Danilo Gallinari is one of the reasons the OKC Thunder is sixth in the standings. His all-round game makes him hard to stop but he could tweak his post-game.
One of the reasons the OKC Thunder are in such a good position this season is largely thanks to the play of three players who were not on the roster last season. Danilo Gallinari is one of these players who has made the post-Russell Westbrook era enjoyable.
Gallinari is averaging 19.3 points, 5.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game. He is shooting the ball very well, going 44.3 percent from the floor, 40.7 percent from deep and 89.9 percent from the line. These numbers are incredible for a 6’10” power forward who is shooting 7.3 attempts from deep per game.
Gallinari has been responsible for the OKC Thunder winning multiple games this season. His ability to score in bunches has been crucial in the success of the season. He is one of the toughest covers in the NBA at the power forward position.
GET. IN. THERE. 💪 @gallinari8888 | #ThunderUp pic.twitter.com/ok0AHuJfyV
— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) February 22, 2020
The fact the OKC Thunder chose not to trade Gallinari prior to the trade deadline suggests a couple of things. One, they are all-in on this team to make a genuine push for the Finals. Considering they have been the second-best team since Thanksgiving, behind only the Milwaukee Bucks, anything is possible.
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It also suggests that Gallinari has loyalty to the organization which is special considering he was only traded here in July of 2019. His bond with the team is incredible as shown by the way they are having fun and winning. However, there is one area of Gallinari’s game which could be slightly tweaked.
Taking advantage of mismatches in the post.
Gallinari is efficient at taking the 3-point attempt or driving past his man for an easy deuce. However, one area where he needs to exploit the opposition more is getting into the low post against smaller guards.
Gallinari has a series of moves, whether it is going to the basket or fading away from it, which makes him so hard to guard. If he is able to utilize the mismatches created by the movement of the OKC Thunder, he should be even harder to stop.
What I will say is that this is a very small adjustment as Gallinari has been massive for the Thunder this season. He has had streaks where he was not hitting during games but he makes up for that by heating up later in the game.
One thing is for sure if Gallinari s able to continue to play at this level, the OKC Thunder are going to hard to stop for the rest of the season.