In the OKC Thunder comeback scrimmage win versus the 76ers, Andre Roberson and the youngsters dominate the takeaways.
Although scrimmage games won’t count toward the OKC Thunder regular-season record they are important to the process. Firstly, these matches allow the team to face an opponent and continue to develop their stamina and rediscover their flow and rhythm. It’s an opportunity to test things the team ran in practice and measure the effectiveness.
It also allows Billy Donovan the chance to test out different lineup combinations and determine which individuals he might want to consider doling out additional playing time for once the seeding games and playoffs begin.
Regardless of the experimental nature of these scrimmages, teams still tend to play to their identities. Such was the case on Sunday.
Although the 76ers pounced on the Thunder building a 24 point lead at one stage the individual quarters were deceiving as Philly won the first quarter by five points and second frame by six points. In the preview T.I. warned of the quick start Philly would make and noted how the Grizzlies had roared back Friday to cut the final tally to three.
Several members of the Thunder core struggled on Sunday. Both Chris Paul and Danilo Gallinari shot 2 of 8, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was 5 of 15 and Dennis Schroder shot 3 of 13.
3 takeaways from comeback win over 76ers
Yet, in the end, both teams played to their identities. The 76ers bench is lacking depth and they’ve struggled on the road – where all the Disney games will be played.
Conversely, the Thunder are a scrappy never quit team who have made a living this season off winning in the clutch. As it turns out they don’t require the ‘Clutch Time Killers’ lineup to accomplish that feat as that mindset permeates throughout the roster.
Instead, it was the last player anyone expected that rose up to put the team on his back — Andre Roberson.
Roberson claims hero status
While everyone will delight and rant over the back-to-back 3-point shots Dre nailed to give the Thunder victory his effect on the defensive end of the court is why the team was even able to mount a comeback.
In his 15:11 on the court, Roberson delivered two dagger 3-point shots one with the entire 76ers bench leaning over the barrier yelling at him. He grabbed six rebounds, added an assist and a steal and a was a team-high plus 29 with Mike Muscala the next closest (+12).
When Dre entered the game the Thunder were trailing 57-81 by the game end his time on the court had equated to a run of 45 to 16!
The 76ers had a similar defensive presence in rookie Matisse Thybulle who made Dennis Schroder’s life miserable. However, the insertion of Roberson offset Thybulle’s effect pushing the balance in the favor of the Thunder.
Dort produces the best effort from starters:
It was a bad day at the office for the main core of Chris Paul, Danilo Gallinari, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and Dennis Schroder who combined to shoot 12 of 44 from the field and 2 of 18 from deep.
The lone starter who excelled was Luguentz Dort although his best effect came with the reserve unit.
Dort shot four of seven from the field and hit two of his four 3-pointers. As per usual he was solid defensively although the task of guarding the 76ers Shake Milton, Josh Richardson, and Ben Simmons length was daunting.
Still, the Canadian holds his own and one of the best things about the rookie is his no-fear approach.
Dort wasn’t the tallest of the guards on the court (6’3″) but despite his shorter stature in comparison to the 76ers guards his NBA ready body allows him to guard anyone.
Still, a notable takeaway from this match is clubs that have size across an entire lineup will cause issues for the Thunder.
Bazley impresses:
Postgame Billy Donovan said he felt both Darius Bazley and Hamidou Diallo had sub-par games on Friday versus the Celtics. He was thrilled by their bounce-back effort stating how a young player responds to adversity is key.
We’ve noted how Bazley’s ballhandling skills are underutilized but it’s clear Donovan is fully aware of those skills. This was evidenced by the 6’8″ youngster leading the break on several occasions Sunday.
There were several highpoints to earmark for Bazley following the win. His offensive aggressiveness stands out as the top point. Bazley got to the line six times on a day when the Thunder struggled to get to the stripe at their typical rate (in the first half). He tied Dort with 13 points shooting 4 of 8 from the field and 2 of 6 from the perimeter on a silky smooth shot.
The rookie also produced defensively grabbing seven rebounds, a steal, and a block. The more he understands his size and skills are a threat that many opponents will have issues stopping, the more he’ll improve.
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As a suggestion, it would smart for the Thunder to have Bazley view film of Pascal Siakam who often leads the break and handles playmaking responsibility for the Raptors.
Like Siakam, Bazley has a decided advantage working against guards with his height and bigs with his speed.
While Billy Donovan will utilize his reserves often throughout the seeding games it’s likely he’ll cut back once the playoffs start.
Dort is already enmeshed with the starters while Schroder and Nerlens Noel are cemented as the first players off the bench. Given Roberson has returned with the same (and better) ability and Bazley is growing seemingly every game out it won’t be surprising if the Thunder runs nine deep.