season but they can still do it more. Westbrook is bigger than almost any point guard that is matched up with him in the league and Durant can get his shot off over anyone. Durant is already trying to emulate Dirk Nowitzki’s game in this regard.

The Thunder have also already figured out how to run one of the better crunch time offenses in the NBA with the Durant-Westbrook pick-and-pop that they go to almost every game now. This play accentuates the strengths of Durant and Westbrook and as long as they make good decisions, is completely unstoppable.

The notion that the Thunder don’t have enough scoring on the floor to win a title is not true. Having Ibaka as the fourth scorer averaging 8.6 points per game is right around where every championship team’s fourth scorer averages.

If Westbrook worked on becoming more of a playmaker and Ibaka started averaging double-digits would the Thunder become a better team? Probably. But right now that isn’t their identity.

Durant and Westbrook are 23 years old. Harden and Ibaka are 22. No one’s questioning that they have time to improve but championship windows can come and go and don’t care how old you are. Only time will tell if Oklahoma City’s formula proves to be the right one.

Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

The Oklahoma City Thunder won this game in the first half and didn’t blow it in the second.

The Thunder led 31-19 after one then 60-38 at halftime as New Orleans shot 12-for-42 in the first two quarters while the Thunder shot 56 percent.

Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook would lead the way again each scoring 31 points. Scott Brooks looked like he wanted to rest his stars more, taking Durant out early in the first quarter, but couldn’t afford to as New Orleans made the obligatory NBA run in the third.

James Harden and Nick Collison both sat out this game so the Thunder bench was not as potent as normal. The second unit did step up for some parts with seven points in the first quarter and 18 for the game.

With the poor shooting by New Orleans, Serge Ibaka and Kendrick Perkins handled the glass for Oklahoma City as each grabbed 13 boards. Ibaka blocked three shots while Perkins swatted six.

This game was decided early and the score does not reflect how easy of a victory it was for the Thunder. Whenever the Hornets made a run and cut into the lead, Brooks simply brought back Durant and Westbrook and they started scoring again without missing a beat.

This is the strength of Oklahoma City this year that is different from the last two. They play like veterans now and like a team that’s been together forever. This is actually true in some sense despite their best players being only 23.

It’s a great sign of growth for this team. They definitely aren’t staying the same.

The Thunder (25-7) are off tomorrow night before hosting Boston (15-16) Wednesday night. That game can be seen on ESPN.

Richard Rowe-US PRESSWIRE

Thunder (2-game winning streak)
106.2 Offensive Efficiency (2nd)
99.4 Defensive Efficiency (14th)
96.0 Pace (5th)

Hornets (3-game winning streak)
96.3 Offensive Efficiency (26th)
101.9 Defensive Efficiency (20th)
90.4 Pace (last)

The Thunder are coming off an amazing win last night in overtime against the Denver Nuggets 124-118. Kevin Durant scored a career-high 51 points. Russell Westbrook scored 40 points and Serge Ibaka had a triple-double with 14 points, 15 rebounds and 11 blocks. Durant and Westbrook became the first teammates to score 50 and 40 points in a game since Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen. The Thunder have beaten New Orleans twice already this season. Durant is averaging 27.0 points per game against them. Jarrett Jack and Carl Landry are the two Hornets players that hurt the Thunder the most and both will be out tonight with injuries. Somehow however the Hornets are on a three-game winning streak and are the only team that beat the Jeremy Lin-led Knicks since Linsanity began.

Thunder keys to the game

1. Let down game

The Thunder had a great win last night in overtime and tonight they play a pretty poor team. This game is a good candidate to be a “let down” game for the Thunder. They’re probably going to be a little worn down from last night so we’ll see if New Orleans is able to take advantage. The Thunder have surprised many times this season with their ability to easily comeback in games after falling behind early. They are just so talented that I don’t think they will suffer too much tonight after the overtime win last night.

