Andre Roberson’s value continues to reveal itself the more the OKC Thunder are forced to play without him.
Welcome football fans! Your season is over – now you can finally pay full attention to the best League in professional sports. While it might not seem like it at the moment, now is a great time to fully dive into Thunder basketball. OKC is on a four-game losing streak, the Warriors are their next opponent, the Trade Deadline is in three days. And as you’re about to discover, Russell Westbrook is embracing the moment.
Russ does his best to rally Thunder Nation
This is what leaders do when adversity hits. They don’t place the blame on others, instead turning this into a teaching moment for their collective team. And that’s when my Westbrook praise stops today.
It’s great to say quotes like this, but the reigning MVP has not put full effort in during this losing streak. At least not on the defensive end. Much of the reason why Oklahoma City has given up 112.75 ppg the last four games is because their leader, their star at the NBA’s most talented position, simply isn’t defending his man. The perimeter defense has folded without Roberson – if Russ is a man of his word he’ll come out Tuesday with a newfound love for defense.
One of the Brodie’s best interviews. Great quote. pic.twitter.com/sjUh600qNI
— 𝗔𝗱𝗱𝗮𝗺 𝗠. 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗼 (@AddamFrancisco) February 4, 2018
Roberson’s replacement really isn’t ready
Something I’ve been stating the last few weeks has really come to fruition during the losing streak: Terrance Ferguson is not ready to contribute on a contender. I love the 19-year old’s tenacity and potential, but he’s just too raw and inexperienced at the moment. Just check the stat below:
The Thunder are 1-4 since losing Andre Roberson for the season. Terrance Ferguson in those five games: 2 points on 4 shots. Total.
— Royce Young (@royceyoung) February 4, 2018
The two points isn’t what worries me the most – it’s the four field goal attempts. Ferguson is struggling to move off the ball and find shots based off Westbrook’s drives a la Roberson. Combine that with his inconsistent shooting and poor defensive awareness and we have a rookie who understandably needs another season before he’s ready to truly contribute.
Sifting through the many players “linked” to OKC
Finally, to the topic everybody wants to discuss: trades. Is Sam Presti going after a wing defender or a backup big? Maybe both? These are questions that will be answered in the coming days. Of course that lack of knowing what’s going on led me to quickly break down every possible target for OKC. I won’t spoil it, but if you care about my final prediction, it is in this beautiful document.
"Because we have zero inclination of what the Thunder’s move might be, we’re going to quickly go through every player reportedly on the Trade Block and asses whether it’s a good fit/if there’s even a remote possibility of acquiring them."
Next: Grading Thunder's fourth straight loss to the Lakers
That’s it for today;s issue of Thunder in the News! Stay up everybody – if Nick Foles and the Philadelphia Eagles can beat Tom Brady and the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl anything is possible.