The OKC Thunder dominant win in Milwaukee offered the first true signs of organic offensive chemistry.
In the category of it’s too soon (yes – still) the OKC Thunder blow out win certainly served up enough fodder for critics and fans alike. After all, this wasn’t a team automatically earmarked for the lottery. Rather, the Bucks are not only expected to be playing in the postseason, but some pundits reasoned they could be a home court seed.
Entering the night, expectations were dialed in for a tightly contested match. Instead, this became somewhat of a coming out party for the OK3. Sure, they had delivered previously against lesser foes or for stretches in previous matches. Yet, this was the first full game effort which seemingly had no hiccups and showcased the early signs of chemistry, flow and rhythm forming. More importantly it showcased the potential of what in this scribe’s opinion should be dubbed the OK4 since Steven Adams has been an equally relevant portion of the equation.
Dueling MVPs:
Coincidentally a side story line featured Giannis Antetokounmpo and the early focus of his potential MVP campaign. Like Russell Westbrook last season the Greek Freak is tasked as the main man without another super star talent (at least while Jabari Parker remains out).
And, while Antetokounmpo is a fantastic enigma of nature, I couldn’t help but ponder one specific fundamental fact. For as much as Russ and Giannis have similar unicorn tendencies they are equally separated by the drastic differences in their narrative. Giannis is an NBA darling who has never truly faced criticism. He hasn’t been dissected under the media’s microscopic lenses to determine if his value and talent would be better served via compensating to make those around him better.
OKC Thunder still have an MVP Candidate:
Nor has Antetokounmpo had to address why stars aren’t rushing to Milwaukee or conversely potentially leaving for greener pastures. If you are an NBA fan, there is reason to want to protect Giannis from that awful fate. As with all super stars the inevitability of criticism comes with the territory – just ask the GOAT- Michael Jordan.
Yet, on a night when all MVP chatter focused on the Greek, the current MVP reminded everyone precisely why he holds the current title and is still very much in the conversation again. As if to punctuate that fact Westbrook posted another triple-double. For those keeping count – that’s four triple-doubles in seven games. Extrapolating the numbers over 82 games – Russell Westbrook is on pace to register 46.85 triple- doubles this season. Again- it’s important to remember the season is only 7 games old. Then again, this is Russell Westbrook.
The Westbrook Narrative:
Revisiting the Westbrook dissection theme TI scribe Jeremy Lambert drops some tantalizing thoughts on the subject.
"This is really about the Westbrook narrative. No one says, “LeBron James is holding Kevin Love back” because Love’s numbers are way down from his time in Minnesota. National media members, after one game, said, “We’re going to rip Oklahoma City and Westbrook when they lose to the Warriors and we’re gonna say, ‘Westbrook did a bad job of finding his teammates.’”"
‘Gone Fishin’
When it comes to Westbrook much of the prevailing perspective came to be because of his own demeanor. Westbrook is a throw back to the old school era where players didn’t hug before games and weren’t courting the media to build their brand images in post game media scrums.
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The effect was the masses were left to believe the surly on court Westbrook embodied who he was off court as well. That perspective has shifted ever so slightly this past season. This due to several factors like his heartwarming MVP speech and becoming a first time father. The latter producing an ongoing series of social media videos where he is singing with his son or dressing up like an apiarist for Halloween accompanied by his honey bee wife Nina and baby bee Noah.
This softer side of Westbrook has humanized him for fans who felt the purposeful protective distance he created. Yet, there is still so many unknown facts about Westbrook.
George sheds light on Westbrook:
In the ESPN video below, Marty Smith goes fishing with Paul George who lets out a few secrets during his fish tales. After George expounds on his high school adulation of Carmelo Anthony he drops a few bombs.
First of all, he speaks of how overwhelming it is to be playing with someone of Westbrook’s ilk. George says there is an adjustment period to acclimate to Westbrook’s sheer speed, power and will. Yet, the most interesting fact he shares is Westbrook plays with exactly the same force in practices as he does in games. So much so, that Billy Donovan has to keep his whistle handy to stop practices quickly. Presumably this so Russ or someone doesn’t get hurt. Check out the video as it offers some great moments.
That’s it for November 3, In the news. TI scribes serve up the Celtics- OKC Thunder game preview later today. Will the OKC Thunder continue their unbeaten streak versus the Eastern Conference? Follow us on Twitter during the game and check back post game for TI’s post game grades and then the following morning for Tony Heim’s notorious 5 Takeaways. Have a great Friday.