3 takeaways following OKC Thunder victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers

Final Thoughts

While a win is a win, Oklahoma City’s overall performance was a little bit to be desired. uneven play on the offensive end, lack of ball movement and poor of the ball movement made the Thunder’s offense too predictable. OKC need to run pick and rolls regularly and take advantage of having two of the leagues best roll men in Adams and Noel. Settling for jumpers on most possessions won’t get it done. Oklahoma City are at their best when they attack the hoop and put pressure on opposing defenses.

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Donovan needs to do a better job running sets. The fourth year head coach is sporadic in his play calling and appears to be former Thunder coach Scott Brooks in disguise. Get the ball moving and move players around. Donovan has had an uneven start to his 2018-18 campaign, looking great on some nights and looking horrible on others. He needs to find consistency and variation on play calls.

My last thought centers around Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot and Abdel Nader. Both were acquired in the offseason but are yet to see any real court time. Donovan appears to be playing for wins right now and while every win in the West counts, its important to develop role players because you never know when you need them.

OKC need to look north at the Toronto Raptors and their player rotations. Too many minutes to the starters is going to catch up with the Thunder eventually. Spread the love around and keep everyone engaged.

OKC must must lean on its defensive chops so long as the Brodie is out with injury. While the offense was certainly anemic against the Cavaliers, the defense was suffocating and carried them to a win.

So long as the Thunder remain active and play solid, consistent defense, we will be on the right side of the scoreboard more often than not.