OKC Thunder seek to rebound from 73 point loss, face the Pistons

OKC Thunder - Pistons preview: Suns guard Chris Paul (3) steals the ball from Pistons guard Cade Cunningham (2): Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
OKC Thunder - Pistons preview: Suns guard Chris Paul (3) steals the ball from Pistons guard Cade Cunningham (2): Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports /
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OKC Thunder
OKC Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) goes up for a basket against Houston Rockets : Alonzo Adams-USA TODAY Sports /

Key Stats:

The Pistons rank In the big three statistical categories, the Rockets rank 29th (100.0) offensively, 22nd defensively (109.7), and 28th for net differential with a minus -9.7 net rating.

Clearly, the match versus the Grizzlies will impact the OKC Thunder big three categories and take a while to counteract. They begin the week ranked 30th offensively (99.1), dropped from 14th to 21st  defensively (109.2) after the Grizzlies game which also hit them in net differential (-10.1) with them dropping to 30th.

Scoring:

The Pistons score 98.9 per game, ranking 29th overall, and allow opponents to score 108.5
which ranks 22nd.

The Thunder also saw their scoring stats impacted by the 73 point loss dropping to 30th in scoring per game with 98.1 points while allowing opponents to score 108.2 points per game ranking 20th.

Rebounding:

On the glass, the Pistons grab 42.4 rebounds per game ranking dead last. Offensively, Houston pulls down 10.7 boards which rank fifth overall.

The Thunder dropped from the top spot to eighth averaging 46.1 boards per game and10.1 offensive boards which ties them with the Warriors in 16th.

Dime dishers:

As for playmaking, Detroit averages 21.3 assists which ranks 28th while the Thunder resides in the 30th spot dishing 19.7 assists per game.

Perimeter:

The Pistons ranks 30th from beyond the arc shooting with an efficiency of 29.9 percent
while OKC struggles from deep also shooting 30.2 percent to rank 29th.

Turnovers:

The Pistons turnover the ball 15.1 times per game which is tied for 24th.

Miscellaneous Categories:

Offensively the Pistons are active with their hands which leads to turnovers but ironically they don’t translate that into fast break scoring. Also surprising is how poorly they do at scoring in the paint.

  • Points off turnovers: 17.3 – ranks10th
  • Second Chance points: 12.5 – ranks 17th
  • Fast break points: 10.2 – ranks 26th
  • Points in the paint: 42.2 – ranks 26th

Defensively the Pistons allow far too many points to be scored off turnovers so it’s an area the Thunder should look to take advantage of and also drive the ball to score in the paint. Detroit is one of the better teams at defending the break and transition.

  • Points off turnovers: 18.3 – ranks 28th
  • Second Chance points: 12.1 – ranks in a four-way tie for eighth
  • Fast break points: 11.4 – ranks ninth
  • Points in the paint: 46.0  – ranks 16th.

NOTE: These stats were pulled prior to games played on December 6th from NBA official site and could experience shifts as games tip-off.