At last, the preseason finally is coming to a close. I am certainly relieved that we can finally get this over with and get to some basketball with some meaning. Undoubtedly, the Thunder are ready to put this behind them as well. It's been disastrous this pre-season, plagued with injury and above all, loses. I'm sure P.J. and the guys are ready for a regular season...also bound to be plagued by injuries and loses. But at least those loses will mean something.
Without further adieu, here's your preview for tonight's finale, live from...Ontario, California???
Backstory: Yes, it's true that the Thunder have only had one win in six attempts. I'm not here to make things appear better than they are, but to the Thunder's defense, they haven't really been destroyed in any game. I mean, that still isn't winning, but at least it is humiliation. It's probably important to the team to end on a positive note though, at least in their eyes. if one win is 10x better than being winless, then two wins must be at least 3x as good as one. Does a win for the final game of the preseason give a team any added momentum? I don't know, probably not, but there's a chance, and as long as that chance is there, the Thunder should try to reach out and grab it.
Analysis: This always seems to come up, but it has become a major storyline of the Thunder preseason. Injuries have pestered the team constantly thus far. Just as soon as Jeff Green and Robert Swift were able to come back, Chris Wilocx and Joe Smith found their ways back on the bench. This has resulted in key players like KD putting in way more minutes than they should, though to their credit they've handled it well.
As for how the team's match-up, the talent level is far higher on the Lakers. I've given up trying to predict who and how long players will be on the court this preseason, because I always seem to get it wrong. For this game though, it matters not. The Lakers will definitely have the talent edge no matter who takes the floor. If those players happen to include Andrew Bynum, Pau Gasol, or of course the assassin Kobe Bryant, we could be in for a drubbing, though.
Player to Watch: This is a stretch, and I'm not saying we should be expecting Thunder Wonder status for this guy, but look for John Lucas III to have a really solid game off the bench. Remember, he's fighting for his spot on the roster, so I think the motivation of trying to make the squad means he either will be spectacular or try too hard and look terrible (hoping for the former).
Predicted Result: Lakers 101 Thunder 87
Showing posts with label Pre-Season. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pre-Season. Show all posts
Friday, October 24, 2008
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Pre-Season Game 6 Recap: Suns 102 Thunder 93
Yahoo! Boxscore
Hmmmm, so Shaq, Amare, and Nash all played extensive minutes and Weezy didn't play at all. I think a certain Pre-Game guy needs to be fired! Aside from this though, it was just another day at the office for P.J.'s bunch...We came, we saw, we lost. I suppose players continue to develop, but it obviously isn't enough for winning, and with so many players injured, how could we ever hope to.
As soon as I saw that for some inexplicable reason Suns were starting Shaquille O'Neal, Steve Nash, and Amare Stoudemire, I knew we were screwed. Even a Shaq who could care less about the game and, judging from his quotes, hates the idea of NBA basketball in Oklahoma, he's still 10x better than anything we could have put on the court tonight, as far as big men go. Despite my forecast of impending doom, the Thunder showed heart in the first quarter, led by KD and trailing only by one.
The fight continued on through the first half in the traditional Thunder fashion. We always remained in striking distance. Occasionally we'd get a tad behind that, but we'd always come back, never take the lead though, but always right there.
Of course, it didn't last, and the Thunder lost every quarter except the last, where we tied. Overall, everybody sucked. And I do mean everybody. Petro showed flashes of excellence and Robert Swift was decent in his debut, but both are far from where they should be. Overall, the only thing I think we accomplished in this game was hurting Amare Stoudemire. YEAH!!!
Thunder Wonder: Johan Petro, 17 points, 7-10 shooting, 5 rebounds, 3 steals, 3 blocks
Nobody deserves this, but I gave it to Petro because he hurt the team the least.
Thunder Down Under: Russell Westbrook, 22 points, 7-13 shooting, 2 3's, 4 assists, 8 TURNOVERS
All the rest of his stats were pretty great, but how could I ever give a guy with 8 turnovers Thunder Wonder???
Thunder Blunder: Damien Wilkins, 2 points, 1-5 shooting, 1 rebound, 2 steals, 2 turnovers. Damien, what happened?! You were once a prominent feature in the wonder category and now you're a blunder. Don't let it happen again.
Thunder Plunderer: Amare Stoudemire, 17 points, 6-8 shooting, 1 board, 3 assists
He gets thus, plus a purple heart for the injury. OK, no purple heart, but he was still pretty solid.
