An eight-game losing streak was bound to impact where the national writers viewed the OKC Thunder but also losing by the worst margin in NBA history well – let’s just say the fall in the power rankings was expected.
OKC lost all three games last week and while the two losses to the Rockets is somewhat cushioned by the fact they’ve won six games in a row the 73 point differential in the loss to the Grizzlies was embarrassing.
Never mind that arguably the best two Thunder players were out because a decade from now no one will point to that fact.
OKC Thunder plummets in week 7 national power rankings
Some media outlets took real exception to the loss stating something needs to be done by Adam Silver but this is a small market so seriously how can they punish OKC when the association did nothing to the 76ers who tanked for years.
Also, when teams like the Rockets are purposely sitting John Wall to ensure they got out to a terrible start it’s hard to point to the Thunder and say okay but YOU have to play differently.
This is what the NBA has come to with large markets continuing to be the big draw and with superstars like James Harden forcing his way out of Houston with the specific desire to go to Brooklyn.
It’s not like there is going to be an onslaught of players pleading to land in Oklahoma City so Sam Presti’s options are limited to drafting a generational talent(s). After he’s accomplished phase one of the plan the GM can look at making some trades with all that draft capital.
In the interim, there will be losses and plenty of them but hopefully none as dramatic as the one to the Grizzlies. With that here are the excerpts for the OKC Thunder from the national sites and blogs week seven power rankings.
OKC Thunder power ranking – John Schuhmann of NBA.com:
All season John Schuhmann has given ample praise to the OKC Thunder for being competitive and was particularly praiseful of their defense so it’s not surprising he jumped on a similar stat Intentions noted in our Pistons preview — the fall from 13th to 20th in defensive rating all because of one game.
That stats master punished the Thunder for that defensive regression dropping them four rungs to 29th. Hey, at least he didn’t push OKC all the way to 30th.
BBall stat geeks and casual fans alike need to make his weekly power rankings a must-read! Part of Schuhmann’s week seven Thunder excerpt is below and his full rankings can be viewed here.
"The Thunder’s first three-day break of the season was Friday, Saturday and Sunday, so they got extra time to wallow in the worst margin of defeat in NBA history (a 152-79 loss in Memphis). The Grizzlies’ 152 points came on just 98 possessions, making it the most efficient performance for any team in 23 1/2 years. The OKC defense had been solid, but dropped from 13th (through Wednesday) to 20th in the league (through Thursday) in 48 minutes.It really begun to show some slippage the night before, when the Thunder dropped the second of two straight games against Houston. They allowed the Rockets to score 41 points on 25 possessions in the fourth quarter, with nine of their 13 field goals coming in the restricted area. The Thunder were late with help from the weak side, they didn’t step in front of drives, they failed to make the next rotation, and they got caught ball-watching in what was a very winnable game."
ESPN Poll:
The ESPN panel drops the OKC Thunder four spots from 25th to 29th but not to the very bottom of the board as Tim MacMahon points out they are trying to lose these games after all.
MacMahon’s Thunder excerpt is below and the full week seven power rankings are available here.
"The Thunder have lost eight in a row. Last week consisted of a couple of losses to the Rockets — outcomes that could be critical in lottery odds — and a record-breaking 73-point rout at the hands of the Grizzlies. OKC opens this week with a big one on the road, playing the Pistons, one of only two teams in the league with fewer wins. — MacMahon"
CBS Sports:
Colin Ward-Henninger ran his week seven list on Thursday because he’s on a different schedule than the NBA and ESPN lists. In spite of CWH not having to process the 73 point loss to the Grizzlies he still pushed the Thunder to 30th a drop of three rungs from 27th last week.
CWH’s full CBS week seven power rankings are available here.
"The Thunder aren’t expected to win a whole lot of games this season, but they’re probably kicking themselves for not beating the Rockets at home on Wednesday, when Houston’s two best players didn’t even take the court the second half. Instead the Thunder have now lost seven games in a row, with the offense struggling to put points on the board despite 25.3 points and five assists per game this week from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander."
Sporting News:
No entry this week.
Hoops Habit:
Writer Jack Simone of Hoops Habit offers a more abridged version of his weekly power rankings with the OKC Thunder dropping all the way to 30th from last week’s 26th spot.
For the full Hoops Habit week seven power rankings click this link.
"The Oklahoma City Thunder may not have the worst record in the NBA, but losing to a team by 73 points (and setting an awful NBA record) puts them into last place.After a solid start to the season, they have fallen all the way down to the bottom of the West. This looks more like the team most people were expecting to see at the start of the year."
Turns out losing a game by 73 points costs placements and while not every writer pushed the Thunder to 30th the ones who didn’t ranked them 29th.