Game Preview: OKC Thunder in search of first win hope to continue Warriors misery
The OKC Thunder are still in search of their first win and things don’t get any easier with the Golden State Warriors in town following their embarrassing opening night loss.
It is hard to imagine the Golden State Warriors franchise being in disarray. They have had so much success over the last five seasons, making the Finals in all of those seasons, winning the whole shebang three times.
Thanks to a horrible run of injuries, and Kevin Durant leaving a team again, the Warriors are not the feared juggernaut they have been. In fact, based on the insipid showing against the LA Clippers, they could be one of the worst teams in the NBA until Klay Thompson comes back.
To make matters worse for the Warriors, starting center Kevon Looney left the season opener after playing only 10:27 minutes of the game. He was suffering from hamstring soreness, which appears to be a follow up from the injury he sustained in the summer. Based on Nick Friedell‘s tweet it might be a neuropathic condition. If true the Warriors injury woes will take another massive hit.
With Looney out versus the Clippers it meant Marquese Chriss was the first choice to start at center in the second half.
Kevon Looney will not play in the Warriors next two games. Warriors say Looney will see ‘a team of specialists’ to determine what’s going on with his hamstring injury. Team says it’s actually a ‘neuropathic condition’ that is affecting his hamstring.
— Nick Friedell (@NickFriedell) October 26, 2019
How did this influence the game? The Clippers big men combined for 34 points, and 16 rebounds. This bodes extremely well for OKC Thunder big man Steven Adams. He was kept quiet in the game against the Utah Jazz by smothering defense.
After another night of offensive struggles against the Washington Wizards, Adams is going to be poised to have a huge night against a seriously undersized Warriors frontcourt.
There will also be a lot less feeling and emotion in Chesapeake Energy Arena compared to previous times these teams have met. This is thanks to Durant leaving the Warriors and Russell Westbrook being traded to the Houston Rockets, it is now just another game of basketball, rather than an intensely personal battle between two superstars.