Preview: OKC Thunder seek to even series vs. Blazers after historically poor shooting
By Alex Mcewen
PG’s Shoulder is the Key
All season George played with a certain smooth aggression, that is rarely displayed by an All-Star. George never seemed to force anything. Rather, he would dominate and control the match, always remaining poised.
In Game 1, PG was forcing everything and clearly seemed frustrated. He launched a whopping 15 treys, connecting on a modest 26.7 percent of his attempts. Eleven of his fifteen 3-point attempts came early or very early in the shot clock, up from his regular season average of 5.2 early or very early attempts.
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Hence, George was forcing a large number of his field goals, rather than playing within the flow of the offense as he has for the majority of the year. The reason George was pressing the issue, was likely due to frustration from his troublesome shoulder. If PG continues to force early shots the entire series, Oklahoma City may be staring at an insurmountable obstacle.