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How to fix the OKC Thunder’s bad start to the 2018-19 season

By Albert Dadson

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - OCTOBER 25: Russell Westbrook #0 of the Oklahoma City Thunder looks on during the game against the Boston Celtics on October 25, 2018 at Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images)
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - OCTOBER 25: Russell Westbrook #0 of the Oklahoma City Thunder looks on during the game against the Boston Celtics on October 25, 2018 at Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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The OKC Thunder have started the 2018-19 NBA season 0-4. It’s not looking good so far, but with a full season left to go, they will look to right the ship.

The Oklahoma City Thunder lost to the Boston Celtics 101-95 on Thursday night, dropping them to 0-4 to start the 2018-19 season. Without a win yet, the OKC Thunder will look to right the ship.

So far, the offense has been horrible. The Thunder are 28th in the league in points per game (101.8), last in field goal percentage (39.1 percent) and last in 3-point percentage (24.1 percent).

The Thunder have not been able to finish games. With the lead in the fourth quarter against the Boston Celtics, they were unable to score enough points to hold them off.

Russell Westbrook missed the first two games of the season and it seemed like once he came back everything would be fine, but even with him back, that is not the case as they have dropped the two games he’s played in.

Westbrook only scored 13 points against Boston on 5-of-20 shooting. Maybe the knee is still bothering him, but whatever it is, the OKC offense has not looked good to start the season.

Paul George has played relatively well. He led the Thunder in points in the game against Boston with 22. He had 29 against the Sacramento Kings, 20 against the Los Angeles Clippers and 27 against the Golden State Warriors. Unfortunately, he’s only shooting 36.7 percent from the field and 28.6 percent from 3-point range.

Dennis Schroder has not played well and he took his part of the blame for the bad start after the game against the Kings, per NBA.com:

"‘I think the last couple of games, we didn’t do a good job of selecting the shots and I take that on me the first two games. I’ve got to be better and got to make my shots as well, but as a unit, we’ve got to be better and take better shots. We’ve just got to get used to it and figure each other out.”"

(Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images)
(Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images) /

For the Thunder to right the ship, they will have to take better care of the ball. In the game against Boston, they committed 16 turnovers to Boston’s 11. The Thunder are 23rd in the league in turnovers per game with 15.5.

While taking better shots will help, not giving the ball to the other team is where they will have to start in order to get those better shots.

The Thunder also have to get more shots attacking the rim. In the game against Boston, Westbrook was making an effort to beat the defense by passing the ball ahead of them.

That is a good approach to getting easier baskets. Instead of relying more on one-on-one ball, the Thunder will have to beat the defense with their passes. OKC is 29th in the league in assists with 20.3 per game. They will have to rely more on ball movement and getting easier looks at the rim to protect leads.

They have a lot of players that can slash to the hole like Jerami Grant, Hamidou Diallo, and even Paul George. They will just have to draw up the right plays to get them those looks at the basket.

Rather than taking mid-range jumpers when they have leads, the Thunder have to focus on getting easier looks. The two-man game with Westbrook and Steven Adams is an option. Schroder is good at getting to the rim and Paul George will have to go to the hole off screens.

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The OKC Thunder have to take care of the ball and pass it around more in order for their offense to be sparked.

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