Thunder move to 2-0 with Cam Payne, beat Bulls 109-94

Jan 9, 2017; Chicago, IL, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook (0) celebrates during the first quarter of the game against the Chicago Bulls at United Center. Credit: Caylor Arnold-USA TODAY Sports /

The OKC Thunder came, saw and conquered the Chicago Bulls for their second win in as many games with Cameron Payne.

All praise goes to Cameron Payne. Sorry Russell Westbrook, you’re 21-14-9 stat line was inconsequential. Steven Adams’ 22 points on 14 shots wasn’t THAT impactful. Andre Roberson’s defense on Jimmy Butler? Meaningless.

That’s because Payne is BACK.

For the second game in a row the Thunder blew out their opponent, this time with a 109-94 victory over the Bulls. OKC dominated from start to finish; the starters opened up a six-point lead after one quarter, then the bench (led by Payne) pushed the lead up to 17 in the second.

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Obviously this game wasn’t won by Payne, but his influence on the second-unit was so important in the second quarter. Finally they have a true point guard to distribute to weapons like Enes Kanter and Alex Abrines. And distribute is what he (and the rest of the Thunder for that matter) did.

Payne finished with 0 points on 0-6 shooting, but recorded 4 rebounds and 3 assists in only 15 minutes of play. Oklahoma City set a season-high with 30 team assists on 47 made field goals. It was beautiful basketball.

Oh and this happened.

Please put Jerami Grant in the dunk contest. Please. I’m begging you. Now back to basketball.

The focus was to pound the paint, and that’s exactly what happened. The aforementioned Stache Bros combined for 42 points on 20-25 shooting; efficiency like that from two players is nearly impossible to stop.

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On the other side, the Bulls just didn’t look comfortable playing with the athletic Thunder. Jimmy Butler was a gametime decision with an unspecified illness and Roberson made him look sick on the court. The all-star scored one point, yes ONE POINT, on 0-6 shooting. He failed to have a single clean look, and the lowkey MVP had a lot to do with that.

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Dwayne Wade did his best to keep the Bulls in the game with 22 points, but this isn’t 2010. Russell Westbrook was the best player on the court and the Thunder had the better supporting cast as well.

Remember: two games with Cameron Payne, two blowout Dubs. 66-16 here we come!!

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