OKC Thunder player grades -Poor start leads to another loss vs Clippers

OKC Thunder starting lineup grades:

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had an overall good game tonight versus the Clippers as he managed to accumulate twenty-three points, six rebounds, and seven assists.

He continually probed the defense with drives off-ball screens and made LA guard him honestly by hitting open shooters all night long.

Although not as aggressive as he was 48 hours prior the Clippers had clearly been mandated to put a lot more pressure on SGA and make life as hard for him as possible.

The fact he was still able to do as much damage as he did is impressive in and of itself. Shai was the only player on the team to both get to the line and do damage at the charity stripe going six of six which improved his performance even further.

Lu Dort had a bit of a down game by his standards this season as he struggled to get any real offense going tonight. He had his worst shooting game in a while going two of ten on shots as well as struggling from deep shooting zero of six.

This grade for Dort might have fallen even lower had it not been for his ability to be such a pest of the defensive end.

This is what makes Lu so valuable to this team as he spent the entire night making life difficult for both Kawai Leonard and especially Paul George.

We should always remember that anything Lu does on the offensive end is just the cherry on top of his usual game.

George Hill has a nice if understated little game for the first three-quarters tonight. Once the fourth quarter started it was a different story as Hill went off taking control and going on a nine to zero run at one point to bring the OKC Thunder within striking distance.

Hill’s ability to spread the floor with his deadeye 3-point shooting forces hard close-outs on him and he took full advantage hitting several floaters in the lane after driving past the defenders trying to run him off the line.

Hill always plays within himself and is very methodical which brings a great calming presence to the team. He was efficient and deliberate and helped the Thunder get as close to winning this game as he could.

Roby played about as well as he could under the circumstances, spending the entire night trying to battle against either Ivica Zubac or Serge Ibaka. The young center worked hard fighting for rebounds and was aggressive on offense especially when matched up with Ibaka.

He ended the night with ten points, ten rebounds, and three assists showing that he can also facilitate a little from the high post. Every game Roby seems to pick up something new and his continued growth has been very enjoyable to watch.

It was interesting to note that Roby only shot two shots from outside the arc considering both the Clippers’ big men were giving Roby about ten feet of space to clog the paint. Hopefully next time they play Roby will look to punish them more as he has a smooth stroke and can absolutely hit a few from downtown when motivated.

Now this grade may seem a bit harsh on the young power forward but understand it’s only low because of the high expectations this narrator has for Darius. He put up respectable numbers of nine points, eleven rebounds, and two assists.

The main concern with Bazley tonight was his defense. Darius has been priding himself on guarding the league’s best wings and forwards lately including the likes of Zach LaVine and Zion Williamson.

This made it all the more confusing tonight when he seemed almost timid when having to guard Kawai or PG. No one is blaming him as these are two MVP level players but this narrator was hoping for more of a gritty defensive effort from young Bazley.

He was caught tonight on several occasions a long way out of position leading to several open 3 pointers for the Clippers.

Add to that the four turnovers and it was a night to forget for the second-year player. He will learn from this and hopefully, come back stronger next game.