Thunderous Intentions
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Five possible rotations with the Enes Kanter injury

By Tony Heim

Dec 27, 2016; Miami, FL, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jerami Grant (9) dunks the ball against the Miami Heat during the first half at American Airlines Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 27, 2016; Miami, FL, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jerami Grant (9) dunks the ball against the Miami Heat during the first half at American Airlines Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports /
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Jan 15, 2017; Sacramento, CA, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder forward Andre Roberson (21) controls the ball against the Sacramento Kings during the first quarter at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 15, 2017; Sacramento, CA, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder forward Andre Roberson (21) controls the ball against the Sacramento Kings during the first quarter at Golden 1 Center. Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports /

2. Andre Roberson loses his second-unit minutes

How does it make you feel to hear that Roberson averages more minutes per game than The Big Kiwi? It’s only .6 per game, but that’s still not a good feeling. If there’s not a dominant scorer on the court there is no reason for Roberson to be on the court. And most benches don’t have a dominant perimeter scorer worthy of Andre’s attention.

With Kanter out the Thunder bench will almost always be without a scoring-oriented player-they are going to have to rely on off-ball movement, quick passing and good decision-making to score. Roberson’s awful shooting makes him impossible to play in a system like that because teams can prey on that when switching on screens and playing help defense.

Must Read: The origin story of Alex Abrines

Roberson’s four-six extra minutes should go exclusively to Alex Abrines. Every sharpshooter that OKC brings in ultimately loses his touch (i.e. Anthony Morrow) but that hasn’t happened to Abrines. What keeps him off the court is his defense. Well if he’s playing with Adams as I’ve hypothesized than he’s got a defensive anchor he rarely ever gets to play with.

Abrines’ 14.5 minutes per game just aren’t enough for the rookie to develop quick enough. At 23 the Spaniard Sharpshooter is a relatively old rookie, so the Thunder should be trying to develop him as quickly as possible. Plus who doesn’t want to see more of this?

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