OKC Thunder Thread.

[Hawkthorn33]

So looks like we have the most incompetent medical staff in the league. Reports of Cameron Payne fracturing his foot at whit and blue scrimmage the other day at the start of training camp after he was already recovering from a navicular fracture...

Same crap happened with KD, you think they would've learnt and taken a more conservative approach.

 

[Hawkthorn33]

Where my Thunder bro's at?

Did anyone catch today's opener? What were your thoughts if you did??

Roberson looks exactly the same out there, all this talk about him being more aggressive on offense sadly I just didn't see it today.

Adams looked great although Embiid put up some great numbers himself.

Enes is a valuable component to our offense, he just tidies everything up for us on the boards and is a monster when it comes to second chance points.

Ilyasova was serviceable out there, did more good then bad which was a positive.

If Abrines is to play they need to pass him the ball more often so he can shoot the ball for us. Is probably one of our better shooters of the ball.

Sabonis looks like a player who sticks to his role in the team and follows the coaches orders down to a T... nothing spectacular about him but is a handy mover of the ball.

Victor looked like he was trying to force too much out there and didn't let the game come naturally to him, if we were to judge just after one game I would say he doesn't fit into the system but if him and Russ get some chemistry going they could be very dangerous together. I hope he works his shot out soon.

Singler started off well but then reverted back to last years form as the game went on, doesn't look very sure with the ball in his hand.

Semaj looks like a capable backup pg, he just needs to build some confidence in his jumper and once he does I think he will be quite a valuable sub for us. Unfortunately he looks very shakey on the Defensive end and I just think that all comes down to his size.

Will be interesting to see if Joffrey and Morrow can get some minutes... We need more shooters in this team otherwise we are just making up the numbers.

Finally Russ was a beast out there which was no surprise but he looked very lonely out there in terms of reliable offense. I would hate to think what this team would look like if he were to fall injured.

All in All this Victory didn't instill a heap of confidence in me in regards to our prospects this season. Hopefully we can get tighter on the Defensive end and find a reliable knock down 3 point shooter in our roster to spread the floor for Vic and Russ to do their thing in the lane.

 

[Young_Guns]

Was always going to be a bit of a danger game away at Philly to open the season. There is a new found wave of support there with Embiid back and healthy, and the Fargo centre was rocking, and the Philly players were feasting off it. So I'll take the win and move on.

The biggest issue which is no surprise is our lack of 3pt shooting. A starting line-up of Russ, Oladipo, Roberson, Sabonis, Adams is relying on Oladipo and Westbrook to knock down the 3 and that is just not their natural game. Even off the bench we don't have alot of options besides Morrow who doesn't get any minutes anyway. Ilyasova, Singler, Payne when he returns is really it. We need to be on the search for a 3pt shooting wing who can consistently give us something.

Oladipo had a stinker but redeemed himself a bit in the 4th. Its only early but he has to turn it around quickly.

Roberson needs to get a 3pt shot especially now that he is at the SF position and Russ and Oladipo are capable defenders. Teams are just completely sagging off him and his release is so slow.

I wasn't impressed by Sabonis. Only his first ever game, but I don't think he should be starting over Ilyasova just yet who can play the Ibaka role on offense in stretching the floor and shooting. Ilyasova I thought was pretty good.

Singler is frustrating but he is unfortuantely the best we have at the moment. Can knock down a 3 on occasion though.

Christon and Abrine were decent. Christon will go back to 3rd PG once Payne is back, but showed he can create and attack. We need to make plays to get Abrine open cos the kid can shoot. Not a fan of the beard though.

Adams and Kanter were awesome. Adams is probably my favourite player in the league and my shout for MIP. Had 16 points and should have finished with at least 24. Him and Westbrook are creating a killer pick and roll duo. The Adams/Kanter tall line-up could come up huge as well this year. We saw what it did to the Warriors in the playoffs and they have both improved since then. They both hustle, go after the offensive boards, and have great chemistry with each other. Some of those bounce passes in the paint from one to the other for an easy basket were great!

And finally Westbrook played a real leaders role I thought. Didn't try to over do it, but when the game needed to be won he kept the ball in his hands and made the big shots. Still has room for improvement as well which is scary considering he put up 32/12/9. He'll get better as he and Oladipo gain chemistry.

Lot of room for improvement but, hey, we're above the Warriors (for now)

 

[Hawkthorn33]

After game two of the new look Thunder it's obvious we have 0 offense besides Westbrook and Adams!!!!

This is going to be a looooooong and tough season.

Can't express how much heart and will to win Westbrook has but will literally have to do it all himself to get us into the playoffs.

Edit, I have no idea how Oladipio scored 21 points he didn't seem to have that big of an impact on the game. Hopefully he can contribute with this sort of output at a minimum each game.

 

[Young_Guns]

Donovan has gotta get these line-ups sorted out ASAP. Seriously, some of the moves he made today were baffling.

Singler 32 minutes!!!? for 4 points and 3 rebounds. We desperately need help in that SF role. Singler is not the answer Donovan! How he gets any time, let alone 30+ minutes I will never know.

