Lightning Report: The OKC Thunder couldn’t adapt and the Blazers ate them

Roster Construction

But to blame all these problems on Westbrook is to misrepresent the situation especially because his game really did start to evolve this season. All his usage numbers were the lowest they had been in years in the regular season, he was deferring to then-MVP candidate Paul George the way he did with Kevin Durant, and he was actually playing solid, reliable defense for one of the best groups in the league. There’s a case to be made that he only started turning back into old Russ when Paul George wasn’t playing out of his mind and the Thunder didn’t have any reliable options.

You probably know this already but here’s a quick recap what’s happened with George for the past few months. Prior to the All-Star break, he was playing like a legit MVP candidate and carrying the Thunder’s offense alongside Russell Westbrook, all the while establishing OKC as a real threat to the Warriors.

He hurt his shoulder, but it seemed like a minor thing he’d get over after coming back. Following the All-Star break and leading into the playoffs, the injury clearly bothered him and he wasn’t remotely the same player he had been.

A superstar injury is a big deal for any team to deal with, but for most, it’s not to the point where they’d go 12-13 without their star playing at an MVP level. Especially while they still employ Westbrook and Steven Adams. Losing a top option hurts, for sure, but it shouldn’t be so debilitating.

So, then, this seems to point to a structural issue in the Oklahoma City roster. Presti built this team around the production of two players to such a degree as to create a paradigm in which any kind of slippage from the top two guys can throw the entire system off the rails.

Their best scorers behind Russ and PG are Dennis Schroder and Adams – two guys who are too flawed offensively to be consistent scorers in playoff situations. In the modern NBA, it’s frankly impossible to win at a high-level with that. In 2019 it doesn’t matter how good your defense is if you can’t put up points on the other end.

The offense is too important. And the front office’s continued inability to find reliable shooters in a league where shooting is arguably the most important thing is absolutely crippling. They need to adapt.