In week 14 of NBA action the OKC Thunder produced a 3-1 effort which most of the National Scribes rewarded in their power rankings.
The OKC Thunder are almost to the end of their hellacious January stretch, but they didn’t make it through the month before suffering a devastating injury.
Enes Kanter will miss the next two months recovering from a broken arm after he broke it slamming it against a chair out of frustration.
The OKC Thunder acquitted themselves nicely last week going 3-1 including a good win in Utah and their lone loss coming on the road to the defending champs. Russell Westbrook got his 22nd, 23rd and 24th triple doubles of the season, but the biggest moment of the week came against Dallas when Enes Kanter broke his arm.
Kanter breaking his arm is unfortunate and the manner in which he did it is regrettable, but ultimately I don’t think there are any big takeaways from it. He is not a hothead who has a problem that finally caught up to him, nor is he an out of control personality that is a detriment to the locker room. He is a player who made a stupid mistake and is suffering the consequences.
The OKC Thunder will have to make up the loss of Kanter collectively and his absence could cost the Thunder a couple games going forward. The bench built it’s identity around Kanter and trying to find a different one could take time. It could cost them a game or two in the future.
For now let’s see how the OKC Thunder graded out in this weeks power rankings.
NBA.com John Schuhmann
John Schuhmann moves the Thunder up two spots to number seven in his rankings after their 3-1 week. He also has them as the team to watch this week.
"Enes Kanter was playing pretty well and the Thunder picked up a couple of good road wins in Utah (on Russell Westbrook’s game-winner) and New Orleans before Kanter punched a chair and broke his arm on Thursday. His absence means more minutes for Joffrey Lauvergne and maybe more rebounds for Westbrook, who picked up triple-double No. 24 in Cleveland on Sunday and who has shot less than 40 percent in seven of his last nine games. Only Dwyane Wade has a lower effective field goal percentage on at least 200 shots in January. After spending most of the month on the road and finishing it off in San Antonio on Tuesday, the Thunder will play nine of their 11 February games at home."
Sports Illustrated – Jeremy Woo
Jeremy moved the Thunder up one spot in his rankings, slotting them at number ten.
"Enes Kanter breaking his hand while punching a chair is exactly what the Thunder didn’t need. It could certainly bolster Russell Westbrook’s MVP campaign, however. Look for his numbers and workload to rise and OKC’s bench units to struggle to score."
CBS – Matt Moore
Moore was less impressed with the Thunder’s week than others and held them in the number ten spot in his rankings.
"OKC might have handled the tough run of schedule at full strength, but being without first Steven Adams and now Enes Kanter, the structure’s having trouble holding. The schedule doesn’t lighten up until after the All-Star Break so they’ll have to figure something out quick."
ESPN – Marc Stein
Marc Stein was also lukewarm on the OKC Thunder’s week holding them steady at twelve in his rankings.
"The Thunder actually have a chance to escape this most brutal of Januarys with a winning record if they can find a way to win in San Antonio on Tuesday night. But the month has been particularly brutal, as feared, when you dig into some of Russell Westbrook‘s recent numbers and/or watch the painful clip of Enes Kanter fracturing his forearm by foolishly punching a chair on his own bench. OKC is still an impressive 18-6 overall when Westbrook posts a triple-double, but be advised that Sunday was the Thunder’s third double-digit loss in a triple-double game from Angry Russ in a span of 17 days. Until January 2017, OKC had never lost by double digits when Westbrook triple-doubled. The good news: Westbrook & Co. get to play at home for 11 of their 13 games in February."
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The OKC Thunder finish their brutal January on the road tonight in San Antonio. it will be the first time they play the Spurs this season. They will then come home and finish the week with three home games against Chicago, Memphis and Portland. Check back next week to see how these games affected them in the power rankings.