OKC Thunder grades: Shooting woes and poorly timed substitutions in clutch time keeps OKC win-less

Player Grades

Maybe this score seems unfair given Westbrook was two assists shy of a triple-double (13 points, 15 rebounds, 8 assists). But those 13 points came on 5-20 from the field with seven of those 20 attempts coming late in the game.

Prior to the Celtics going on a 16-1 run in final 4:20 of game the lineup of Westbrook, Abrines, Diallo, Patterson and Adams were rolling. Russ assisted on both Abrines 3-pointers which gave OKC a seven point lead with 4:57 remaining. Abrines missed a shot 1:20 seconds later and didn’t get another shot until there was 10.5 seconds remaining.

It’s not all on Westbrook, although his late game five forced shots didn’t help.

Erik Horne was on NBA TV show – ’10 Before Tip’ this evening and told the program host that Billy Donovan would stick with Ferguson in the starting rotation. Horne said the fear was what it would do to TFerg’s confidence by replacing him. Moreover,  Horne said some felt Hamidou Diallo should get the nod, but he is also 20 and could be in the same situation.

Maybe I’m underestimating how this would affect the youngsters, but they get paid to perform and I still feel Ferguson isn’t doing enough to move the needle. Nor am I suggesting Diallo should be the one to get the nod. OKC need scoring and floor spacing, so there is a logical argument to start Abrines specifically to gain

I’ll have to re-watch the game to isolate specifically on Ferguson defensively, but from my perspective he has be replaced.

Stat line: 2 points, 2 rebounds, 1 of 1 (yes he took one shot) from field).

George’s stat line looks relatively strong — 22 points, 8 rebounds, assist, steal. Dive deeper and you’ll discover PG was 7 for 22 from the field, 2 of 10 from the perimeter and a team worst minus 16. My main issue with George is he’s not moving the ball or helping to keep the initial movement flowing. The ball simply stops when it gets to him.

One assist isn’t going to cut it. Westbrook lays his heart on the line love him or not. Yet, it was George who initially stopped the ball flow when he re-entered the game and stopped passing the ball to the red hot Abrines.

I can’t fault Grant for the situation he was put in. He plays with energy and gives 100 percent. His initial insertion in the starting rotation resulted in an added energy level missing in the last two games. The problem as TNT announcer Chris Weber pointed out is he isn’t a reliable 3-point shooter or floor spacer.

Factor in there is zero movement of the players either, so opponents just slack off him daring him to shoot. At issue here is that Patterson doesn’t perform well starting. Going back to Patterson’s most successful days in Toronto the Raptors discovered 2Pat was just one of those players who was at his best coming off the bench initially and then closing in the clutch. Tonight, fans saw that exact principle work.

At issue is Donovan either needs a shooting guard or power forward in the starting rotation who can space the floor.

In my humble opinion the only Thunder player who deserves top grades for this match. Early in the contest he was leaking out to catch pitch ahead passes and working effectively in the post. His sheer size was too much for Al Horford to deal with as he picked up quick fouls and had to sit early.

Despite being unstoppable in the post, particularly in the pick and roll sets he got a total of 10 touches. Maybe I’m being naive, but when you have an advantage shouldn’t the team keep going to that option until the opponent proves it can be stopped?

If the OKC Thunder could add one perimeter scorer to space the court, then Adams becomes even more effective as his presence has to be accounted for which subsequently would open driving lanes and would give OKC scoring options.  (not that there seems to be an offensive system in place).