Oklahoma City Thunder

Denver Nuggets 119, Oklahoma City Thunder 90

alleyoop — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 23:28:38 +0000

The Thunder only shot 32.5% from the floor and they were losing 92-64 heading into the 4th quarter. Young teams lay an egg from time to time so I would just write this loss off. Kevin Durant led the way for the Thunder with 19 points, 4 rebounds and 3 blocked shots in 27 minutes last night. James Harden had a good game for the Thunder against the Nuggets as he finished up with 19 points, 5 rebounds and 3 steals. Serge Ibaka had probably his best game this season for the Thunder last night as he finished up with 15 points and 13 rebounds. The Thunder are now 36-24 on the season.

Oklahoma City Thunder 113, Sacramento Kings 107

alleyoop — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 14:02:16 +0000

The Thunder shot 50% from the floor and they outrebounded the Kings 43-32 which helped them hold off the pesky Kings last night. Kevin Durant was awesome as usual last night with 39 points, 10 rebounds and 2 assists. Russell Westbrook continued his fine play last night with 30 points, 5 rebounds and 13 assists. Jeff Green (15 points, 5 rebounds and 2 blocked shots) and Nenad Krstic (14 points and 9 rebounds) both supported the two stars last night. The Thunder are now 36-23 on the season.

The Oklahoma City Thunder are happy with their rookies this season

alleyoop — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 17:56:19 +0000

The Thunder have a nice set of rookies that have really helped the bench this season. Shooting guard James Harden will be a starter down the road for the Thunder but he is a backup for now. Harden has played in 55 games (0 starts) for the Thunder this season and he is averaging 23.0 minutes, 9.8 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.0 steal per game. Harden is not shooting well overall (39.3% from the floor) but he is a solid 38.2% from three point range. So maybe better shot selection will help Harden out in the near future. Center Serge Ibaka has been a solid backup this season for the Thunder. He has played in 47 games (0 starts) for the Thunder this season and he is averaging 16.4 minutes, 5.0 points, 4.8 rebounds and 0.1 assists per game. Ibaka is shooting 50.5% from the floor but only 53.1% from the free throw line which proves that he does most of his scoring in close. Ibaka has the potential to be a starter down the road for the Thunder. Point guard Eric Maynor has finally given Russell Westbrook a backup that the Thunder can trust. Maynor has played in 28 games (0 starts) for the Thunder and he is averaging 14.8 minutes, 4.1 points, 1.5 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game. Overall, Maynor has played in 54 games (2 starts) with the Thunder & Jazz this season and he is averaging 14.3 minutes, 4.5 points, 1.5 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game. Center B.J. Mullens is a very raw player who has spent most of his rookie year in the D-League. Mullens has played in 9 games (0 starts) for the Thunder this season and he is averaging 1.1 points, 0.9 rebounds and 0.1 assists per game.

Kevin Durant’s amazing scoring streak has ended for the Oklahoma City Thunder

Andrew — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 16:14:45 +0000

Leading up to last night’s game against the San Antonio Spurs, Oklahoma City Thunder star Kevin Durant had gone 29 straight games scoring 25 or more points. Durant had 17 points at halftime, and it looked like he was going to extend his impressive scoring streak to 30 games. The Spurs’ pesky Manu Ginobli came out in the second half and played some tough defense on Durant, including an impressive block on a two-handed, fast break dunk Durant attempted late in the 4th quarter. That block was a key play in the game, and it took all of the momentum from the Thunder, who ended up losing 95-87. Durant went scoreless in the final quarter and his long scoring streak came to an end. He finished the game with 21 points, 12 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks. The streak is a franchise record and the third longest streak of 25+ points by a forward in NBA history. It is also the longest streak since Michael Jordan’s 40 game streak in 1986-87. During the 29-game streak, the Thunder went 20-9 and Durant shot 51% from the field and averaged 32.4 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.2 steals, and 0.9 blocks. This was a really impressive streak that Durant had going, especially when you consider the fact that he is only 21-years-old and it is only his third year in the NBA.

