OKC Thunder capture seventh heaven, 3 takeaways from oust of Houston

Thunder defense will be top 3 this season:

So, I purposely waited to finish the takeaways to incorporate Friday’s games. This because as I expected the Thunder would vault up the standings and are now ranked SECOND defensively.  Moreover, with a slew of lottery teams lined up OKC could well be sitting in first place after one or two more games. The Milwaukee Bucks currently rest atop the rankings with a 102.4 mark while the Thunder and Nuggets are tied in second with 102.5.

We’ve already established the fact the Rockets are reeling on both ends of the hardwood. However, let’s not completely undermine the fact this Thunder defense is for REAL!

I stated preseason this team would be a top three defensive squad and when Roberson returned if they were in striking distance could overtake the top spot. Well low and behold they are well ahead of my prediction and the evidence is mounting as to why this isn’t simply a hot take any longer.

In the Rockets match specifically let’s examine the numbers:

• Held Houston to lowest point total of season (80 points). The closest the Rockets came to this few points in 82 games last season was on April 1 and the final game of the season when they scored 83 points and weren’t using their full core unit.
• Limited Rockets to 37.8 percent from the field and 26.2 percent from deep (though it didn’t stop Houston from letting fly as they shot 41 treys).
• 11 steals – OKC lead NBA with an average of 11.6 steals per game.
• Out rebounded Houston 61 – 45 which included
• Forced 18 turnovers (Rockets average 14.6)

Keep an eye on the defense Thunder Nation – this should only continually improve.