The OKC Thunder fall flat on their faces in a 108-92 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers.
Despite a promising showing on opening night, the OKC Thunder took 10 steps backwards in its loss 108-92 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers. Russell Westbrook missed his second consecutive game and the offense was ugly from start to finish.
Trusted with carrying the bulk of the offense, Paul George and Dennis Schroder shot a horrid 9-42 from the field including a 3-14 performance from distance. PG13 came out slinging from the outset, forcing shots over out stretched arms and appeared disinterested in driving to the cup. Schroder was way off all night long and was never able to establish any rhythm thanks to foul trouble.
After fighting back from a 16 point deficit early and leading by as much as nine, Oklahoma City couldn’t get out of their own way. Free throws, lack of offensive sets and anemic perimeter shooting eventually caught up with them. However, the biggest concern was defensive consistency. OKC came out flat and defensive rotations were horrible. The Thunder made adjustments through the middle quarters but decided to return to defensive futility in the fourth quarter. Despite the absence of Russ and Andre Roberson, this game was up for the taking. Oklahoma City simply weren’t good enough to capitalize.
Here are five takeaways from Oklahoma City’s loss.