Defense remains key for OKC Thunder; 3 Takeaways vs Pistons

The OKC Thunder were punched in the face by the defending champion Denver Nuggets, before this. It exposed the disparity between the young Thunder and the team that they are trying to become.

Be that as it may, the result called for a massive bounce-back that requires the team to be in control from start to finish. Seizing control throughout the 48-minute game was exactly what the Thunder did, dominating the Detroit Pistons 124-112.

The OKC Thunder took care of business against the Pistons, 3 takeaways from the bounce back win.

“We did an excellent job of getting to zero and zero,” Mark Daigneualt said. That kind of game-reset, zero-to-zero mentality, propelled the Thunder to what felt like a methodical beatdown of this young Pistons squad that boasts the likes of highly-touted prospects Cade Cunnigham, Jaden Ivey, Jalen Duren, and Ausar Thompson.

“And that is a critical skill in the NBA that scales and applies to every game. You know, whether you’re coming off a good game, winning streak, bad game, losing streak, you’ve got to wake up zero and zero. I thought the guys did a great job of that today with a tiny nudge on our part. I thought they got themselves there,” Daigneault added.

The 2-1 Pistons were no pushover entering the game. They beat the Bulls and the Hornets by double digits and only lost by one against the Miami Heat in the season opener.

To an extent, the win against the Pistons, their third win of the season, was a statement win, at least in the context of the Thunder’s ethos.

Here are some takeaways from the OKC’s beatdown of the Pistons.