OKC Thunder suffer drop in week 9 of national power rankings

The season is closing in on the halfway point with the OKC Thunder meeting their goals of growth while losing enough to be in the mix of teams who could grab that coveted top draft pick.

Week nine is in the books and witnessed the announcement of All-Star starters and this week will serve up the 14 reserve players (seven in each conference) as voted on by coaches.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is in the mix for the group being mulled over to land one of the two backcourt spots or two wild card spots.

This past week SGA returned to appear in three of the four games the Thunder played and other than a bit of a rough shooting night against the Bucks looks as sharp as he has all season.

In fact, his effort versus the Cavaliers on Sunday offered one last quality performance punctuated by the shooting efficiency that separates him from so many of his peers.

As for the Thunder, it was a tough week with losses to the Blazers, Grizzlies, and Bucks and a lone victory versus the Cavaliers. A hectic schedule plus the wear and tear of being shorthanded recently may be catching up as OKC looked fatigued particularly at the end of games.

With that, let’s look at how the national sites ranked the OKC Thunder in week nine of the NBA

power rankings.

National writers impressed by OKC Thunder in week 9 of power rankings

Week nine found the national scribes all citing the Utah Jazz as the top squad and likewise crediting the OKC Thunder (albeit much lower) for their impressive shorthanded performances.

Last week the analysts ranked the team within a three ladder rung range and in week nine the pundits range from a low of 27th to a high of 24th.

The following represents a compilation of the national sites’ excerpts about the Thunder and links to their power rankings list for week nine of NBA action.

NBA.com – John Schuhmann:

The must-read to start every week is John Schuhmann’s power rankings which always offer some hidden gem stat insight. This week his notes on how close the Thunder have been in games against the elite are poignant.

Considering some of the top-seeded teams haven’t fared well against other top clubs (read- blowout losses) it’s an encouraging note for this young squad that they’ve been within five points in clutch time in six of their losses.

In week nine the stat master drops the Thunder two spots from 23rd to 25th.

A portion of his excerpt is below with some other great Shai Gilgeous-Alexander stats in the full Thunder section which can be viewed via this link.

"The Thunder’s point differential (that of a 9-21 team) says their record is a little inflated. But they’ve played the league’s second toughest schedules, and they’ve lost some close games to good teams. The latest of those heartbreakers came on Tuesday, when they came back from 24 points down to lead the Blazers by five with less than five minutes left … only to be done in by Dame Time. The Thunder are 4-12 against the 13 teams that currently have winning records, with half of those 12 losses having been within five points in the last five minutes."

ESPN Poll:

Hamidou Diallo gets the hat tip from Royce Young in his OKC Thunder excerpt this week but the panel isn’t as impressed with the team. They drop the club three spots from 24th to 27th after a tough 1-3 week nine.

The full listing can be found here.

"As the Thunder transition their roster, there’s opportunity for young players to not just play but to experiment with roles and responsibilities. And one player who has quietly made a dramatic leap forward this season is Hamidou Diallo. The former dunk champion has played all over the floor this season but has improved across the board. He’s averaging career highs basically everywhere and is making a nightly impact. As the Thunder evaluate their young talent, Diallo has the look of a player possibly just scratching the surface of his potential. — Young"

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Bleacher Report:

Another week and another drop in the seeding from Mo Dakhil of Bleacher Report for the OKC Thunder. Like many of his counterparts, Dakhil often mixes in praise for the overachieving Thunder followed by notes on why it’s good for them to be losing.

This week he cites something Intentions mentioned in our three keys to beat the Cavaliers  — that it’s important OKC mix in wins to stop extended losses and keep the young squad invested in playing with the same effort.

In week nine the Bleacher Report columnist drops the Thunder two spots from 22nd to 24th.

Dakhil’s excerpt can be found below.

"The offense has been a struggle all season for the Thunder. Oklahoma City is among the league’s worst in offensive rating with a 104.3 rating. The Thunder were able to snap their three-game losing streak to a team that plays worse offense than them, the Cavs.They got Shai Gilgeous-Alexander back last week from a knee sprain. He exploded for 31 points and nine assists in their return to the win column.In the long run, the Thunder are still looking to rebuild, but a win here and there will be good for their youngs as they continue to develop."

The full article is available via this link.

CBS Sports:

A short and not-so-sweet offering from CBS Sports writer Colin Ward-Henninger this week for the OKC Thunder. Intentions won’t bemoan that fact as CWH has given the Thunder plenty of recognition and love this season.

It was also foreseeable the Thunder would drop in his rankings after the 1-3 week given CWH rates teams with more emphasis on the actual performance of that week which is why OKC has enjoyed some higher rankings from CWH particularly during the week they performed well on the road trip.  They drop three rungs from 22nd to 25th this week.

For CWH’s full power rankings placement click this link.

"OKC had some offensive struggles in three losses to start the week, but it finished things off with a win over the Cavs on Sunday. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander went for 31 points and nine assists in the win, and he was one of six Thunder players to average double-figure scoring for the week."

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Hoops Habit:

More from Thunderous Intentions

• Stealing one player from every Southwest Division team for the OKC Thunder
• Should the OKC Thunder chase after a disgruntled hometown hero?
• 3 OKC Thunder players who can step up in Aleksej Pokusevski’s absence
• Aleksej Pokusevski sidelined approximately 6 weeks with ankle injury
• Damian Lillard does not fit with the OKC Thunder

In week nine, Corey Rausch of Hoops Habit followed the same pattern as his counterparts regarding the Thunder seeding. Rausch drops OKC two rungs to 26th.

The Hoops Habit scribe notes how the Thunder are leveling off while recognizing they continue to be competitive. Rausch also tips the hat to Justin Jackson’s week and the ‘others’ on the Thunder.

The following is a portion of his excerpt on the Thunder while the rest of that segment and his full power rankings can be found via this link.

"The Oklahoma City Thunder are finally sliding into the role many of the other bad teams fit into where they are only able to sneak in a single win in a week. If that is going to be the plan, pulling off a victory against the Milwaukee Bucks is a nice highlight to the week."

That wraps up week nine of the power rankings. What are your thoughts on the rankings week? Let us know in the comments section.