3 Thunder players who must step up to stave off elimination in Game 6
By Kyle Lander
Winning in the playoffs can never be a solo act. To succeed, it takes a collective and maximum effort. In this year's Western Conference Semifinals, one team has put such sentiment to the test while one has not. Unfortunately for the OKC Thunder, they are the latter.
Oklahoma City is on its last leg in the playoffs, as they find themselves in a 3-2 deficit to the Dallas Mavericks and are in desperate need of a win come Saturday.
How have they found themselves here? Well, it's really quite simple: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has performed to the level needed, but his teammates haven't.
Every player outside of the MVP runner-up has been inconsistent or nonexistent throughout this battle with the Mavericks and it has led to them being down in the series.
So, where do things need to change?
First and foremost, the Thunder offense needs to be better. To this point, their efficiency has been poor, shown hesitancy when having open jumpers and none of the players have truly gotten into a rhythm.
Of course, the most important factor in regard to their ongoing struggles has come down to their key players not playing up to their standards.
Of the talents to log minutes in this series, there are a few in particular who need to improve if the Thunder wishes to make it to their first Western Conference Finals since the post-Kevin Durant era.