OKC Thunder host Blazers to complete season series : preview

Keys to the game

The Trail Blazers are number one in the NBA for free throw percentage (81.3 percent) They are 22nd in the NBA with 21.8 attempts per game. The key to playing this team is a Billy Donovan mantra, defend without fouling.

They are also 21st in the NBA for field goal percentage at 44.9 percent. This is due to the amount of iso-ball they have been playing this season. The Trail Blazers are dead last in the NBA with 19.7 assists per game. This is almost 3.5 less than last season when they were 25th in the NBA.

Where they are strong is defense in the paint. Hassan Whiteside is one of the best shot blockers in the NBA. This means points in the paint are going to be harder to come by although he still struggles to defend the pick and roll. That said there is a good chance that Whiteside will not be able to stop Shai Gilgeous-Alexander from scoring.

Typically the key matchup would be the defense of Terrance Ferguson on C.J. McCollum. However, Ferguson left the match early Friday due to illness and McCollum sprained his ankle versus the Mavericks. The status for both is questionable.

When teams have shut down one of the Blazers backcourt snipers the Blazers have tended to lose. Here’s where tonight starts sounding like the Lakers match because Damian Lillard is dealing with an illness and is also questionable.

If Lillard does play he can expect a steady diet of Thunder defenders. If both Lillard and McCollum are out the Thunder needs to learn from the Lakers loss when LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Danny Green were all out.

If this is the situation OKC has to jump on the Blazers from the tip and bury them early.