Maintaining energy:
Sunday night OKC Thunder welcomed in the Milwaukee Bucks with a nice triumph in the ‘Peake. It was a well-rounded performance, with six Thunder players scoring in double-digits and multiple defensive maneuvers to hold Antetokounmpo scoreless in the first half.
Jerami Grant and Nerlens Noel combined for seven blocked shots versus the Bucks. Their aggressive energy underneath floored the momentum for the offensive side, 11 points off turnovers and 15 fast-break points for OKC.
Let’s not forget the incredible shooting from PG. His personality Sunday night just turned the game up to a whole other level. OKC could have faced a major defeat hosting the Bucks, but they played like they were winning and the points flowed from there.
Keeping up the defensive aggressiveness on the likes of Vucevic down low is going to be key if the Thunder want to continue with a sixth straight win tonight.
Though Orlando doesn’t pose a threat like the No. one Bucks do, the energy level will need to be high as the Magic have home court advantage.
Don’t get blinded by the underdog:
The sub par record is an incredible underestimation of the talent on Orlando’s roster. Their most recent win came on Jan. 21 with a 122-103 victory over the Atlanta Hawks, a team that had beaten OKC just six days before at a 16-point margin. The team’s most recent loss was only a 5-point defeat at the hands of Houston.
OKC Thunder cannot, I repeat cannot continue to take sub par teams lightly. The team has finally stitched together a groove after a rather frustrating slump. Tonight should be played no differently than the fiery gameplay that enveloped the court on Sunday.
Nikola Vucevic:
Despite Orlando going 3-7 over the last ten game stretch, Vucevic averaged 22.2 points on 48 percent shooting. He scored 19 or more points in seven of those games and averaged 12 rebounds per game.
Finding a balance of Adams and Noel on defense will be a key requirement, much like Sunday night’s match-up with the Greek Freak.
Aaron Gordon:
Despite missing two games, Gordon averaged just shy of 20 points over the last ten games for Orlando. His best performance over that stretch came with 28 points, 12 rebounds, and 50 percent shooting in Orlando’s two-point win over Boston.
Much of Orlando’s offense runs through these hands, so if OKC Thunder can maintain focus on the defensive end tonight should be an easy sixth win.