Thunder Plunderer Down Under: Matt Barnes, 12 points, 4-8 shooting, 2-3 from beyond the arc, 5 rebounds, 7 assists
You couldn't expect this from such a talented Suns team, and I hate Barnes, but after looking at his statline, I thought, hey, why not?
No wonder we suck, we're afraid of the ball
Zorgon's Note: An example of the great KSBI coverage:
Brian Davis is cut off in mid-signoff by colourbars with the text "AMV Gateway" superimposed on them, accompanied with that ever so pleasent noise. Then an Oklahoma City University commercial came on, immediately followed by the recording of an earlier High School Football game between Westmoore and Norman, with a "Thursday Night" message in the upper right corner of the screen. Classy.
Preseason Pregame 6: Thunder at Suns
The incoming NBA season is breathing down everyone's neck. The Thunder take on the Suns tonight, but the real thing on everybody's mind is the season opener against Milwaukee. Though the Thunder have played impressively at times, I think improvement is hardly the word for how the team has developed, as shown by their (1-4) preseason record. Will their fortunes turn around tonight? Does it even matter? All this and more on this installment of...Preseason Pregame!!!
Backstory: As said earlier, the Thunder have played less than 4 star basketball thus far. Granted, the number of injuries they've had have certainly held them back. Still, OKC typically plays their starters far longer than anyone else and still have only mustered one victory. Is this something to be concerned about? Sure, they haven't looked good and there's no reason to think that Kyle Weaver or Robert Swift being healthy is going to change that. Is it time to panic? Of course not! Like anybody on the court, aside from John Lucas III and other preseason acquisitions, care about what happens in the game. And aside from that, it isn't like the expectations for this team were that high in the first place.
Analysis: Once again, the Thunder will likely be starting all the main cast of characters. Look for Petro to again see a lot of minutes and likely even start. Dez Mason will probably see a good amount of floor time, as Jeff Green is still iffy. KD's play this season had been, frankly, unpredictable. At times, he's a god, at others, he gives Bricktown a new meaning.
Unlike the Thunder, don't expect to see the big names for the Suns taking the court tonight. Shaq, Amare, Nash, and Raja will all likely see no more than 5 minutes in this game, but most likely none at all. Watch out for Alando Tucker and Boris Diaw, though, both having decent pre-seasons thus far.
Player to Watch: Chris Wilcox seems like the natural choice to me. There's no real inside presence playing tonight, and Weez should be able to eat up the lanky Diaw and still raw rookie Robin Lopez. Weezy explodes, trust me.
Predicted Result: Thunder 100 Suns 91
Backstory: As said earlier, the Thunder have played less than 4 star basketball thus far. Granted, the number of injuries they've had have certainly held them back. Still, OKC typically plays their starters far longer than anyone else and still have only mustered one victory. Is this something to be concerned about? Sure, they haven't looked good and there's no reason to think that Kyle Weaver or Robert Swift being healthy is going to change that. Is it time to panic? Of course not! Like anybody on the court, aside from John Lucas III and other preseason acquisitions, care about what happens in the game. And aside from that, it isn't like the expectations for this team were that high in the first place.
Analysis: Once again, the Thunder will likely be starting all the main cast of characters. Look for Petro to again see a lot of minutes and likely even start. Dez Mason will probably see a good amount of floor time, as Jeff Green is still iffy. KD's play this season had been, frankly, unpredictable. At times, he's a god, at others, he gives Bricktown a new meaning.
Unlike the Thunder, don't expect to see the big names for the Suns taking the court tonight. Shaq, Amare, Nash, and Raja will all likely see no more than 5 minutes in this game, but most likely none at all. Watch out for Alando Tucker and Boris Diaw, though, both having decent pre-seasons thus far.
Player to Watch: Chris Wilcox seems like the natural choice to me. There's no real inside presence playing tonight, and Weez should be able to eat up the lanky Diaw and still raw rookie Robin Lopez. Weezy explodes, trust me.
Predicted Result: Thunder 100 Suns 91
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Preseason Pregame 5: Clippers at Thunder
The Thunder racked their first win of many (hopefully) the other night in Tulsa. As I predicted, the crowd was only decent. On the other hand, it was just a preseason game and to my surprise, there was a whole lot of Thunder gear in the crowd. Still though, tonight marks the opening of play in the Ford Center, and look for an even more supportive fans in what may be the most vigorous crowd in preseason history. The era of Thunder basketball in Bricktown had begun...
Backstory: The Thunder are finally in the win column, but how will they cope with this success? Young teams generally respond with winning in two ways, either they get on a roll with confidence, or they become overconfident and suffer greatly. Which will the Thunder choose? Well, neither. This is the preseason, nobody freakin' cares about winning!
