OKC Thunder grades – offensive struggle results in loss to Mavs

OKC Thunder starting lineup grades:

I have a hard time EVER giving Lu Dort a bad score. Sure he shot terribly tonight (1 of 9) but so did the majority of his teammates. It speaks volumes that Lu not producing more is now being looked at as a negative. It shows how the future direction of the team has changed because prior to Lu it was Andre Roberson who delivered the shutdown defense and we’d never have penalized him for not scoring.

The thing is you’ll never find Dort not giving the team something. If his shot is off it’s typically because he has the hardest defensive assignment. And let’s be clear – the entire Thunder team did their job defensively because Dallas shot under 40 percent (38.6%) and failed to score 90 points.

The Thunder specialist registered five points, five rebounds, two assists and got to the line Was it his best offensive effort — not by a long shot, but he delivered on his main task.

The up and down season for Darius Bazley continued with this match leaning more to the positive side.  Like his teammates, he struggled shooting 3 of 11 (which is why he fails to collect the ‘A’)

BUT… in recent matches when Baz’s shot wasn’t falling he’d stop shooting or sometimes disappear in other areas of the court.  He gets kudos tonight for staying in the game and defending. He battled on the boards which earned him 10 boards and his double-double (11 points).

The youngster is still a work in progress and we’ll have to wait patiently to see how big a step he takes each of the next few seasons. The fact he’s showing rebounding should be a constant Mark Daigneault can rely on and that he’s not shying away from open shots is a positive in his growth curve.

So this is a tough one to grade. Only Jerome and Maledon shot more efficiently than Horford. Big Al scored 10 points on his 5 of 12 shooting night adding four rebounds, an assist, and two key blocks.

I guess my main issue is these are the games where Horford needs to do more. When Shai or the youngsters can’t find the next level it’s his veteran leadership the club needs to be able to rely on and channel. Especially because he’ll undoubtedly be out tonight resting in the second game of the back-to-back set.

On a whole, he’s been great to this point in the season and the truth is it’s better for the Thunder to lose because it helps with the greater cause of finishing low enough to get one of the best draft picks. Still, this was one of those nights it would’ve been great to see him do a bit more. Besides, it would also help bolster his trade value.

Not many players had decent shooting nights for the Thunder. Theo Maledon struggled from deep (1 of 5) but was solid in other areas of the court shooting 50 percent overall (5 of 10) collecting 11 points.

The rookie got to the line, was scrappy on the glass (3 rebounds), added a dime, and a steal. He led the starters with the best plus/minus (+3). His youth probably helped quell the fatigue his teammates seem to be affected by. There are so many positives to pull from his early-season play and we at Intentions are excited to witness his second half.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexnder was on a terror last week. Posting a career-best 42 points versus the Spurs. He averaged 26.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 0.8 steals, and a block in his four games last week and led his Thunder to two quality victories.

But, like the final game of the week versus the Nuggets where he struggled scoring 13 points on 5 of 13 shooting this match was similarly problematic. The common denominator in both games is the Nuggets and Mavericks have length to put on SGA. Although that’s typically not a problem for him I think what we’re seeing is the wear and tear of the season on him.

He shot a brutal 5 for 15 points adding three rebounds and three assists. On a season when his efficiency has been among the very best, this is more the exception than the rule.

One note moving forward is opponents will try to emulate how the Nuggets and Mavericks guarded Shai so Mark Daigneault will need to make offensive adjustments.