Preview: OKC Thunder look to start their first winning streak of 2018-19
By Rylan Stiles
Getting more minutes to Noel/Diallo:
Thunder fans have been less than forgiving to Billy Donovan, and some would argue for good reason. Hamidou Diallo missed Sunday’s tilt due to Diallo skipping out on the team’s morning walk through. However, it is safe to assume Diallo will return Tuesday based on Billy Donovan‘s comments.
Billy Donovan said Hamidou Diallo was very apologetic about missing Sunday's walkthrough. "It wasn't malicious or intentional, but him understanding the importance of being reliable, responsible in those situations is really important."
— Erik Horne (@ErikkHorne) October 29, 2018
Nonetheless, Diallo has logged more minutes than Terrance Ferguson just once (Thursday vs Boston) which was the last time Diallo stepped on the floor. That trend has to continue, as it is clear Diallo is the superior player right now.
For Nerlens Noel, he ravaged the Suns going for a career-high in points, and tying his career high in rebounds (20 and 15) in twenty-five minutes. Noel earned the start when Steven Adams was sidelined with a calf injury. Noel looks comfortable and confident in the OKC Thunder system which is something he has lacked throughout his career.
Despite the start on Sunday, his minutes per game is still sitting at 16.2. With Steven Adams still battling injuries that number should rise.
Free throws, Free Throws, Free Throws
Even in Sunday’s win, the Thunder shot just 68 percent from the charity stripe.
For the year, the team is making free throws at a 65.3 percent clip. That is good enough–(or bad enough?) for 29th place. That puts OKC ahead of only the Kings who hit free throws at a 64.9 rate.
This is a bigger issue when you consider the fact the Thunder are tied for first at getting to the line, attempting 30 free throws per game (tied with the Pelicans).
Playing under control
The OKC Thunder foul 26 times per game, which is the highest fouls per game ranking them 30th. The Magic foul the least with just 19 fouls per game. Part of this is due to getting accustomed to the new rules, however, it is something to monitor.
The Thunder also rank 21st in Turnovers per game, with 15.5.