10 things we learned about the OKC Thunder during the scrimmage games

Issues with free-throw shooting and turnovers:

For as stellar as the Thunder shot from the perimeter they struggled from the charity stripe. Turnovers were also an issue.

The Thunder averaged 13.5 turnovers and shot 79.7 percent from the free-throw line through 64 games. In comparison during the scrimmages, they averaged 16.3 turnovers and shot to 65.1 percent from the charity stripe.

Again, teams are finding their shooting rhythm again, however, it’s odd they would shoot so well from the perimeter and so poorly from the free-throw line. Finding a balance between the two by improving the free-throw efficiency even if they regress slightly from what they shot from deep during these scrimmages would still put them ahead.

The turnovers, although not ideal are more a matter of tightening up execution. Plus they’re moving the ball more and the extra passes are resulting in finding open 3-point shooters so that might be a trade-off the team is willing to make.

Three main statistical categories:

Prior to the hiatus, the OKC Thunder ranked:

• 14th offensively (111.0)
• Ninth defensively (108.4)
• 11th in net differential (plus +2.5)

Through the three scrimmage games, those rankings shifted to:

• Sixth offensively (108.9)
• Fourth defensively (99.0)
• Second in net differential (plus +9.9)

Again, the improvements can be deceiving based on the small sample size, but the defensive focus and effort are a positive to draw from. Since defense relies so much on communication and effort these are qualities the Thunder can carry forward into the seeding games and playoffs.