Thunder In the news: x-factor, schedule keys, and a reserved Melo

OKC Thunder In the news examines Jermai Grant’s role, 5 schedule advantages, and Melo potentially finds a reserved isolation role with new squad.

Despite there being no action in August this month is providing ample dissection of the upcoming OKC Thunder season. In the news for August 14 dives into the role Jerami Grant will play this coming season, five keys to gaining ground in the schedule and the potential for Olympic Melo to rise in Houston.

Schedule keys:

With the release of the new OKC Thunder schedule the scribes at Thunderous Intentions dove head first into dissecting every nuance. Notably there are areas the squad will be tasked with rough patches. Likewise there are key segments and areas the Thunder can reap benefits. TI examined five key areas which centered on fewer back-to-backs, rest advantage days, travel and playing top opponents fewer times than their opponents.

"This is a crucial area of the schedule particularly in terms of how Donovan addresses his roster’s minutes. One constant criticism of Donovan is that he doesn’t give his reserves enough run or opportunity to work through mistakes. Facing teams who are more well rested is the perfect opportunity for Donovan to not only capitalize on his added depth, but also have those players fully expecting to receive the minutes."

OKC Thunder On the road again:

In terms of road games Rylan Stiles examined the two toughest trips the Thunder will undertake in the 2018-19 season. His article notes the March five game trip between the 5 and 11 as particularly daunting. That said, this season the NBA made a concerted effort to limit all squads lengthy road trips, reduce back to back games and eliminate four games in five nights. The resulting effect is a more feasible well spaced 82 game schedule for all teams in the Association.

"After that game in late March with so much riding on each games in terms of standings, the Thunder travel to Portland. These two teams had a few exciting match ups a year ago, but for the Blazers what will they look like in March? Will the front court be broken up at the trade deadline? Do they have enough to be in contention on March 7? The game will be a tough test nonetheless."

X-factor Grant:

As for the roster all the contracted players are working this offseason to add depth to their skillsets. For one individual that may translate into a starting role. TI writer Yaman Khabbaz dove into the ascension of Jerami Grant as he transitioned from not having a defined role in year one to his incredible growth in last season with the Thunder.

With the exit of Carmelo Anthony Grant sits on the precipice of becoming a true x-factor for the OKC Thunder this season. Not only will the starting power forward position be up for grabs, but Grant is expected to see ample minutes in clutch time. Khabbaz’ article details the rise of Grant and what specific areas OKC likely tasked him to work on this summer. If Grant arrives in camp with a few of those items checked off he very well could be this season’s x-factor for the Thunder.

"In the matter of a year, Jerami Grant went from being an afterthought to being one of the Thunder’s most valuable players. Thanks to his athleticism and length, Grant gave the Thunder a lot of flexibility in terms of the lineups they used. Albeit he was mostly used as a power forward, he was occasionally used as a center in small ball lineups"

Reserving Melo:

When one door closes another opens — a simple adage, but an accurate one when it comes to the opportunity Grant has. As mentioned this became available due to the exit of Carmelo Anthony. The former third member of the OK3 signed his deal with the Houston Rockets today. Yet, the most interesting part of this story line wasn’t Melo arriving in Houston. In fairness this was always the expected landing spot of the 14 year veteran.

https://twitter.com/HoustonRockets/status/1029067917063802880

Rather, what had fans reacting to on social media was the presumption Anthony had acquiesced to coming off the bench. When the Woj bomb dropped there was an immediate response. After all, Thunder Nation witnessed the Game 5 melt down of Melo and his exit interview when he made it clear he had no intention of being a reserve or playing in the same style again next season.

Woj did backtrack somewhat stating Anthony would likely compete for the starting power forward role, but it was presumed a bench role could be just as likely. Before fans in OKC get too upset there are a couple of factors to take into consideration.

Isolation ball more prevalent in Houston than OKC:

For as much as the Rockets live and die by the three, they aren’t a particularly fast paced squad (14th rank) and they utilize more isolation ball than their perimeter prowess might suggest.  If you remember one stat when considering Carmelo Anthony’s move to the Rockets this is the one to tuck away. Although the OKC Thunder were often cited as an isolation team who stood around and would take turns going one on one they ranked second in this discipline creating 10.5 percent of their shots via isolation.

Notably, this stat includes the rough first half of the season as the team adjusted to incorporating Carmelo Anthony and Paul George. So, which team used this method more frequently? The Houston Rockets with 14. 5 percent of their plays coming from isolation.

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In comparison the Warriors were 17th ranked via this method using it for just 6.4 percent of their offense. And, in the slower paced playoffs the Rockets isolation ball increased to 19.4 percent of their plays (again, ranking first).

That’s not to say, Melo will flourish in Houston where he failed in OKC, especially since part of the reason isolation worked so well for the Rockets is they had two guys (Trevor Ariza, Luc Mbah a Moute) who helped with defense and on the offensive end via screens and moving for their teammates to get open.

Fans won’t know if the Rockets new big three will be the perfect fit for Melo until the season tips off.

What we do know is the Thunder should benefit from a roster which features at minimum two players who can defend from that position both in season and in the playoffs.

And, not getting stuck with a luxury tax which was perilously close to $300 million with a defensive gap at power forward is the ultimate reward.