Oklahoma City Thunder: Looking At Western Conference Competition

This year, the Western Conference looks quite different than last, but there is no shortage of depth among the top teams. The Oklahoma City Thunder are clearly among the best, but will have to overcome some worthy opponents. Let’s take a look at some of the other teams in the Western Conference and how the Thunder match up against them.

San Antonio Spurs

Their core hasn’t changed. Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili will be one year older, but that has yet to stop them from contending. However, in last year’s playoffs, players like Tiago Splitter, Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green made the leap to national prominence and will only continue to grow.

Next year’s battles between the Spurs and Thunder will come down to the development of Kawhi Leonard. Leonard had the impossible job of guarding LeBron James in the Finals and did as good a job as anyone ever could. Not including LeBron’s transcendent 37-point Game 7 outburst, Leonard held James to only 23.3 points per game in the Finals, which is no small feat. Using all of his 7’4″ wingspan, he jumped passing lanes and generally wreaked defensive havoc. At one point in Game 5, James noticed Leonard checking back in and reacted appropriately.

Leonard’s length and new confidence will be key during his battles with Kevin Durant. However, Durant has had success against Leonard in the past, especially in the playoffs, averaging 29.5 points per game. But if Leonard continues to develop offensively, he could provide huge problems for the Thunder. Plus, the Spurs’ clear advantage in outside shooting will make them a very worthy opponent.

Los Angeles Clippers

Lob City is dead. It’s a darn shame, but the end of an era nonetheless. New coach Doc Rivers will bring a championship pedigree to a team that always seemed to be held back by ex-coach Vinny Del Negro. Chris Paul will have plenty of options, with new additions J.J. Redick and Jared Dudley on the outside and Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan down low. Rivers has already claimed that the 2013-14 Clippers will be better than the championship winning 2007-08 Boston Celtics. That’s a bit ridiculous, but demonstrates his confidence in his new team. But how do they match up with the Thunder?

Kevin Durant has always shot poorly against the Doc Rivers-coached Celtics. The past two seasons, Durant’s effective field goal percentage against the Celtics has been low, at .458 and .476, respectively. This makes sense, as Rivers is one of the best defensive coaches in the league. He’s called his new Clippers team “more athletic” and stated they should “be in the top three or four of the teams that (he’s) coached defensively.” But the Clippers just don’t seem to have the personnel to stop Durant. Matt Barnes is their best perimeter defender, but he won’t be starting (the defensively challenged Jared Dudley is the projected starter), and he has never dominated Durant in a head-to-head matchup. Until the new-look Clippers can prove they can stop Durant, this matchup leans toward OKC.

Memphis Grizzlies

Last season, the Grizzlies manhandled the Thunder in the Western Conference Semifinals. Obviously, the absence of Russell Westbrook didn’t help, but the frontcourt combo of Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol could not be stopped. Lionel Hollins is out as coach, but with the promotion of assistant David Joerger, their scheme shouldn’t change too much. And with the addition of Mike Miller, expect explosions like this every night:

The matchup between the Grizzlies and the Thunder this year will come down to Scott Brooks‘ ability to rotate his big men. For reasons unknown, the Thunder played a generally small lineup in last year’s playoff series. As classy as Derek Fisher is, by no means should he be playing TWICE THE MINUTES OF NICK COLLISON IN HUGE GAMES. Fisher’s unreasonably large role last season is part of a bigger problem with Scott Brooks, but Brooks will have to use his big men better against larger lineups. But once Westbrook returns, the Grizzlies will no longer severely outmatch the Thunder. In last year’s playoffs, Memphis was able to let Durant “get his,” knowing that no one else could really score. But the presence of Westbrook foils that plan, and will make OKC-Memphis games must-see affairs.

This is only a small preview of an incredibly deep Western Conference. For example, the Houston Rockets will be much improved with Dwight Howard and the Golden State Warriors will be one of the most exciting teams in the league. But the Thunder have the talent to compete with any of these teams, and will look to represent the West in this year’s Finals.

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