Oklahoma City Thunder carried by Russell Westbrook past Denver Nuggets
The Oklahoma City Thunder were on their way to another collapse against the Denver Nuggets on Monday night before Russell Westbrook took over to lead the team to victory.
Things have not gone according to plan thus far for the Oklahoma City Thunder. With the acquisitions of Paul George and Carmelo Anthony, the Thunder’s offense was expected to take off. Russell Westbrook finally had some running mates, but the offense has been troublesome.
Through 30 games, the Thunder have been strong defensively. According to Basketball-Reference, the Thunder have the second-best defensive rating in the NBA with 103.7. Offensively, it is a different story.
According to Basketball-Reference, the Thunder have an offensive rating of 105.4, which is 22nd in the NBA. With as much offensive talent as the Thunder have, they should be performing better. However, things have yet to mesh and come together.
There are many factors that go into the Thunder’s struggles. Cohesion is one issue. The players have yet to develop much chemistry as there is a lot of standing around and watching. Part of the problem is also the scheme.
Oklahoma City Thunder
Head coach Billy Donovan has yet to develop a plan that gets all three players involved consistently. He has his hands full trying to incorporate heavy usage players such as George and Anthony alongside a heavy usage player in Westbrook.
There is also some hesitation from players. They want to make things work, which can lead to them being too passive. Sometimes, someone just needs to take over and take control to help get the team going. We saw George do it earlier in the season, and it was Westbrook’s turn this time.
Against the Denver Nuggets Monday night, the Thunder once again did what they have been doing all season. They played well in the first half but fell apart in the third. It looked like they would once again crumble in the end during a close game. Westbrook, however, had other plans.
The Thunder entered the fourth quarter trailing 76-70. They had been blown out in the third quarter, as their eight-point halftime lead was erased with ease. The Thunder trailed 81-73 with 9:41 remaining. From that point on, it was Westbrook’s game.
Russ wasted no time making his presence felt. He scored a layup on the Thunder’s first possession and was just warming up.
Westbrook would pour in 16 of the Thunder’s 22 points to finish the game. The Nuggets had no answer for him, as he attacked the basket and knocked down jump shots alike. It was needed, as George made only one basket in the fourth quarter and Anthony scored zero points.
Westbrook pretty much carried the load by himself throughout the evening. For the game, Westbrook scored 38 points on an efficient 16-of-28 shooting from the field. On the other hand, George and Anthony didn’t help much. George scored eight points on 3-of-13 from the field, while Anthony managed only six points, his fewest since 2012, on 2-of-6 shooting.
Only one other Thunder player, Alex Abrines off the bench, even scored in double figures. It is a trend that cannot continue if the Thunder have aspirations of making a deep playoff run and turning things around.
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The Thunder have to figure things out offensively. They cannot rely on hero ball with one of their Big Three bailing them out on a nightly basis. They are capable of doing it, as we have seen this season, but they would be more dangerous if they are able to come together as one instead of just alternating taking turns dominating the ball.