Out starting 5 is not the way forward either. We have no offence besides Russ and Oladipo if he's on. The other 3 just stand around clogging space. Two games in a row opposition teams (who aren't exactly playoff contenders) have gotten out to a big lead early on. Put Ilyasova in for Sabonis, who looks alot better coming off the bench where he isn't relied on as much. That way we have at least one semi-capable 3pt shooter out there to start.

More Abrines too pls Billy. He is young, can shoot, and his defence will only get better the more he learns. How can he develop if he is playing sporadically. Same with Payne when he returns and is healthy.

But we're 2-0 somehow, and Russ well and truly has the rest of the team stuffed in his backpack, so may it continue! Only 39 wins away from .500.
Also, Roberson late in the game was huge!!!!! Can we just bring him on for the last quarter of games.

 

[Roughies Boys]

NBA League Pass is beautiful. keen on marrying it.


So Ilaysova out for Jerami Grant..

Thoughts Loud City?

 

[Young_Guns]

How'd Grant go today?? Was only able to catch a bit of the first half, but I kept thinking Ibaka was back out there for us! Seems like it was a pretty dull game, but getting a win over the Clippers on the road, without Westbrook really dominating would have to be a huge confidence booster for us.

4-0 baby!

Also, lol at one player scoring in double digits for us. Westbrook with 35, Oladipo with 9

Huge game tomorrow, not confident at all. Watch us get Klay back into form.

 

[Hawkthorn33]

Grant looks like a freak athlete out there, did a couple of nice drives into the lane where he easily got the ring and finished one and got fouled on the other attempt.

Did two very nice blocks as well and looks to be an aggressive defensive rebounder, inwould say his defensive presence in the paint is where he will be most valuable to us.

Now the bad news, he doesn't look at all confident at shooting the ball and isn't a very good free throw shooter (not Roberson levels but still pretty shakey on his shot selection). He won't really cause teams to spread their defence on the floor to cover him, which means the paint was pretty clogged up tonight. This didn't really bother Russ too much as he is a freak of nature as we all know, but it did impact on Oladipio's and Adams offensive output...

Grant will be far more active then what illyasova was in games and as long as he stays aggressive on offense and uses his athleticism he can be a valuable piece in our rotations.

 

[Hawkthorn33]

There's a rumour floating around that we got rid of Illyasova and picked up Grant for so cheap so as to free up cap space to for Donatas Motiejunas to play PF for us....

That would be a very interesting pick up as he is an excellent big who can shoot the ball

 

[Hawkthorn33]

Today we play Judas on a back to back, I would love to see Westbrook and co absolutely demoralise the traitor and Draymond Green.... But sadly I think our boys expended a lot of energy in last nights game, so it will be a tough one for sure tonight.

Let's hope for karma to be on our side

 

[Yezeha]

From what I've seen so far, we're very solid on defence this season.

Offense. Well, not so much.

 

[Roughies Boys]

So PG13 already over, hearing Rudy Gay to sign with us next?

 

[sherrif]

From an outsiders perspective I think the most underated element of your off season acquisitions is that two of the three main recruits of Patterson, George and Anthony are wonderful defenders (in Patterson and George). Clearly scoring should not be a problem, but if you can consistently play three scorers with two great defenders e.g. Adams, Patterson and Roberson rotating with Anthony, Westbook and George playing big minutes than I think you are a chance in a series against the Warriors. Having George and Patterson to play defence on Durrant has the potential to be a major difference maker in terms of how teams have matched up against the Warriors. A motivated George could win the NBA Defensive Player of the Year in 2017/2018. I think he has been named in the All Defensive NBA team 3 times already. I read his bio online it also states he is actually 208cm rather than the listed 206cm on the official NBA site. His length and ability to match-up on everyone from Chris Paul to Blake Griffith could potentially make OKC a great defensive team. The recruitment of Patterson is also potentially huge as he plays the percentages and can lock down a dynamic offensive player too.

 

[Nomad12]

Thunderup boyys!! Have been to this forum before but couldnt see a okc thread..

Still cant believe we got PG.. then Melo aswell is just icing. Along with Russ they all have alot to prove and give us a serious fighting chance of beating the warriors which would taste so so fukn sweet. PG has always been a favourite of mine and have wanted him at okc as soon as KD left. Although KD is better all around there is legitimate argument PG suits Westbrooks style of play better and they could become a lethal combo.

 

[Young_Guns]

Yep. Said it on the main board, but if the guys can buy into their roles and not be all about themselves for just a year then its looking pretty sweet. Melo on the perimeter being a knockdown shooter more often and getting open looks from Westbrook drawing players in could be lethal, and Westbrook doesn't have to everything himself again. And now with 3 guys who can create we shouldn't lose as much on offence when Russ sits as at least 1 of them should be out there at all times.

We've got length, a pretty solid defence, finally some 3 point shooting, and a backup point guard who can competently run offence (Felton) plus a few options on the bench (Felton, Abrines, PPat, Grant). All we need now is a backup Centre hopefully.

Thunder up!