Also, Kevin Durant was en fuego in the last game, or actually, the fourth quarter. Which KD will we see tonight? I'd bet on the one from the first three quarters. I expect Kevin to turn it on during the regular season, but really, who can stay pumped for preseason more than one quarter?
Analysis: The Thunder starters continue to improve, along with Desmond Mason. Everyone else, especially Russ Westbrook, seem to either be in park or reverse. Westbrook is shooting less accurately than those random thug guys in National Treasure.
Still though, the Thunder continue to be hampered by injuries. Damien Wilkins was taken out of the fourth quarter of the last game and Jeff Green won't return tonight, not to mention Joe Smith. Actually, it's probably best that they catch the injury bug now, so that they can get it out of the way for the regular season.
Now, back to the game, the Clippers are a better team than the Thunder. However, that didn't stop them when they played the Rockets, a very good team. If Baron Davis or Chris Kaman see much action, it could be tough, but as evidenced by the last game, not impossible.
Player to Watch: OK, it's about time I give it to him. Be on the lookout for Thunder forward Damien Wilkins tonight. He didn't look to spectacular the other night, but I have a feeling his return will be very impressive, and it won't be too long before he's a household name in the metro area.
Predicted Result: Thunder win their first game in the Ford Center (I'm a sap for good stories) 100-94
Backstory: The Thunder are finally in the win column, but how will they cope with this success? Young teams generally respond with winning in two ways, either they get on a roll with confidence, or they become overconfident and suffer greatly. Which will the Thunder choose? Well, neither. This is the preseason, nobody freakin' cares about winning!
Also, Kevin Durant was en fuego in the last game, or actually, the fourth quarter. Which KD will we see tonight? I'd bet on the one from the first three quarters. I expect Kevin to turn it on during the regular season, but really, who can stay pumped for preseason more than one quarter?
Analysis: The Thunder starters continue to improve, along with Desmond Mason. Everyone else, especially Russ Westbrook, seem to either be in park or reverse. Westbrook is shooting less accurately than those random thug guys in National Treasure.
Still though, the Thunder continue to be hampered by injuries. Damien Wilkins was taken out of the fourth quarter of the last game and Jeff Green won't return tonight, not to mention Joe Smith. Actually, it's probably best that they catch the injury bug now, so that they can get it out of the way for the regular season.
Now, back to the game, the Clippers are a better team than the Thunder. However, that didn't stop them when they played the Rockets, a very good team. If Baron Davis or Chris Kaman see much action, it could be tough, but as evidenced by the last game, not impossible.
Player to Watch: OK, it's about time I give it to him. Be on the lookout for Thunder forward Damien Wilkins tonight. He didn't look to spectacular the other night, but I have a feeling his return will be very impressive, and it won't be too long before he's a household name in the metro area.
Predicted Result: Thunder win their first game in the Ford Center (I'm a sap for good stories) 100-94
Monday, October 13, 2008
Pre-Season Game 4 Recap: Thunder 110 Rockets 104
For some reason Rick Adelman isn't happy to see the Thunder's first win
We went to Billings...and got nothin. We went to Sacramento...and got nothin. We went to Oakland...and got nothin. We came to Tulsa to face a playoff team for the first time and expected much of the same. Well my friends, I'm happy to report that we were wrong. Congratulations to the Thunder for capturing their first ever victory!
It didn't look good at first. I was relieved when I heard T-Mac wasn't going to play, but when I saw Nick Collison guarding Yao Ming, probably giving him a good 8 inches, I again had my doubts. My doubts may have been legit if it wasn't a pre-season game, he had 15 points and 16 rebounds in just 24 minutes. Nevertheless, as the game progressed, you could see a certain fight in the Thunder that just wasn't there before...
It started like every other Thunder game. We fell in a big hole early, Durant was struggling from the field, and Wilkins and Weezy were providing the scoring. Wilkins would soon fall off in the scoring department, which would usually be bad news for the Thunder. After all, Wilkins has won the prestigious Thunder Wonder award more than any other player, in fact, he's the only ever recipient.
Thankfully though, Desmond Mason was able to play tonight, unlike what was predicted by yours truly, and gave his best contribution to date as a member of the Thunder. He went 7/10 from the floor with 16 points and 3 boards including a pretty reverse layup before the half.
