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Despite bad 3-point shooting, OKC Thunder still a contender out West

By Albert Dadson

NEW YORK, NY - JANUARY 21: The Oklahoma City Thunder huddles up against the New York Knicks on January 21, 2019 at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. 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 2019 NBAE (Photo by Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - JANUARY 21: The Oklahoma City Thunder huddles up against the New York Knicks on January 21, 2019 at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. 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 2019 NBAE (Photo by Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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The OKC Thunder are not a good 3-point shooting team, but that is not stopping them from being one of the best offenses in the league.

After losing five of their last six games, the Oklahoma City Thunder have won their last two contests. The first win for the OKC Thunder was a thriller against the Philadelphia 76ers where Paul George bailed them out with a four-point play to win the game.

The next win was a blowout win against the New York Knicks. The Thunder are third in the West and it is because of their sneaky good offense.

The OKC Thunder are not good at shooting 3s. They are 27th in 3-point percentage at 33.6 percent. They are 20th in 3-pointers made with 10.2 per game.

In this day and age in the NBA, being successful at shooting 3-pointers leads to overall success, but the Thunder are still one of the best teams in the league despite their lack of shooting.

On offense, the Thunder are only 16th in offensive rating, but seventh in overall scoring with 113.8 points per game. Last year they finished 12th with 107.9 points per game. While they’re not able to shoot 3s, they are still one of the best scoring teams in the league thanks to playing at the NBA’s fourth-fastest pace.

The Thunder have two players that are in the top 20 in points per game: Paul George, who is eighth with 26.8 points per game, and Russell Westbrook, who is 20th with 21.6 points per game.

Besides the Golden State Warriors, who have Stephen Curry (third with 29.3 points per game) and Kevin Durant (fourth with 28.0 points per game), the OKC Thunder are the only team to have two top-20 scorers.

The team is doing well for the first time in years. After Durant left it, was Westbrook and Victor Oladipo. While it resulted in an MVP for Russell Westbrook, that team was booted out in the first round of the playoffs.

They struggled to score when Westbrook was out of the game. He had the highest usage rate in NBA history that season (42 percent). Oladipo was not the player that he is now for his hometown team the Indiana Pacers.

The next year the Thunder tried a Big 3 with Carmelo Anthony, George and Westbrook. The team struggled to put the ball through the net. The result was a first round exit again, and on the last possession, their weakness came to haunt them: They were unable to make a 3 to tie the game after six shot attempts.

This year, the offense is clicking. The Thunder were 13th in field goals made per game (39.9) last year, but this year they’re sixth with 42.7 field goals made per game.

Players like Jerami Grant and Terrance Ferguson have developed their games and are shooting better from 3. Also, new players like Abdel Nader and Hamidou Diallo have been able to give valuable minutes off the bench.

The Thunder, while being a mediocre offense, are picking up from where they left off last year on defense. They have improved an already good defense from last year. They finished ninth last year in defensive rating, but this year they are currently third.

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With this combination of better defense and an okay offense, the OKC Thunder are one of the most dangerous teams in the league even without being able to shoot 3s.

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