 

[Nomad12]

Yep. Said it on the main board, but if the guys can buy into their roles and not be all about themselves for just a year then its looking pretty sweet. Melo on the perimeter being a knockdown shooter more often and getting open looks from Westbrook drawing players in could be lethal, and Westbrook doesn't have to everything himself again. And now with 3 guys who can create we shouldn't lose as much on offence when Russ sits as at least 1 of them should be out there at all times.

We've got length, a pretty solid defence, finally some 3 point shooting, and a backup point guard who can competently run offence (Felton) plus a few options on the bench (Felton, Abrines, PPat, Grant). All we need now is a backup Centre hopefully.

Thunder up!

Well said.. I believe they will sacrifice their own game because all 3 seem so hungry for success..it might take a little while for it to fully click but hopefully they figure it out and decide to stay in okc! Russ deserves a ring so bad.

 

[fidstar]

Be interesting to see how Melo goes. I'm not sure how his ego will go being the 3rd option.

 

[Young_Guns]

Be interesting to see how Melo goes. I'm not sure how his ego will go being the 3rd option.

This is the big question mark. Surely Melo would have thought about it and talked to Russ/PG (after all they did convince him to come) and knows that he is coming in to be the 3rd piece and is going to have to play a different role. But even if he is ok with this, how long for? Can he go the whole season and hopefully help the team deep into the playoffs? If he can and the 3 of them gel then it will be great. If not then I guess we could still move him before the trade deadline hopefully? To Cleveland maybe?

 

[Dags21]

Funny that people think Melo should check his ego and become th 3rd option. IMO he is th most natural scorer of the 3, and I would assume he'd be pretty humble after being in NY. If Russ can give up th rock a bit they should be fine offensively..
Its defensively where this team should shine. Also looking like they could put some interesting line ups on th floor, really can't wait to see Russ, PG, Melo and patP with Felton running th point... where will th help D come from?? And will they use melo in pick and roll with Russ... exciting times



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[fidstar]

Funny that people think Melo should check his ego and become th 3rd option. IMO he is th most natural scorer of the 3, and I would assume he'd be pretty humble after being in NY. If Russ can give up th rock a bit they should be fine offensively..
Its defensively where this team should shine. Also looking like they could put some interesting line ups on th floor, really can't wait to see Russ, PG, Melo and patP with Felton running th point... where will th help D come from?? And will they use melo in pick and roll with Russ... exciting times



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Because he's clearly the third best player of the 3.

 

[Dags21]

Because he's clearly the third best player of the 3.

Good point.. I guess I'm just trying to point out that Russ is just as likely to cause friction.
Do you think Russ will be happy to drop to numbers like 20pts-8a-6r? Just so melo can get 18-20per, because if melo ain't scoring something like that then what's the point in getting him?
I'm not a massive fan of either of these two, I really like PG13 and hope they can get it together to challenge in th west


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[fidstar]

Good point.. I guess I'm just trying to point out that Russ is just as likely to cause friction.
Do you think Russ will be happy to drop to numbers like 20pts-8a-6r? Just so melo can get 18-20per, because if melo ain't scoring something like that then what's the point in getting him?
I'm not a massive fan of either of these two, I really like PG13 and hope they can get it together to challenge in th west


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My worry is that with Russ and Melo, PG will get frozen out too much. Ideally I see Russ @ 23-25ppg, PG @ 23-25ppg and Melo @ 18-20ppg. But I feel it might be more Russ @ 25-28ppg, Melo @ 21-23ppg and PG @ 16-19ppg, which I don't think is ideal.

 

[Nomad12]

Good point.. I guess I'm just trying to point out that Russ is just as likely to cause friction.
Do you think Russ will be happy to drop to numbers like 20pts-8a-6r? Just so melo can get 18-20per, because if melo ain't scoring something like that then what's the point in getting him?
I'm not a massive fan of either of these two, I really like PG13 and hope they can get it together to challenge in th west


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Russ will do whats best chance for the team to win. depends on who hes playing will determine if he shoots or passes first. He would be fine averaging that if were winning but I dont see that big of drop happening. Especially the assist one he will have 8 on a bad night.

 

[fidstar]

Russ will do whats best chance for the team to win. depends on who hes playing will determine if he shoots or passes first. He would be fine averaging that if were winning but I dont see that big of drop happening. Especially the assist one he will have 8 on a bad night.

Do you think last season changed Russ? Hopefully he's realized that he can't do it himself. I'm not so sure. You say he'd be happy scoring only 20ppg if it's in the best interest for his team to win, but he didn't want to give up the rock when he had one of the GOAT scorers next to him in Durant. And (on the offensive end) Anthony/PG is a poor man's Durant.

 

[Dags21]

Russ will do whats best chance for the team to win. depends on who hes playing will determine if he shoots or passes first. He would be fine averaging that if were winning but I dont see that big of drop happening. Especially the assist one he will have 8 on a bad night.

See.. I think his assist numbers will drop because his usage rate will drop.
Having said that, if they play defense at all-nba level as a team then he should pick up some cheap assists from turnovers.
I'm not an okc fan but I can't wait to watch this team when they fire up


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