OKC Thunder: Donovan cites spacing and quicker decisions as keys to improvement

After practice, OKC Thunder coach Billy Donovan cited spacing and quick decisions as the most important areas to improve.

OKC Thunder bench boss Billy Donovan addressed the media via zoom following practice on Friday. He offered some insights into what the team feels they are doing well and what specific improvements the team needs to make for Game three.

The NBA official page has his full interview and questions-answers session.

As for the toplines of what Donovan offered he’s not reinventing the wheel in terms of how the OKC Thunder has approached this season. The identity, system, and key points they’ve focused on all season remain the same.

Donovan points to spacing and quick decisions as keys for Game 3 success

Where Donovan’s typical preparation is vastly different is tied to the opponent. This is the unicorn team of the NBA.  While virtually every team has a small ball lineup and shoots 3-pointers the Rockets take that scenario to the nth degree.

In Game 2, the Rockets attempted 56 (yes — 56) 3-point shots and 35 inside the arc for a total of 91 shot attempts. That equates to over 61 percent of their shot attempts coming from behind the arc. Mind you, if Russell Westbrook was playing that tally would change (but not by much).

In contrast, the Thunder attempted 79 shots, partially less due to those long segments where the offense got stagnant and bottled up. Of the 79, 32 were from the perimeter or 40 percent.

Because of the divergent styles of the clubs, it’s important the Thunder perform well in other areas to offset the variance.

Areas OKC Thunder has to be better than Rockets

Specifically, Donovan noted three areas they are focused on performing better than Houston:

1. taking care of the ball (fewer turnovers)
2. cleaning the glass, particularly on the defensive end
3. getting to the charity stripe more than Houston

Yet, if there was one buzz word for the day and his answers it was ‘spacing’. In every question posed about Game 2, whether it was how the team could improve, what they learned, or what the main issue for the offensive stagnancy was it always came back to spacing.

When Donovan was asked about the stagnancy specifically and why Steven Adams didn’t get a shot after the early stages of the second quarter he pointed to spacing. In combination with the spacing, the other element the team recognized via film sessions (and in-game experience) was making quicker decisions.

The coach felt sometimes the spacing was affected because quicker decisions weren’t made and conversely also felt a lack of spacing didn’t afford the ball handlers to make quicker decisions.

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Since the Rockets are packing the paint and switching everything Donovan said the team needs to be cognizant of helping each other. Sometimes that means reading the situation and moving into open areas of the court even if it’s to create space for a teammate to shoot.

Donovan felt strongly by fixing these two issues it would greatly help their offense. To that end, Billy D also felt their defense suffered from their offense. For example, turning over the ball, or not missing rebounds gave Houston fast-break opportunities

Thunder did a better job  defending perimeter 3-pointers

As for things the team improved from the first to the second game they were able to do a much better job cutting down on the easier corner 3-pointers. In Game 1, Houston shot 23, but in Game 2, OKC cut that number almost in half to 14. He cited rotating better, improved defensive help, more shot contests, and specifically noted Lu Dort’s return as a factor.

In terms of the mood of the team, the coach said it’s been a consistent marker of the OKC Thunder identity this season to be competitive and their spirit reflects that.

The Thunder have been in the downward position so often, he didn’t want to say they were comfortable with it but noted they feel they can overcome anything because they have so often throughout the season.

Let’s hope he’s on the money for and the team will find a way to turn this downward position slightly upward via a victory Saturday.

For more insights on Game 2 click here for grades and click here for three takeaways.