OKC Thunder look to stop Greek Freak in matchup versus Bucks

Keeping up shooting power:

The OKC Thunder are one of the best shooting teams in the NBA. They are fourth in field goal percentage at 47.4 percent behind the Lakers, Bucks, and Pacers. And third in free-throw percentage with 80.5 percent tied with the Spurs.

This has a lot to do with the depth of their squad with many scoring options. A key for this game will be maintaining this marvelous shooting against the Bucks who have similar numbers in terms of shooting efficiency.

OKC can enter games with a roar, so it will be about doing it for the full 48 minutes especially against a Milwaukee team who likes to play with a lot of pace.

Third quarter defense:

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As TI’s Tamberlyn Richardson mentioned in the takeaways for OKC’s win over Chicago on Tuesday, the Thunder need to repair their third quarter defensive decline.

This an area where they fall after returning from a stellar first half. It will come with time as did breaking their habit of slow starts to the game.

However it is getting closer to the playoffs so if they can mend this as soon as possible, it would make them an even larger threat. This is scary for other teams as they are already making waves and knocking on the door of the Rockets.

A key for this match will be coming out with full force and being locked down on the defensive end. In order to prevent the Bucks from getting a lead and taking full advantage of their height disparity.

Holding ground in Tall against short matchup:

That brings us to the tall versus short contest. If you’re a basketball player, chances are you’re tall in terms of the average human height but could still be short in the basketball world. So though the OKC Thunder have giants in Steven Adams and Nerlens Noel, they as a team are still relatively short.

Moreover, the Bucks have players like the reigning MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo who stands at 6’11” and two 7′ footers in the Lopez brothers. Everyone on their roster except for Eric Bledsoe is 6’3″ or taller.

On the OKC Thunder, the tallest player is Adams at 6’11” and they have two guys who are 6’1” in Chris Paul and Dennis Schroder.

So it will be a task getting over the Bucks and there will be some mismatches. But if the Thunder can adapt to this (look out for Luguentz Dort) and use their speed to hold their ground, this could take them over the line.