Five takeaways from the Thunder’s blowout win in Milwaukee
By Tony Heim
The defensive rotations are rapidly smoothing themselves out
We knew the Thunder had individual defensive talent. Paul George and Andre Roberson are both All-NBA awarded defenders. Steven Adams will likely make an All-NBA Defensive team before his career is over. Even Patrick Patterson – Oklahoma City’s sixth man – is touted as an above-average defender. What we didn’t know was how the defense would work as a five-man unit. The last two games, and especially last night, tells us they already understand how to play that end of the floor together.
Sam Presti has always built a roster with versatile athletes who can defend multiple positions. This season’s iteration of the Thunder exemplifies that to the max.
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Whether OKC’s starting lineup, second-unit or a mixture of both is in, the Thunder can always play the same defensive philosophy. Given Steven Adams, Paul George, Carmelo Anthony, Jerami Grant and Josh Huestis’ length, strength and athleticism everybody in there ten-man rotation can guard everybody on the court.
This allows for defensive possessions like this:
Carmelo Anthony, the Thunder’s starting power forward, ends up on Malcolm Brogdon, the Bucks’ starting point guard. No problem. Steven Adams and Andre Roberson effectively handle a Giannis Antetokounmpo/Thon Maker pick & roll while the help-side defense cuts off any passing lanes to Thon. No problem. The end result is a contested three shot by Giannis with less than two seconds on the shot clock. Perfect.
This is only one of the many plays from last where Oklahoma City showcased how their defense can be almost impossible to penetrate. They’ve had moments like this since the beginning of the season – it’s starting to become more and more consistent by the game.
The NBA should be worried. The team with three of the best scorers in the league already has the second-best defensive rating. It’s that end of the floor where the Thunder may be able to pull off the upset come the Playoffs.