OKC Thunder players rank among leaders in preseason
Several players on OKC Thunder rank in the leader boards of preseason statistics.
While 24 teams entered the night to complete the 2017 preseason the OKC Thunder wrapped up their truncated schedule Tuesday in Denver. The team is preparing for the regular season tip-off versus former OKC Thunder player Enes Kanter and his Knicks next Thursday October 19. Billy Donovan will have his players focused on tweaking certain aspects of the game until then.
Among the areas the OKC Thunder need to work on is building better chemistry, particularly for the new big three. Other areas the squad will want to shore up is their overall offensive flow, offensive rebounding and rotation specifics.
In spite of the need to improve. there are several areas the team can point to as successes and players showing adeptness in specific areas of the game.
Following the completion of preseason games the leader boards point to some optimistic results for the OKC Thunder players and team ranking. Granted this small sample size shouldn’t be read into too deeply, but it does offer insight into expectations. CBS Sports provides the breakdown by individual stat category.
Scoring:
Paul George ranks third with 20.2 points per game. Carmelo Anthony comes in at 27th with 15.8 points per match. And, last season’s scoring champion Russell Westbrook comes in at 73rd with 12.7 points per game. Presumably Westbrook will score a much higher game average, but these early numbers do seem to point to the comments the triad have been stating which is they’ll go with the hot hand.
Assists:
Of all the preseason statistics this category may see the most fluctuation come regular season. Russell Westbrook ranks seventh with 6.0 assists per game and is sure to see that number rise as he develops chemistry with this OK3 teammates. Houston’s backcourt is expected to dominate. and showed up in preseason finishing first (Harden – 10 apg) and third (Paul – 8.3). Yet two the Rockets games featured huge stat busting totals due to games versus the Shanghai Sharks and New York Knicks.
Rebounds:
Big man Steven Adams ranks tied for 19th with 6.8 rebounds per game when you factor in ties. The surprise is the other two OKC Thunder players who also rank in the top 25. Paul George like Adams also ranks 19th with 6.8 rebounds per game. Carmelo Anthony ranks 21st with 6.5 rebounds per game.
Moving forward, Adams should easily maintain these numbers if not surpass them. Those assuming George’s rebound average is simply a preseason happy accident may be in for a surprise. Over the course of his seven NBA seasons George has only had mediocre rebound numbers in his rookie campaign and when he returned for a quick 6-game stint following his horrific injury. In both those seasons PG 13 registered 3.7 rebounds per game. In his five other seasons he’s averaged 6.7 rebounds per game.
More from Thunderous Intentions
- Stealing one player from every Southwest Division team for the OKC Thunder
- Should the OKC Thunder chase after a disgruntled hometown hero?
- 3 OKC Thunder players who can step up in Aleksej Pokusevski’s absence
- Aleksej Pokusevski sidelined approximately 6 weeks with ankle injury
- Damian Lillard does not fit with the OKC Thunder
For Anthony, the rebounding is a welcome addition, although he is a career 6.6 rebound per game contributor. Still, with the loss of so many front court pieces the two stars adding this production is key to the OKC Thunder remaining among the top rebounding squads in the Association.
Blocks:
Entering the night Steven Adams sat atop the block leader board with 2.2 blocks per contest. But, a big night from Kristaps Porzingis allowed him to usurp Adams for the top spot.
Three Point Field Goals Made:
It was common knowledge Carmelo Anthony was a shooter and Paul George was known as a sniper. The fact both are decent three point shooters was heartening news for the OKC Thunder who struggled from deep last season.
Again, small sample size, but the fact two Rockets sit atop the made three pointers in preseason (Trevor Ariza/Eric Gordon with 17) does offer hope this translates into the regular season. To wit, Paul George (12) ranks third and Carmelo Anthony (10) fifth.
Moving forward into the preseason there will be ample movement in these categories. Despite the inevitable these high rankings are early signs of what is yet to come for the 2017-18 OKC Thunder squad.