OKC Thunder: Luguentz Dort is the Harden whisperer

Third Quarter serves up defensive masterclass:

Only one video segment from this quarter to share — but man oh man is it a doozy.

This is one of my favorite examples of Dort’s defense. It features his lateral quickness, patience in keeping his hands out of foul trouble, and brute strength. You’ll find it in this link running from 1:08 to 1:22 section of the video.

Dort fights around screens twice, forces Harden off the line and stays in front of him. As Harden attempts to shake him first to the left and then to the right Dort is there ahead of him each time and because he’s built like (well you know) the superstar can’t push him off.

Harden is forced to send the ball to the corner and then just for good measure, Dort grabs the rebound off Tucker’s missed 3-point attempt.

The entire sequence is a masterclass of defense and results in the NBA’s best scorer having to give up the ball.