Before the 4th quarter it looked like the big men would be the story for the Thunder. Both Chris Wilcox and Nick Collison had outstanding games. The highlight of Weezy's game had to be the powerful jam he scored right over Yao. Nick Collison also had a memorable play against Yao where the Great Wall came down with the rebound (as always) and Nick swiped it clear out of his hands. Collison finished the night with 21 points and 4 boards, shooting 60%.
Like I alluded to earlier though, in the 4th quarter it was all Kevin Durant. 20 of his 26 points came in the 4th quarter and he had two blocks and one steal in the final 35 seconds or so, not to mention clutch free throws and a nice fade away to help salt things away.
The star Rocket player played as expected. Like I said earlier, Yao dominated, though he missed constant layups which was really crucial for the Rockets. Ron Artest looked very strong early, but finished with only 8 points. Of course, T-Mac didn't even see the court.
Thunder Wonder: Kevin Durant 26 points, 8/16 shooting, 5 rebounds, 4 steals, 3 blocks, 4 assists, 2 turnovers, 2 fouls
KD filled up almost every stat cat today. Really, he won the game single handedly today, and on both sides of the court. Also, don't forget, he went down with what appeared to be a sprained ankle in the second half only to get right back up and not miss any time at all.
Honourable Mention: Weezy 13 points, 6-10 shooting, 14 rebounds, 4 steals, 2 blocks, 2 assists, 1 turnover, 2 fouls
It was a close call, him or Collison, but Wilcox was able to do more than just score.
Thunder Blunder: Russell Westbrook 5 points, 1/8 shooting, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 turnovers
Continues to struggle. It's ok though, he still has lots of room to improve. I remember Chris Paul didn't look so hot his first few games either.
Thunder Plunderer: Yao Ming 15 points, 4/10 shooting, 16 rebounds, 3 blocks
Yeah, he shoot terribly, and theres no excuse for a guy that tall to shoot 40%. Still though, he was killer from the line and nearly unstoppable for the Thunder all game long.
Preseason Preview 4: Thunder vs. Rockets
The still all-time winless Thunder finally have their first home game...sorta. It's in the BOK Center (of Tulsa, of course) an arena that is arguably better than the Ford Center, but we don't really want to talk about that. The Thunder will also be the away team tonight, which means they still can't get out of those God-awful away jerseys. Will the Thunder finally win a game? Will Kevin Durant get his game back? How well will Tulsans attend the game? All this and more on the most recent version of Preseason Preview!
Backstory: The OKC Thunder take court in the Sooner state for the first time today. But does anyone in that other city really care? According to my dad, who spent the past week in Tulsa "house sitting" (long story) theres been no Thunder hype up there whatsoever. One of the reasons Stern was so excited about having the NBA in OKC is because he can take advantage of the Tulsa market, too, but from what I've heard, it doesn't look like that's happening. This game will be a big test for that. What will the crowd be like in Tulsa? I'm predicting pretty solid, but maybe a deceiving number. I think Tulsans are more excited about the first major sporting event in the new BOK Center than Thunder basketball. It won't be a sell-out though, mark my words.
Analysis: OK, we know this much, the Thunder have been pretty uncompetitive against some of the league's lesser teams the past few games. In pre-season play, no less! So how will they stack up against a team that some predict (including the minds here at the Blue Blitz) is good enough to win an NBA championship? Well, not well. OK, I know, it's preseason, but the Houston bench is probably better than the Thunder starting 5, it's that bad of a mismatch. We'll once again be relying on Weezy (who I heard may not be starting tonight) and Damien Wilkins to carry the team, while consistantly feeding the ball to Durant who's been struggling shooting%-wise. Of course, theres the problem of stopping YAMs: the three-headed monster of Yao-Artest-McGrady. This is tough for even the best teams, much less one of the worst in recent history. Also, not to be over looked, Luis Scola is having a good preseason, averaging almost 11 points and 5 rebounds.
Player to Watch: Let's see, no Joe Smith, Desmond Mason and Jeff Green are questionable, which in the preseason, means not playing, and Robert Swift and Kyle Weaver are out for sure. That doesn't leave a whole lot. So...I guess I'll put my neck on the line and say that Kevin Durnat will have a solid game tonight. I don't have any basis for this, and TMac will be a tough match-up for him, but perhaps the first kind-sorta home game will inspire him.
Predicted Result: Rockets 98 Thunder 87
Backstory: The OKC Thunder take court in the Sooner state for the first time today. But does anyone in that other city really care? According to my dad, who spent the past week in Tulsa "house sitting" (long story) theres been no Thunder hype up there whatsoever. One of the reasons Stern was so excited about having the NBA in OKC is because he can take advantage of the Tulsa market, too, but from what I've heard, it doesn't look like that's happening. This game will be a big test for that. What will the crowd be like in Tulsa? I'm predicting pretty solid, but maybe a deceiving number. I think Tulsans are more excited about the first major sporting event in the new BOK Center than Thunder basketball. It won't be a sell-out though, mark my words.