2. Rebounding

The Thunder have fallen back into their old ways lately struggling on the glass. New Orleans is the ninth best team in the NBA in terms of rebound rate and could give the Thunder some trouble in that department. Kendrick Perkins hasn’t been playing great lately so the Thunder might play more small ball and go with Nick Collison some. Combine that with the fact that Ibaka is blocking everything lately and the Hornets might have a chance to do some damage on the offensive glass tonight. Durant is one of the best defensive rebounders in the NBA but doesn’t get his boards by boxing out a ton. He will need to be ready to mix it up down low and the Thunder might need double-digit boards from him tonight to win.

3. James Harden

The Thunder got great statistical nights from Durant, Westbrook and Ibaka last night but Harden actually struggled quite a bit in the game and scored only 10 points. Harden is usually great at home and expect a big bounce back night from him tonight. The second unit wasn’t an advantage for the Thunder against the Nuggets but really should be against the Hornets. Harden should have a big night running the second unit tonight and expect the Thunder to pull away in the second quarter when he’s in.

Prediction: Oklahoma City wins 105-87.

Mark D. Smith-US PRESSWIRE

Thunder (1-game winning streak)
105.7 Offensive Efficiency (2nd)
99.0 Defensive Efficiency (14th)
96.1 Pace (4th)

Nuggets (2-game losing streak)
104.6 Offensive Efficiency (4th)
100.9 Defensive Efficiency (17th)
97.7 Pace (1st)

This is the first time Oklahoma City will play Denver this year. The two teams met in the first round of the playoffs last season in a series that Oklahoma City took 4-1. Kevin Durant was impossible for the Nuggets to cover in that series as he averaged 32.4 points per game including two 41-point games. This season the Nuggets started off hot but have lost nine of their last 12 games. They still are one of the best teams by the stats in the NBA but clinging to a playoff spot in the West.

Thunder keys to the game

1. Points in the paint

The Denver Nuggets are the best team in the NBA at scoring in the paint and lead the NBA in taking shots at the rim attempting 33.0 per game, 5.3 more than the second team. Denver does this by spreading the floor well and penetrating with their point guards Ty Lawson and Andre Miller. It is unsure if Kendrick Perkins will return to the lineup yet tonight so the burden of protecting the paint will lie largely with Serge Ibaka, who is leading the NBA in blocks per game this season. Expect the Thunder to go small a lot in this game and if they do with Nick Collison playing center, the Nuggets may be able to take advantage and get into the paint a lot.

2. Free throws

The Nuggets and Thunder are the two best teams in the league at getting to the line. This is the case for the Thunder because of their star power with Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden. Denver gets to the line because you never know who is going to be shooting for them. The team that shoots the most free throws in this game will surely have the advantage since both rely so heavily on getting to the line. Durant averaged over double-digit free throw attempts against the Nuggets in their playoff series last year so should have no trouble doing the same tonight.

3. Transition

Both teams are also two of the best at scoring on the break this year. Oklahoma City has really turned up their transition game lately as their defensive rebounding has been improving. Sometimes transition production is a result of which way the basketball bounces so whichever team is getting the most opportunities on the break should be the one leading on the scoreboard. The Thunder are going to need to play sound defense and have good positioning to rebound against the Nuggets so that they can get out and run.

Prediction: Oklahoma City wins 108-100.

Nazr Mohammed will start in place of Perkins. Nick Collison will surely play a ton of minutes tonight a he usually does against the Warriors and we may also even be treated to a Cole Aldrich sighting if necessary.

Thabo Sefolosha is also still out tonight and has missed the last 11 games now including tonight. Daequan Cook will remain the starting two-guard and will need to do a better job tonight checking Monta Ellis, who scored 48 points the last time these two teams met.

Mark J. Rebilas-US PRESSWIRE

For the second time this month, Kevin Durant had multiple attempts to tie or take the lead in the final 15 seconds of the fourth quarter. Unfortunately he came up short on all three shots while trailing 96-95 to the Houston Rockets. Russell Westbrook just missed a tip in off Durant’s final try at the basket. The Thunder dropped their third game in the past seven on Wednesday night.

