Kiwi Steve in the NBA – March 10
These are strange times for the Oklahoma City Thunder. Three games this week, one was another loss to the Warriors, another was a blown fourth quarter lead against the Clippers and the third was almost a blown lead but they held out the Bucks to win easy enough in the end. Far from convincing results, the Thunder are still comfortably gonna finish in the home playoff seeds, although with a home rematch against LAC coming up next, they’ve only won three of their past nine games.
Plus a third or fourth seed may not be enough, with rumours circulating that Kevin Durant will bail on them in free agency should they not make the NBA Finals. Well, that’d mean going through the defending champion Golden State Warriors first and despite looking like as good a challenger to their throne as any on paper, we’re yet to see that happen on the court. Oh well, that’d mean more money to re-sign Steven Adams with the following year if nothing else.
KD denied that rumour anyway. He’s got so many free agency rumours and there’s yet to be one with any substance. It’s a crazy world out there.
HEY LOOK, PRINCE WAS AT THE GSW vs OKC GAME!
Box Scores
- at LAC (L 103-98): 27 MINS, 6 PTS (3/4 FG), 9 REB, 1 BLK, 1 PF
- at GSW (L 121-106): 20 MINS, 3 PTS (1/2 FG, 1/2 FT), 3 REB, 2 AST
- at MIL (W 104-96): 28 MINS, 14 PTS (6/13 FG, 2/4 FT), 8 REB, 4 AST, 1 TO, 2 P
Okay now, that Clippers game. Man this is not one that too many fans wanna look back on. For a number of reasons, actually, because it was also the day that brought the death of part-owner Aubrey McClendon, a day after he was federally indicted for allegedly breaking anti-trust laws. Tragic stuff and thoughts are with his family, friends and colleagues, clearly.
However to begin the contest the Thunder were on fire. Mate, it was basket after basket. Kevin Durant was the early punisher, scoring 11 in the first including a four point play. Although 8 points and 6 assists from Russell Westbrook was hardly chicken fodder. J.J. Reddick hit a couple shots for the Clips but left with an injury and OKC led 37-23 after a single quarter.
Chris Paul missed his first six shots. Reddick checked out with a seven point deficit and when he came back in midway through the second the Thunder were up 44-28. That lead was as high as 22 and even as the Clippers threatened to comeback in the third the Thunder held them back like a hand on a child’s forehead. It was 85-68 after three quarters.
And then the unthinkable happened. Or at least it would’ve been unthinkable if they hadn’t done this same thing all season. Only the Philadelphia 76ers have lost as many games with fourth quarter leads (10 of them) this season. "We just let up and got comfortable with the lead," said Russ.
Bloody hell they did, getting outscored 35-13 in the fourth, with the game finishing on a 26-5 run – the Thunder only scoring one field goal in the last 7:30. Turnovers, Chris Paul, missed shots and a near utter lack of defence. Unfortunately Steve was a part of that, checking in with 6:15 left and a 14 point lead. He fouled DeAndre Jordan for the and-1 that made it a single-point game, though he subbed out after that and at least wasn’t out there as the Clippers took the lead on a DAJ tip in and stole it from there. The numbers were decent for Kiwi Steve still, he did some great stuff in the first couple quarters, picking up rebounds and playing good defence (it helped that Blake Griffin’s still out).
“With Steven Adams and Serge Ibaka doing their business over Jordan, the Thunder had a 39-21 edge in rebounds over the Clippers at halftime.”
“Jordan tilted the game with three-point plays on consecutive possessions, the first a tipped lob as Steven Adams was forced to foul on a pick-and-roll, then Roberson fouled Jordan on a putback. Jordan, a normally poor free-throw shooter, made both.”
Durant had 30 points and 11 rebounds, while Russ had 24p/12a/6r, yet it was Chris Paul’s 21 points and 13 assists that were the difference in this one. He was brilliant in the 4Q. Jordan also had 20p/18r and Reddick 16 points.
"I'm not taking anything away from L.A. Obviously, they had to make the plays to get back in it. But did we beat ourselves, or did they beat us?” – OKC Head Coach Billy Donovan.
Moving on now. The Thunder met the Warriors last week and gave us an absolute thriller, which naturally meant the Warriors won in OT thanks to a Steph Curry bomb. So it goes. They played again a few games later, in Golden State. Prince was there and so were the telly cameras with the game on national broadcast. Unfortunately they missed the boat on this little ditty from Steve and rookie Cam Payne:
Love it. But the Warriors happen to be one of the greatest teams we’ve ever seen so, like, yeah. If they couldn’t close against the Clippers then the Wozza’s were gonna be a new challenge altogether. And yet once again they came roaring out of the blocks, matching the champs for two quarters and then even pushing ahead in the third. Steph Curry tied the NBA record with 12 threes that last meeting, here he was a far more modest 5-15 from deep and Klay Thompson was mostly kept... not exactly quiet but he didn’t explode on them either. Can’t say the same about Steve’s ankle.
He rolled that sucker and asked to come out, only for Billy Donovan not to call a timeout. He left the game at the end of the third quarter and went back to the locker room where he was assessed and returned later on in the fourth.