Analysis: OK, we know this much, the Thunder have been pretty uncompetitive against some of the league's lesser teams the past few games. In pre-season play, no less! So how will they stack up against a team that some predict (including the minds here at the Blue Blitz) is good enough to win an NBA championship? Well, not well. OK, I know, it's preseason, but the Houston bench is probably better than the Thunder starting 5, it's that bad of a mismatch. We'll once again be relying on Weezy (who I heard may not be starting tonight) and Damien Wilkins to carry the team, while consistantly feeding the ball to Durant who's been struggling shooting%-wise. Of course, theres the problem of stopping YAMs: the three-headed monster of Yao-Artest-McGrady. This is tough for even the best teams, much less one of the worst in recent history. Also, not to be over looked, Luis Scola is having a good preseason, averaging almost 11 points and 5 rebounds.
Player to Watch: Let's see, no Joe Smith, Desmond Mason and Jeff Green are questionable, which in the preseason, means not playing, and Robert Swift and Kyle Weaver are out for sure. That doesn't leave a whole lot. So...I guess I'll put my neck on the line and say that Kevin Durnat will have a solid game tonight. I don't have any basis for this, and TMac will be a tough match-up for him, but perhaps the first kind-sorta home game will inspire him.
Predicted Result: Rockets 98 Thunder 87
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Pregame in a Paragraph: Thunder at Warriors
OK, this preview is completely rushed cause I'm in a hurry to get out of town and hopefully Zorgon will add a short take to this, considering it concerns the Warriors. So here's nothing:
Backstory: The Thunder are still winless, and have fallen into huge holes in these games only to come back in garbage time. Obviously they hope to reverse this trend tonight against a Golden State squad that lost a lot of fire power this off-season. Also, we hope to see an improved Kevin Durant, that is if P.J. plays him at all.
Analysis: Lots of scoring, blocked shots, rebounds, timeouts, who cares. The Thunder will prob lose their third game in four days. Why is that? Because its their third game in four days!
Player to Watch: Jeff Green. If Durant sits, they'll def be feedin the ball to Green to look for some spark, any spark, for a struggling Thunder team.
Predicted Result: Warriors 89 Thunder 80
Zorgons Take: Okay, Okay, I'll add my take.
Am I totally psyched for this game?! Yes. Am I the ONLY person in Oklahoma who will be watching this instead of the Oklahoma State matchup or sitting alone in their room being depressed that Oklahoma lost? Yes!
What team will I be cheering for? The Golden State Warriors. Always have been, always will be. Sorry guys, but I'm a Warriors fan through and through. I'll be cheering on Corey Maggette, and hoping he destroys Kevin Durant. I hope I'll see lots of late game Stephen Jackson 3s. Most of all, I'd love to see Big Al and his post game. Of course, not much of this is going to happen, as it's a Pre-Season game.
But this game is really interesting to people who are not me because this game is a total clash of styles. The Warriors are a fast-paced, break neck team that fires up 3s like nobodies business. The Thunder are a slow paced, mid range jump shooting team that avoids the 3 as if it were a new invention. Now, don't get me wrong, we're NOT the Spurs. The Spurs are a team that relies on inside play from Duncan and drives/3s from Parker and Ginobili. The Thunder sometimes drive, but also shoot a LOT of midrange. If anything, think of this game as the 80s vs. the 00s.
In the end, though, the Thunder will probably win the game. Why? Well, P.J. Carlesimo is still trying to get his lineup figured out, and it wouldn't surprise me at all to see Weezy, Green, or Durant on the floor at the end of the game. Don Nelson is more old-school, and is a believer in resting his starters for real games because they deserve it. Expect the Warriors to get out to a quick lead and then slowly lose it throuhout the 2nd half. But, in the first, expect them to run the Thunder into a panic, and for the Thunder to start taking a lot of forced shots.
Zorgon's Predicted Final- Oklahoma City 99, Golden State 92
Backstory: The Thunder are still winless, and have fallen into huge holes in these games only to come back in garbage time. Obviously they hope to reverse this trend tonight against a Golden State squad that lost a lot of fire power this off-season. Also, we hope to see an improved Kevin Durant, that is if P.J. plays him at all.