After going 6-for-22 from the field in the first quarter, the Thunder overcame a 16-point deficit to come within one by halftime. Durant, Westbrook, and James Harden then took over for the Thunder offense, combining for 44 of the team’s 51 second half points. Despite their efforts, the poor 3-point shooting and high number of turnovers did the Thunder in for the seventh time this season. They cling to a 1.5 game lead in the West over the streaking Spurs, who have won nine straight.

The two All-Stars on the team continue to put up big numbers. Durant and Westbrook were practically identical this game. Durant took and made just one more shot than Westbrook, going 12-for-26 for 33 points, and 11-for-25 for 26, respectively, and both grabbed eight boards. The inefficiency between the two could be contributed to the early deficit and the late game struggles, they failed to score in the final 2:44 of the game. Adding in Harden (17 points, four assists), the three stars on the Thunder contributed 15 of the 21 turnovers on the game, while only dishing out nine assists.

The Thunder need to get the bench more involved so they don’t have to rely on Durant, Westbrook, and Harden so much. Without Harden, the bench is averaging only 12 points per game in losses, including 11 tonight (eight for Nick Collison and three for Reggie Jackson). Spreading out the scoring relieves pressure from the stars, and gives them a little more room to do their thing.

The Thunder may be able to continue to play a three-man game against non-playoff teams but when the playoffs come along, they are going to need to find more efficient ways to score and stop turning the ball over at such a high rate. It will be hard to overcome 21 turnover games against the top tier defenses in the league when it really counts.

Still the Thunder had multiple shots to win the game in the end. I don’t believe in moral victories but they shouldn’t feel too bad about this loss. They look to get back on track when they return home to play the Warriors Friday night at 7:00 P.M. CST.

Russ Isabella-US PRESSWIRE

It looked like it was going to be tougher than this. After one quarter the Utah Jazz led Oklahoma City 30-27 and looked like a team that was ready to play tonight.

The Thunder were just too talented, as they so often are for their opponents.

Russell Westbrook had the best game for Oklahoma City scoring 28 points on 10-of-20 shooting. He also had three assists, six rebounds and five steals.

Westbrook was especially efficient with his pull-up jumper in the game and when he’s hitting that shot, he’s just an impossible cover.

A real key to the Thunder victory was the production from their bigs. Oklahoma City usually relies almost entirely on Westbrook, Kevin Durant and James Harden to score but tonight got 36 points from their four big men.

Serge Ibaka led the way with 16 points, 11 rebounds and two blocks. Kendrick Perkins added a rare double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Then Nick Collison and Nazr Mohammed combined for 10 points and seven rebounds off the bench.
(more…)

For the second time this season, Serge Ibaka tied his career-high with 10 blocks in a game. He first did it against the Dallas Mavericks and again last night versus the Sacramento Kings.

Ibaka has really come on off late avergaing 4.8 blocks per game in the month of February and now leading the NBA averaging 3.0 blocks per game.

When the season started, this Ibaka was not really present. It’s very refreshing for Thunder fans to see Ibaka now playing at this elite level.

Ibaka combined with Nick Collison who is one of the best in the league at taking charges in the paint combine for a very formidable paint defense for the Thunder.

The Thunder disappointingly lost last night but I still feel like more and more this season we are seeing why this Thunder team is so good. The play of Ibaka will surely by integral in the Thunder’s playoff run later on this season.

The Thunder were fortunate last night to escape Golden State with the victory. They won even though Monta Ellis scored a career-high 48 and David Lee had a triple-double.

That’s two straight wins for the Thunder on the road in close games coming down to the wire. The Thunder have emerged as one of the best teams in the league in winning close games, 4-1 in games decided by five points or less while the Warriors and Blazers both have been poor at closing out games this year.

Last night, the Thunder got a big lift from Russell Westbrook who scored 31 points and had seven assists but also nine turnovers. Westbrook went 12-of-21 from the field, 4-for-5 on shots at the rim and 6-for-10 on shots from 16-to-23 feet.

The percentage Westbrook shot on long twos was especially big for the Thunder. Westbrook can get that shot any time he wants but doesn’t shoot too high of a percentage on the year, 39 percent on the year.
(more…)