Overreacting to the Thunder preseason
Preseason basketball wrapped up on Thursday for the Oklahoma City Thunder, finishing with a 5-1 record. While many people say not to overreact to the preseason, I say why not? The Thunder core played amazing and is giving fans a lot to look forward to this season.
The Oklahoma City Thunder’s young core played exceptionally in the preseason, giving fans a reason to get excited about the upcoming season.
Three-point shooting is probably the biggest takeaway from the Thunder preseason. OKC has historically struggled to shoot the ball, but last year was the worst. The Thunder shot just 32 percent from three as a team, ranking dead last in the NBA and the worst percentage since the franchise moved to Oklahoma City. To combat the shooting woes, the Thunder hired long-time Spurs shooting coach, Chip Engelland.
The expectation was that Engelland would help the team shoot better over the years and that the impact would not be immediate. However, the Thunder were an elite shooting team in the preseason, making 38 percent of shots behind the line. For perspective, that percentage would rank first in the NBA last season.
Now obviously it’s unlikely the Thunder shoot the ball this well in the regular season, but it’s very possible they significantly boost their percentage from last season, maybe even into the top half of the league.
Aaron Wiggins was the biggest contributor from deep, shooting an absurd 55 percent from three on three attempts per game. Although the sample size is small, Wiggins also had the hot hand in Summer League, where he shot 42 percent from three. Wiggins could be a sharpshooter off the bench for the Thunder this season, as well as moving forward.
Josh Giddey made a huge improvement shooting the ball, becoming the complete package offensively. Last year, Giddey won every Rookie of the Month award he was eligible for, averaging 12 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists in his rookie campaign. The one major weakness in his game last season was shooting.
He finished the year shooting 26 percent from three on three attempts per game. A well below-average percentage, but we knew Giddey wouldn’t be a knockdown shooter right away. Well in the preseason, he’s already making strides toward becoming a better shooter.
Giddey shot 53 percent on three attempts per game. I know the sample size isn’t large, but it’s not every day a player doubles their shooting percentage. But the difference isn’t just shots falling in his favor. Giddey looks much more confident shooting the basketball, comfortably stepping into jump shots.
He’s improved in more areas than just shooting, too. He looks visibly stronger, welcoming contact at the rim and even playing tougher defense. It’s easy to see while watching that he truly has superstar potential in this league. Even his inbound passes are must-see TV.