Analysis: Lots of scoring, blocked shots, rebounds, timeouts, who cares. The Thunder will prob lose their third game in four days. Why is that? Because its their third game in four days!
Player to Watch: Jeff Green. If Durant sits, they'll def be feedin the ball to Green to look for some spark, any spark, for a struggling Thunder team.
Predicted Result: Warriors 89 Thunder 80
Zorgons Take: Okay, Okay, I'll add my take.
Am I totally psyched for this game?! Yes. Am I the ONLY person in Oklahoma who will be watching this instead of the Oklahoma State matchup or sitting alone in their room being depressed that Oklahoma lost? Yes!
What team will I be cheering for? The Golden State Warriors. Always have been, always will be. Sorry guys, but I'm a Warriors fan through and through. I'll be cheering on Corey Maggette, and hoping he destroys Kevin Durant. I hope I'll see lots of late game Stephen Jackson 3s. Most of all, I'd love to see Big Al and his post game. Of course, not much of this is going to happen, as it's a Pre-Season game.
But this game is really interesting to people who are not me because this game is a total clash of styles. The Warriors are a fast-paced, break neck team that fires up 3s like nobodies business. The Thunder are a slow paced, mid range jump shooting team that avoids the 3 as if it were a new invention. Now, don't get me wrong, we're NOT the Spurs. The Spurs are a team that relies on inside play from Duncan and drives/3s from Parker and Ginobili. The Thunder sometimes drive, but also shoot a LOT of midrange. If anything, think of this game as the 80s vs. the 00s.
In the end, though, the Thunder will probably win the game. Why? Well, P.J. Carlesimo is still trying to get his lineup figured out, and it wouldn't surprise me at all to see Weezy, Green, or Durant on the floor at the end of the game. Don Nelson is more old-school, and is a believer in resting his starters for real games because they deserve it. Expect the Warriors to get out to a quick lead and then slowly lose it throuhout the 2nd half. But, in the first, expect them to run the Thunder into a panic, and for the Thunder to start taking a lot of forced shots.
Zorgon's Predicted Final- Oklahoma City 99, Golden State 92
Friday, October 10, 2008
Preseason Preview 2: Thunder at Kings
As predicted here, the Thunder still have yet to win an organized game of basketball. Now, they head from Billings to Northern California for a series of games against the Kings and Warriors. Can the Thunder get a win in the Golden State, perhaps even against Golden State? We shall see...
Backstory: The Thunder did not look good in their first ever game, and it took a bunch of bench players to at least get the score to look respectable. Fortunately for them , they face the Sacramento Kings, another one of the west bottom feeders, so hopefully OKC will enter the winners circle after tonight (the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets first win was against Sacramento, if that means anything). While Durant and other starters struggled in the last game, Westbrook led a strong looking bench. Also, the Thunders first game in an NBA arena, thank God. Few things annoy me more while watching a basketball game than seeing both the college and NBA 3-point lines together, so I'm glad we're done with that for now.
Analysis: Gone are Mike Bibby and Ron Artest, replaced instead by the formidable John Salmons and Bobby Brown, who will likely get the nod at PG with Beno Udrih out. King cornerstones Brad Miller and Kevin Martin have yet to contribute to their team, but theres a good chance they'll see some decent minutes tonight. As for the Thunder, expect the full starting 5 to take the court and perhaps even the debut of Joe Smith. I definitely think that the Thunder can sneak away with a win here. Sure it's in front of a hostile road crowd (if you can call pre-season game crowds hostile). However, they need to make sure they can contain Brad Miller, because they struggled at times against Minnesota's Kevin Love, basically a rookie version of the center.
Player to Watch: How about Zorgon's boy Joe Smith. If he sees action tonight, I'd expect the veteran to do well, especially after the Kings sit Miller. Also keep your eyes on Chris Wilcox, 'cause he exploded in the last game and had at least a couple of thunderous, no pun intended, dunks.
Predicted Outcome: Thunder 90 Kings 85
And good luck to my boyz in Dallas this weekend, BOOMER!
Backstory: The Thunder did not look good in their first ever game, and it took a bunch of bench players to at least get the score to look respectable. Fortunately for them , they face the Sacramento Kings, another one of the west bottom feeders, so hopefully OKC will enter the winners circle after tonight (the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets first win was against Sacramento, if that means anything). While Durant and other starters struggled in the last game, Westbrook led a strong looking bench. Also, the Thunders first game in an NBA arena, thank God. Few things annoy me more while watching a basketball game than seeing both the college and NBA 3-point lines together, so I'm glad we're done with that for now.