The Thunder entered that fourth quarter with an 83-82 lead. Kevin Durant was insane and he’d finish one assist shy of a triple double with 32 points, 10 rebs and 9 assists. But once again late-game offence became a problem and the Warriors stormed to a 15 point win, themselves able to bank points from all number of outlets. Westbrook had a poor game while Curry scored 33, Thompson 21 and six Warriors scored in double figures. Steve was a long way from that with only 3 himself, really getting targeted with that lob option out of the Westbrook pick and roll and also sitting a bit as OKC went small – to very unflattering results.
WTLC:
“Nevertheless, it's hard to argue that OKC's centers were effective themselves. Steven Adams certainly helped protect the rim, but would struggle in mismatches. Offensively, Adams only had 3 points in 24 minutes of action. The Warriors loaded up the paint on the Adams-Westbrook pick and roll, disrespecting OKC's shooters. But Adams was almost always on the floor with Roberson, who kills floor spacing. So Adams didn't get much of an opportunity to score.”
“Steven Adams made zero impact. Enes Kanter made a small one. The Thunder played small a lot of the game, and it went decently, but the size didn’t matter tonight.”
Whatever was up with Steve’s ankle though, it was all good after a little rest. He was fine for Milwaukee.
Compared to those two Western contenders, getting the Milwaukee Bucks to finish their road trip was a decent enough draw. No kidding, they were 32-12 up after one quarter. Crazy stuff, and a lot of it was down to Steve who found himself with a surprisingly high usage. Although it helped that the Bucks shot 3 of 23 as a team in that Q. While KD and Russ only put up one shot in the first (and it missed) they combined for 11 assists and Steve was a beneficiary with 6 points and 2 rebounds after one.
In fact he’d stretch it out to some of his best numbers of the season, 14 points and 9 boards. He maybe extended himself too much as a shooter, taking 14 field goals and making 6 (only Durant had more for OKC – 6 of 14, that’s with 16/18 FTs though), but it was a sharp game after a few quiet ones. Solid stuff. As was this crushing putback dunk. Phwoar, son!
The Bucks rallied hard in the third. What was once a 21 point lead was cut to only two in the early fourth but even despite some stupid turnovers, this time OKC was able to get the W. The Bucks certainly helped them out by shooting only 26% in the 4Q. Westbrook saved all his offence ‘til last on his way to a 15-10-11 triple double, cancelling out Giannis Antetokounmpo’s own trip-dub for MIL. Enes Kanter had a goodie as well, 18p & 12r.
“Adams was good, too: 14 points and eight rebounds in 28 minutes. But the big thing: four assists. He was really good at catching on a roll and looking to find shooters.”
“Steven Adams and Enes Kanter combined for 32 points and 20 rebounds in their 49 total minutes. Few teams have a 1-2 combo at the center position that the Thunder do.”
WTLC:
“Steven Adams was probably the best example of how the Bucks did everything they could to double Westbrook and KD. Why? Adams took 13 shots tonight, which ties for the highest shots taken total of his career. Adams would finish the game with 14 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 assists. Probably one of Adams' best overall performances. On offense, Adams contributed 6 points to the Thunder's early 22-4 run. All of Adams baskets came in the paint when he was left open on the roll or otherwise, but three of his makes were from the 7 to 12 foot range. Really nice to see Adams' flip shot continue to get better and better. Defensively, Adams had four stops at the rim during the first quarter. Adams also wrapped up Monroe whenever they had to face off, making Milwaukee lose that offensive option.”
In a bit of an odd move this week, the Thunder also signed up retired big man Nazr Mohammed, who’ll be rostered for the rest of the season. Dunno exactly what they’re looking for with that move, Mohammed played 23 times for the Bulls last season but is 38 years old now, suppose if it’s experience in the front court they want then they’ve found it. He played for the Thunder from 2011 to 2012 so he knows a couple of these blokes and he fills up a roster spot after they emptied one out trading away DJ Augustin and Steve Novak, getting only Randy Foye in return. So, as one of the ten oldest players in the league, don’t expect Mohammed to take many minutes from Steven Adams but he will be a valuable veteran presence. Adams has always spoken well of the influence he got from Kendrick Perkins and Nazr is a similarly adored locker room dude. It’s also pretty key to have a veteran presence in the locker room what with a young team, a rookie coach, two assistant coaches away from the team for varying reasons and a number of late collapses recently drawing criticisms of a lack of accountability. Mohammed blogged about his return, which is well worth a read for a glimpse at the kind of guy Adams is getting to play with. Mohammed will wear the number 13 on his jersey – a number untouched since James Harden was traded.
Keys to the Thunder Off-Season on Sporting News. Including extending Steven Adams’ contract:
“This offseason will also be the time for extension negotiations with starting center Steven Adams. The Thunder have not gone through this process with a starter since Serge Ibaka in 2012, and the league's financial landscape has changed dramatically in those years. Another salary cap increase is coming in 2017, and there will be many teams looking to spend big to steal away restricted free agents. Adams only needs to look as far as his backup, since Enes Kanter was able to secure an offer sheet from the Trail Blazers starting at his maximum salary in a comparatively tame offseason.”
Hey and remember last week when DeMarcus Cousins nearly bashed Steve into next month? The man with the closed fist has spoken:
“You could say I know what to expect, especially from him.” – Boogie.
The Thunder and Kings play again in early April, which ought to be a bit of fun.