Following last night’s loss to the Houston Rockets, Trevor Ariza spoke his mind about Oklahoma City’s defense.
The Rockets’ win over the Thunder keeps them one game above the Warriors in first place while Oklahoma City continues to spiral down towards the bottom of the playoff ladder.
Coming into the game It seemed like the Thunder had finally figured out how to win the versus the lower seeds.
Granted, beating teams like the Suns, Mavericks and Magic by a few points isn’t a feat OKC should be bragging about. But, at least they conquered the issue of over looking those teams.
Throughout the season it didn’t appear like motivation was required when the Thunder played seeded teams.. OKC beat the Rockets, Cavaliers and Raptors. And, two big wins over the Warriors offered the undisputed proof they get up for top teams.
But, the OKC Thunder haven’t beat a top squad since January 6th (Warriors). Certainly the loss of Andre Roberson is adding to the team’s issues.
Well, if motivation is something the team needs perhaps Trevor Ariza post game shade offers fuel.
After the Rockets burned the Thunder defense, OKC went to trapping the ball. The Rockets on how they attacked that, too. "When the floor is spaced," Trevor Ariza said, "it’s like reading a little book, a little ABC book.”
— Jonathan Feigen (@Jonathan_Feigen) March 7, 2018
Ariza isn’t the only one throwing shade on the Thunders’ defense, as forward Carmelo Anthony also seems frustrated.
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Since losing perimeter defender Andre Roberson to a ruptured patellar tendon in late January, Billy Donovan has continued to tinker with the rotation in an effort to find a replacement. Even though the 19-year-old Terrance Ferguson had a couple of good outings, it appears the versatile Josh Huestis has won the job.
Despite taking a step back on the defensive end, OKC sits at 10th overall in defensive rating at 104.7, just behind Houston at 104.5. 11 of their final 16 games are against these upper squads.
OKC is mired in the stretch run and 11 of their final 16 games are against these upper squads. So, the OKC Thunder need to turn up the heat.
Perhaps Trevor Ariza’s shade can serve as some form of inspiration. Let’s hope so because there isn’t much time to tinker and avoiding the Warriors and Rockets in round one was the likely goal.
As of today, the goal might just be getting to the playoffs.