Analysis: Gone are Mike Bibby and Ron Artest, replaced instead by the formidable John Salmons and Bobby Brown, who will likely get the nod at PG with Beno Udrih out. King cornerstones Brad Miller and Kevin Martin have yet to contribute to their team, but theres a good chance they'll see some decent minutes tonight. As for the Thunder, expect the full starting 5 to take the court and perhaps even the debut of Joe Smith. I definitely think that the Thunder can sneak away with a win here. Sure it's in front of a hostile road crowd (if you can call pre-season game crowds hostile). However, they need to make sure they can contain Brad Miller, because they struggled at times against Minnesota's Kevin Love, basically a rookie version of the center.
Player to Watch: How about Zorgon's boy Joe Smith. If he sees action tonight, I'd expect the veteran to do well, especially after the Kings sit Miller. Also keep your eyes on Chris Wilcox, 'cause he exploded in the last game and had at least a couple of thunderous, no pun intended, dunks.
Predicted Outcome: Thunder 90 Kings 85
And good luck to my boyz in Dallas this weekend, BOOMER!
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Pre-Season Game 1 Recap: Timberwolves 88, Thunder 82
NBA.com Boxscore
If I had to describe this game in one word, I'd say: throwback.
First of all, the game was broadcast on KSBI-TV, channel 52. Back in the 90s, many teams had no FSN affiliate and broadcast their games on local stations. The presentation here reminded me very much so of that. The cameras were high-school football quality. The graphics were very minimal, and the musical theme, essentailly a thunder clap and a trumpet, sounded hilariously bad.
Secondly, the whole arena looked very old school. There was minimal floor design, and there was no moving advertisements in front of the scorers table. The highlight of the game was probably when Rodney Carney dived for a loose ball and knocked down the banner on the scorers table, and no one ever bothered to put it back up.
Thirdly, the game was a gruelfest. It was a combination of the fact that the players that were good were playing like crap, and the fact that both teams refused to shoot a lot of 3s. It reminded me a lot of those games in the 80s when they had just invented the 3 point line, but most teams were too scared to shoot the shot regularly unless they had Larry Bird or Magic Johnson.
When you get right down to it, this was a really bad outing for the Thunder. I know that it's hard to take anything of value from Pre-Season games, but lets just look at the Field Goal shooting of our starters:
Chris Wilcox 6-10
Jeff Green 1-7
Nick Collison 2-7
Earl Watson 1-7
Kevin Durant 3-13
Aside from the good game of Wilcox, the shooting was horrible. What's even sadder is that most of these shots were from mid-range. All 5 starters shot a combination of 2 3s. Yeah. On top of this, everybody from the starting lineup saw heavy, heavy minutes. You could see that they were tired, but coach Carlesimo didn't show much interest in bringing the signees off of the bench.
The roatation players were a different story. Damien Wilkins looked like he was doing everything that Durant was supposed to do: Actually making his jump shots, goin 7-12 from the floor and scoring 19 points. Russell Westbrook also looked good. He had 13 assists and 3 points, but his game was marred by a whopping 5 turnovers. He really didn't look ready at all to lead the team at Point Guard.
If you're going to take something from this game, here's 3 Key things:
1. The Thunder really, really, really, really need a true point guard. Most of the time, Durant had to create for himself, and he utterly failed. This isn't college anymore, and he needs someone to distribute to him and get him open looks. Watson certainly wasn't proving himself to do that, with just 4 assists in 28 minutes, with a whopping 5 turnovers. Westbrook had almost the same problem. It's painfully obvious that Sam Presti has to make some moves in order for this team to be successful.
2. 3 Point shooting is not our main problem. Teams can survive without scoring a lot, as evidenced by how we kept the game close even after getting so far behind in the first. Contrary to what the Oklahoma City fans want, this team will survive on a lot of defense and 12 foot jumpers.
3. We need to play our other guys. Carlesimo was giving a whole lotta minutes to the main guys. We played only 10 guys, with the only real non-rotationer being Courtney Alexander, who played for a paltry 6 minutes. I'd like to see what the training camp signees are made of.
Anyway, on to our Thunder Wonder and Blunder:
Thunder Wonder:
Damien Wilkins
19 Points, 7-12 Shooting, 1-2 3 Point Shooting, 4-6 Free Throw Shooting, 5 Rebounds, 1 Steal
Have to give the Wonder to Damien tonight. He essentially carried the team through the 3rd quarter after its 2nd quarter surge, and was really the only reason we stayed in the game. Weezy had a good night too, and was a close second.
