OKC Thunder vs. Pelicans – 3 keys to Game 2 of Summer League

On day four of the NBA Summer League, the OKC Thunder will face the New Orleans Pelicans. Both teams will be playing their second of five games and seeking to remain unbeaten as each sport an unbeaten 1-0 record.

The Thunder defeated the Pistons and number one draft pick, Cade Cunningham in their opening match. OKC came from behind in the 76-72 win holding Detroit to nine points in the fourth quarter. The Pelicans’ first match wasn’t nearly as competitive as New Orleans blew out the Bulls 94-77 in an impressive victory.

Tip-off is 7:00 p.m. EST (6:00 CT) at the COX Pavilion airing on NBA TV.

3 keys for OKC Thunder versus Pelicans Summer League match

Early in the first game top draft pick for the Thunder Josh Giddey tweaked his ankle. Giddey left the match at 6:42 during a timeout never to return. He’s listed as day to day but based on that ankle turning completely over odds are the club will exercise caution and keep him sidelined so he can properly heal.

OKC Thunder key no. 1: Maledon’s offense

Giddey’s likely absence means there will be an opportunity for others to step up and make an impression. At the top of that list will be sophomore point guard Theo Maledon who delivered the most complete game notching a double-double of 15 points and 11 assists.

While he led the team in scoring it wasn’t via an efficient effort. Specifically, he shot a highly inefficient 4 of 11 from the field and 1 of 5 from the perimeter. Fortunately, he was aggressive and that garnered him seven trips to the line where he collected six points.

OKC Thunder key no. 2: Crash the boards and take efficient open perimeter shots:

Although OKC won their initial match they lost the rebounding battle 39 to 49. Detroit got the edge on the defensive glass with a 35 to 24 edge. The Pelicans also lost their rebound battle (39 to 46)  but have a number of athletic big men who OKC will need to box out. Getting those boards is vital for the Thunder in order to help them instigate more transition scoring opportunities while increasing their overall pace and shot attempts.

Ball movement clearly should be a focus and specifically creating and taking more and improved perimeter attempts. OKC was abysmal in that regard versus the Pistons making only three 3-pointers of the 27 attempts they took.

It’s natural for teams to be struggling with their shots early in the tournament but OKC struggled from all areas of the hardwood shooting 36.1 percent from the field, 11.1 percent from the perimeter, and 65.0 percent from the charity stripe.

OKC Thunder key no. 3:  Limit Pels forward Murphy

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In the Pelicans victory versus the Bulls, Trey Murphy III was the rookie lighting up the court. He led New Orleans with 26 points. He shot the ball efficiently connecting on 9 of 15 from the field (60 percent) including hitting 6 of 9 of his 3-point attempts (66.6 percent) and hit both his free throws.

In addition, Murphy was vital to the Pelicans scoring but was also critical to their effort on the glass grabbing nine rebounds ball movement creating shots for his teammates en route to collecting nine

Each of the 11 players who got minutes scored for the Pelicans and the ball was zipping as they collected 25 assists.

Limiting Murphy’s scoring will be the priority but the Thunder will need to also bring the same defensive effort as they did versus Detroit if they want to collect their second victory.