Views from OKC: Thunder need to start playing faster
By Tony Heim
Views from OKC is a public diary from a bias yet reasonable OKC Thunder fan. Today we discuss a peculiar pace decision made by Billy Donovan and his coaching staff.
Quick: What is Russell Westbrook’s biggest advantage on the basketball court? His insane athleticism at the point guard position.
Quick: How has Oklahoma City used that asset since he’s entered the league? The Thunder have been outside of the top ten in possessions per game (PACE) exactly two times in Russ’ career. Since the 2011-2012 season they’ve never finished lower than 10th.
Yet here we stand, 30 games into the season, and a team led by Russell Westbrook is 22nd in the league in possessions per game. That is simply unacceptable.
The 2017-2018 version of the Oklahoma City Thunder was built to run the floor. With above-average athletes at every position (minus a 33-year old Carmelo at power forward), the Thunder have the ability to overwhelm opponents with their speed and length. In fact, we see it on the defensive end on a nightly basis. Billy Donovan refusing to implement this same chaotic style into his offense is a major reason why OKC is still .500 through 30 games.
A philosophical shift towards pushing the basketball would push Westbrook back into his comfort zone. It would allow Andre Roberson to leak out for easy transition buckets like we saw last season. Paul George would have more opportunities to create in space like this. The offense would greatly benefit, but the reasoning behind this simple alteration goes beyond that end of the floor.
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The Thunder’s devastating defense is the biggest factor in this.
The beauty is the manner in which Oklahoma City plays defense factors right into this idea. Their switch-everything approach speeds up other teams’ offense because they have to run more off-ball motion to free up their players. This disruption is a big reason why the Thunder lead the league in turnovers forced per game.
In turn, maximizing the number of possessions in a game forces teams to face the NBA’s second best defense a greater amount. The OKC Thunder have won countless games this season solely because opponents have not been able to score, let alone create a good shot within the shot clock. Every OKC game has a span where teams struggle to score – it’s those moments when the Thunder should capitalize.
What’s the actual plan though?
It’s important to note that although the Thunder can increase their transition opportunities, this isn’t their biggest fault. Oklahoma City ranks 13th in transition frequency. This number should be higher considering the amount of turnovers they force, but I’m more interested in what happens when they set up their half-court offense.
Nothing. That’s what happens.
The Thunder waste valuable time letting Westbrook, George and/or Anthony stare down their opponent in isolation. Instead of utilizing all five players in an offensive set, guys stand around the perimeter and wait for the man with the ball to make something happen. If nothing presents itself OKC is forced to take contested shots late in the clock. It’s no wonder the Thunder are dead last in field goal % in attempts taken with 7 seconds or less on the shot clock.
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Ball movement and off-ball motion, something the Thunder have lacked, is the easiest way to speed up an offense and get shots earlier in the clock. There’s simply too much talent on this roster for players to aimlessly dribble on the perimeter, yet that’s what the first 30 games of the season have entailed.
It all comes back to those two special phrases: ball movement and off-ball motion. Oklahoma City can’t speed the game up if they aren’t creating good shots early in the clock. They can’t create clean looks by standing around either. All they have to do is work together on the offensive end the same way they do on defense.
The OKC Thunder can impose their will on any opponent in the league. The Golden State game taught us that. But because they’ve only adopted that intense identity on one end of the floor, they’re stuck with a .500 record.
Once the offensive tempo increases, so will the rate in which the Thunder win. It’s that simple.