Thunderous Thoughts: Three New Year Resolutions
Welcome to Thunderous Thoughts, your weekly look at the OKC Thunder. This week, Terrance Ferguson is the best player in the league.
Happy New Year everyone. I hope your 2018 is off to a fine start.
Let’s talk New Year’s Resolutions. We’re four days into the year, which means at least half of you have broken your resolutions. Not me. I decided to give up drinking this year. I’m four days in – still no alcohol. If these columns start becoming more coherent now you know why.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have New Year’s Resolutions as well. Not goals. Goals are different then a resolution. Winning a championship is a goal; not blowing a 3-1 lead is a resolution. Let’s resolve some current issues plaguing the Thunder.
Resolution #1 – Make Free Throws
Russell Westbrook and Carmelo Anthony are shooting a career low from the free throw line. Paul George shot 89% from the line last year. He’s shooting 81 percent this season. The Thunder as a team are shooting 71% from the line. That’s the second worst mark in the league, ahead of only the Los Angeles Lakers.
A team with three veteran All-Stars, who are all better than 80% from the line in their career, should not struggle this much on free points. Against good teams, they can’t leave 5-10 points on the board every night because of free throws.
The thing is, I don’t know how you solve free throw woes. I’m sure all of these guys make 98 out of 100 in practice. Again, throughout their career, they’ve all been very good free throw shooters. What has changed this season? Have the new rules forced all three guys to change their routine? If so, that’s a clear conspiracy against the Thunder since no other team seems hindered by it. Are they too relaxed? Are the shots too wide open? I don’t have the answers.
But the Thunder need to find the answers before the end of the season.
Resolution #2 – Fix The Bench
As I wrote last week, the George-led bench unit has struggled. Things have not improved over the last week. Billy Donovan tried to rectify the situation a little bit by playing Steven Adams with George against the Lakers. It didn’t pay immediate dividends.
The game remained tied in the second until Westbrook checked back in, but it’s a positive change. Against the Warriors, Donovan staggered Andre Roberson and Adams to ensure that the defense didn’t fall off. Adams and Roberson are the two best communicators on defense and the two guys who do the dirty work on offense.
Keeping one of them on the floor with George might be advisable moving forward.
Resolution #3 – Do Something With Alex Abrines
The Thunder either need to play Abrines – and involve him offensively – or trade him.
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Terrance Ferguson’s breakout game against the Lakers may have made Abrines that much more expendable. I’m not ready to anoint Ferguson as the second coming of Michael Jordan, but he showed the kind of potential he has as a 19-year-old. His off the ball defense isn’t great and he’s still rail thin, but he’s a hell of an athlete and confident on the offensive end.
That offensive confidence is something Abrines has lost in recent weeks.
If Abrines is going to play, the Thunder have to get him involved offensively. Good teams know how to get good shooters open looks from deep. The Thunder have not been able to do that with Abrines. As a result, he’s not contributing on offense and is a net negative on defense. Overall, it makes him a useless player in the Thunder rotation.
So the Thunder have two choices. Play Abrines and get him open looks so his offense has a chance to make up for his lack of defense. Or trade him.
Ferguson’s performance against the Lakers gave us a glimpse of the future. But this is a team that’s ready to win now. Trusting a 19-year-old to contribute against the Rockets, Warriors, or Spurs is much different than trusting him against the Lakers.
If Ferguson has surpassed Abrines on the depth chart, the Spaniard must be dealt for a player ready to contribute to a team with championship aspirations. There’s no point in holding on to the 24-year-old if your future is in Ferguson, and this championship window could be closed after this season.
Next: Player grades from dominant win against Lakers
2018 is now resolved.