Thunder Blunder:
Earl Watson
2 Points, 1-7 Shooting, 0-1 3 Point Shooting, 1 Rebound, 4 Assists, 5 Turnovers, 1 Steal
Kevin Durant was close to getting this award, but while he had similar shooting, he didn't have more turnovers than assists as a point guard, and he had no rebounds. Earl Watson was really, really useless today.
Well, there's not much more to say about the game at this point. The good people of Billings, Montana got their fair share of pro basketball, and we got our first taste of what the season will be like.
And as a side note, apologies for the pictureless recap. Pre-Season games aren't covered so well media-wise.
If I had to describe this game in one word, I'd say: throwback.
First of all, the game was broadcast on KSBI-TV, channel 52. Back in the 90s, many teams had no FSN affiliate and broadcast their games on local stations. The presentation here reminded me very much so of that. The cameras were high-school football quality. The graphics were very minimal, and the musical theme, essentailly a thunder clap and a trumpet, sounded hilariously bad.
Secondly, the whole arena looked very old school. There was minimal floor design, and there was no moving advertisements in front of the scorers table. The highlight of the game was probably when Rodney Carney dived for a loose ball and knocked down the banner on the scorers table, and no one ever bothered to put it back up.
Thirdly, the game was a gruelfest. It was a combination of the fact that the players that were good were playing like crap, and the fact that both teams refused to shoot a lot of 3s. It reminded me a lot of those games in the 80s when they had just invented the 3 point line, but most teams were too scared to shoot the shot regularly unless they had Larry Bird or Magic Johnson.
When you get right down to it, this was a really bad outing for the Thunder. I know that it's hard to take anything of value from Pre-Season games, but lets just look at the Field Goal shooting of our starters:
Chris Wilcox 6-10
Jeff Green 1-7
Nick Collison 2-7
Earl Watson 1-7
Kevin Durant 3-13
Aside from the good game of Wilcox, the shooting was horrible. What's even sadder is that most of these shots were from mid-range. All 5 starters shot a combination of 2 3s. Yeah. On top of this, everybody from the starting lineup saw heavy, heavy minutes. You could see that they were tired, but coach Carlesimo didn't show much interest in bringing the signees off of the bench.
The roatation players were a different story. Damien Wilkins looked like he was doing everything that Durant was supposed to do: Actually making his jump shots, goin 7-12 from the floor and scoring 19 points. Russell Westbrook also looked good. He had 13 assists and 3 points, but his game was marred by a whopping 5 turnovers. He really didn't look ready at all to lead the team at Point Guard.
If you're going to take something from this game, here's 3 Key things:
1. The Thunder really, really, really, really need a true point guard. Most of the time, Durant had to create for himself, and he utterly failed. This isn't college anymore, and he needs someone to distribute to him and get him open looks. Watson certainly wasn't proving himself to do that, with just 4 assists in 28 minutes, with a whopping 5 turnovers. Westbrook had almost the same problem. It's painfully obvious that Sam Presti has to make some moves in order for this team to be successful.
2. 3 Point shooting is not our main problem. Teams can survive without scoring a lot, as evidenced by how we kept the game close even after getting so far behind in the first. Contrary to what the Oklahoma City fans want, this team will survive on a lot of defense and 12 foot jumpers.
3. We need to play our other guys. Carlesimo was giving a whole lotta minutes to the main guys. We played only 10 guys, with the only real non-rotationer being Courtney Alexander, who played for a paltry 6 minutes. I'd like to see what the training camp signees are made of.
Anyway, on to our Thunder Wonder and Blunder:
Thunder Wonder:
Damien Wilkins
19 Points, 7-12 Shooting, 1-2 3 Point Shooting, 4-6 Free Throw Shooting, 5 Rebounds, 1 Steal
Have to give the Wonder to Damien tonight. He essentially carried the team through the 3rd quarter after its 2nd quarter surge, and was really the only reason we stayed in the game. Weezy had a good night too, and was a close second.
Thunder Blunder:
Earl Watson
2 Points, 1-7 Shooting, 0-1 3 Point Shooting, 1 Rebound, 4 Assists, 5 Turnovers, 1 Steal
Kevin Durant was close to getting this award, but while he had similar shooting, he didn't have more turnovers than assists as a point guard, and he had no rebounds. Earl Watson was really, really useless today.
Well, there's not much more to say about the game at this point. The good people of Billings, Montana got their fair share of pro basketball, and we got our first taste of what the season will be like.
And as a side note, apologies for the pictureless recap. Pre-Season games aren't covered so well media-wise.
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