OKC Thunder’s Perfect Carmelo Anthony play book model is 2008 Paul Pierce
By Gideon Lim
Digging behind the scenes
The 2007-2008 Boston Celtics recently had a reunion with Kevin Garnett on Area 21. Towards the end, Paul Pierce, the team captain, talked about how injuries hurt the Los Angeles Clippers’ playoff chances. In response, Rajon Rondo quietly retorted, “Don’t give me that, P. everybody goes through stuff.”
This was Rajon Rondo, the man who had a reputation for being a trouble-maker in the locker room. Yet, his reply to Paul Pierce was arguably the reason why the Celtics won the title.
The Boston Celtics were known for their toughness and strong team culture, where nobody was too high up the rankings to be corrected. Surely, if the OKC Thunder want to win this year, the team must learn from the Celtics’ strong team culture.
Ubuntu
Even after all these trades, Russell Westbrook remains the heartbeat of the OKC Thunder. Shaping team culture starts with him. But, he must pay close attention to which title-winning Celtic he is modelling his attitude after.
Sometimes, Russell Westbrook resembles Rajon Rondo. Brilliant distributor and unforgiving competitor, sometimes to the point of alienating rather than inspiring. If he carries this Rondo-like mentality this season, the OKC Thunder could end up having a very fragmented locker room.
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Instead, Russell Westbrook should learn from Kevin Garnett’s leadership style. Kevin Garnett was one of the league’s fiercest competitors. But at the end of the day, KG managed to bring the Celtics together enough. Likewise, if the team can get everybody onto the same page, the OKC Thunder should have more than enough talent for a championship run.
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Final verdict on Carmelo Anthony
On the court, Billy Donovan should feed Carmelo Anthony similar plays to what Paul Pierce enjoyed under his on Big 3.
In the locker room, however, the Russell Westbrook-Carmelo Anthony partnership could come down to the Brodie. Westbrook will need to avoid his inner Rondo tendencies, and mimic Kevin Garnett’s way of being inclusive in his intensity. Do that, and come May 2018, the OKC Thunder could be looking like the Celtics – with the sweet taste of champagne reigning down in Chesapeake Arena, finally.
To quote the Big Ticket, ‘Anything is possible.’
Thunder Up.
Reviewing the rest of the Film Festival series:
Taj Gibson | Doug McDermott | Domantas Sabonis | Jerami Grant | Alex Abrines | Enes Kanter | Steven Adams | Andre Roberson
OKC Thunder’s Perfect Carmelo Anthony play book model is 2008 Paul Pierce