Player Grades: Thunder comeback falls short against Milwaukee
By Tony Heim
The OKC Thunder did something against the Milwaukee Bucks? Exactly what, I have no idea.
I shouldn’t be writing this at this very moment. I should be watching overtime basketball. But because of a clear missed call on Giannis Antetokounmpo in the final few seconds, I’m bitterly giving you the details from the other 47:56 from the Thunder’s Friday night loss to the Milwaukee Bucks. I’m sorry if I’m salty.
In all honesty, Oklahoma City did not deserve to be in this game. A brutal first quarter forced the Thunder to claw back from a 20-point deficit. And that’s exactly what
they
Russell Westbrook did.
With Paul George out due to a sore left knee, Westbrook commanded the OKC offense as if it was last season. Russ took 34 of the Thunder’s 83 shots and recorded 9 of their 16 assists. He struggled shooting from deep (only making 2 of his 9 attempts); other then that almost solely catapulted his team to victory.*
*I should mention that OKC would have been better off getting Carmelo Anthony at least a few more looks throughout the night. Yes, Russ was cooking tonight, but the Thunder’s almost sole reliance on him also caused multiple possessions where they simply couldn’t generate any open looks. I’m only pointing it out because I care. Back to the recap.
Milwaukee essentially played like a mini-OKC on the defensive end. Their length and athleticism heavily influence everybody-not-named-Russ’ ability to create space, hence why the reigning MVP had to create virtually everything.
The big positive from tonight was the Thunder’s ability to bounce back on the defensive end after getting torched in the first quarter. Especially playing without George. While you hate to see a budding winning streak end because of a terrible 12 minutes, seeing that in-game improvement is important moving forward.
On to the report card.