OKC Thunder routed by desperate Grizzlies- 3 takeaways

Dialing up the intensity and playing with constancy:

Finally, as the Thunder witnessed in this loss, teams who are desperate play with playoff-type intensity. OKC won’t have to worry too much about that versus the Wizards on Sunday who became the first eliminated team in the bubble. However, they’ll have nothing to lose which could mean they’ll play with freedom. The Suns who are the only undefeated team in the seeding games began the schedule with that freedom so Washington can’t be overlooked.

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Speaking of those Suns that’s the team the Thunder will play on the second game of their scheduled back-to-back set and who’ll have a full days rest prior to the match.

The Heat could be playing desperately to ensure they hold off the Pacers or 76ers while the Clippers are a question mark. It’s unlikely the Nuggets will be in a position to vie for the second seed, but LA will want to play their core simply because they haven’t had time to develop chemistry with so many players not being available in the bubble for the full schedule.

Ultimately, the Thunder can’t afford to assume anything and this loss served as a reminder that they must approach every game with the same (if not dialed up) intensity and try to win all the games.

The only caveat to that would be if the Jazz or Rockets lose enough games to ensure OKC has secured the fifth seed (or fourth). That could be a factor by Monday if Utah were to lose to Denver today (Saturday) and Dallas on Monday.  If that occurs the Thunder could go 2-2 through the last four games.

To that end, check out our article later today that dives into all the teams in this final week of play and their motivation with an emphasis on how it may affect the OKC Thunder