Kevin Durant has gone from rising-star to superstar for the Oklahoma City Thunder

Andrew — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 11:20:09 +0000

Kevin Durant has been impressive in the NBA ever since he stepped on to the court as a rookie two seasons ago, but he has taken his game to another level this season. Durant is currently the leading scorer in the NBA, averaging 29.9 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 1.4 steals, 0.9 blocks, while shooting 48% from the field and 39% from three. Durant is also on a very impressive scoring streak, scoring 25+ points in 29 consecutive games. It is the second longest streak in 35 years, with Michael Jordan the only player to have a longer streak of games with 25+ points (40) in the 1986-87 season. Durant is not only putting up some great individual stats but he is also leading the Oklahoma City Thunder to a lot of victories. Their record is at 33-22, which is currently the 6th best record in a loaded Western Conference and only 3.5 games back of their division lead. Considering the Thunder went 23-59 last season, it shows they are one of the most improved teams in the league and Durant is the main reason why. The Thunder had one 9 straight games before losing 104-102 last night against the Suns, where Durant put up 36 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals. Durant has put himself up at the “elite” status in the NBA this season, amongst guys like Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Carmelo Anthony.

Thabo Sefolosha knows his role for the Oklahoma City Thunder

alleyoop — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 19:35:37 +0000

Despite playing shooting guard Thabo Sefolosha knows his role with the Thunder. That is to play defense and rebound while Kevin Durant, Jeff Green and Russell Westbrook handle the scoring. Sefolosha has played in 51 games (all starts) for the Thunder this season and he is averaging 29.6 minutes, 5.9 points, 5.2 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.3 steals per game. Rookie James Harden will likely bump Sefolosha from the starting lineup down the road but for now he will be safe due to his unselfish play.

Eric Maynor is playing well for the Oklahoma City Thunder

alleyoop — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 19:50:08 +0000

Rookie point guard Eric Maynor is playing really well for the Thunder since coming over from the Jazz in a trade. Maynor has played in 23 games (0 starts) for the Thunder and he is averaging 15.3 minutes, 4.4 points, 1.7 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game. The best thing about Maynor is that he allows Russell Westbrook to get the time off needed to stay fresh. In fact, Westbrook’s shooting has gotten better since Maynor came over from the Jazz.

Etan Thomas is buried on the bench for the Oklahoma City Thunder

alleyoop — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 22:24:47 +0000

Veteran F/C Etan Thomas has been buried on the bench this season through no fault of his own. It’s just that the Thunder don’t have any minutes available for him behind Jeff Green, Nenad Krstic, Serge Ibaka and Nick Collison. I know that it’s no consolation to Thomas himself to hear that he is valuable depth for the Thunder as he wants to play. The trading deadline is coming up so maybe the Thunder will move Thomas. He has played in 17 games (1 start) for the Thunder this season and he is averaging 16.1 minutes, 3.8 points and 3.4 rebounds per game.

Oklahoma City Thunder’s Jeff Green playing solid, but needs to shoot better

Andrew — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 18:11:46 +0000

Jeff Green has been having a decent season for the Oklahoma City Thunder this year, but he has struggled with his outside shot. After shooting a career high 45% from the field and 39% from three last season, he is only hitting 43% from the field and an ice-cold 29% from three-point land. Green is an active and athletic player, and is averaging 14.0 points, 6.1 rebounds, 1.7 assists, and 1.0 steals. His point-per-game average is down 2.5 points from last season though, and his poor outside shooting is the reason why. Green does a lot of things well for the Thunder and is third on the team in scoring (behind Durant and Westbrook), but if he could find some more consistency with his outside shot it will help spread the defense and make things a lot easier for Kevin Durant. Durant often has to put so much of the scoring burden on himself, and if he has an off night the Thunder are almost guaranteed to lose. If he could just get a little more help from guys like Green it could help the Thunder take the next step and get themselves into the playoffs.

Russell Westbrook is playing pretty well this season for the Oklahoma City Thunder

alleyoop — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 14:36:02 +0000

Starting point guard Russell Westbrook is really playing well for the Thunder so far this season. He has played in 40 games (all starts) this season for the Thunder and he is averaging 16.3 points, 5.0 rebounds, 7.4 assists and 1.1 steals per game. Westbrook only has one real weakness in his game and that is that he is not a good shooter. He is shooting only 40% from the floor and 25.9% from three point range so far this season. Westbrook is the second leading scorer on the Thunder but they need him to take better shots. He is the point guard so he could just pass the ball more.