OKC Thunder: Stats media need to consider before voting on bubble awards

Diving into stat dominance of certain OKC Thunder and other under the radar players that Bubble Awards voters should consider.

The NBA made the decision to make the cut-off for season awards March 11th, pre-suspension. The OKC Thunder made the grade in two individual categories with Dennis Schroder selected as one of the three Sixth Man candidates and Billy Donovan one of the three Coach of the Year Candidates.

At the time the decision to cut off the awards for games played until the hiatus seemed a bit odd if not unfair. In terms of Schroder as it turned out it didn’t matter since each of the Sixth Man candidates had to leave the bubble at some point.

Schroder left to be with his wife for the birth of their daughter. Lou Williams left to attend a funeral, made an ill-advised stop at a gentleman’s club ‘for wings’, and paid the price with 10 days in quarantine. Montrezl Harrell exited for his ill grandmother who eventually passed. All three are back with Harrell and Schroder in quarantine which presumably will be for four days.

Turns out the NBA had a plan in mind regarding the eight seeding games the 22 teams played to complete the season (and cash in those local television contracts — thank you very much).

OKC Thunder rank among best in important categories:

That’s because there will be another set of awards for the bubble. No, they aren’t as prestigious as the seasonal hardware. Plus there are a number of factors that benefit specific teams/players over others. But, it’s a great way to add value, excitement, and reward those who’ve made the season resumption so exciting.

The ‘bubble awards’ will have a first and second All-NBA team which presumably will reward the offensive standouts although it would be good to get clarification on that fact.

The other very unfair part of this equation is teams and players who got the benefit of an easier eight seeding game schedule.

Some teams had much more difficult schedules or got the benefit of teams resting stars (see below) and those dynamics will play a factor. That’s not to say Devin Booker doesn’t deserve to make the All-NBA first team for example. Rather, it points to opportunity.

The Nets are 5-2 in the bubble but had the fourth easiest schedule. So, if a team like Brooklyn lands a player on the All-NBA first or second bubble team is that fair to the Thunder who played the ninth most difficult schedule?

Recognizing there are four games left on the schedule TI dove into some numbers the pundits making the decisions should consider before casting that final vote.