Yep.... I think as long as we don't have to play Dallas or Sacramento in the first round of the playoffs. We may have a chance! ;)

Let's also hope whoever we play has all their stars healthy. Because if we have to play their bench players we're bound to get torched. ;)

Let's also hope whoever we play has all their stars healthy. Because if we have to play their bench players we're bound to get torched. ;)

Definitely! My concern with GSW is half their team my be suspended during the playoffs due to technicals.... Then again maybe that's Kerr's strategy against us. Since we've lit them up both games this season! ;)

Gotta say, I’d much rather have a team that routinely blows out other playoff-caliber teams - including those with superior talent and construction - but loses to inferior teams. Jordan among others had a rep for laying back during the regular season and then dominating in the playoffs. Maybe that’s what the Thunder is doing here haha...

Watched a true leader in Russell Westbrook who swallowed his tongue after several brutal assaults by the Warriors. He didn't complain, just acknowledged being hit. The refs review half-time moments crafted by the NBA replay center, they undoubtedly saw the 2 assaults on Westbrook.

Thunder valued at 1.25B for 2018 ranking them 18th in the 30 team NBA. They obviouosly are valued higher than many significantly larger NBA cities. This compares to Memphis at No. 29 in value and N.O at No. 30. I am extremely proud of or team, ownership, management and fans. Our season ticket renewal rate is stated to be around 95 %, I hope we will continue to support Oklahomas team, the organization is proving to be well run and profitable.

Gotta say, I’d much rather have a team that routinely blows out other playoff-caliber teams - including those with superior talent and construction - but loses to inferior teams. Jordan among others had a rep for laying back during the regular season and then dominating in the playoffs. Maybe that’s what the Thunder is doing here haha...

As someone obsessed with MJ as a kid, I've never really hard that reputation for him. I mean, starting in '90-91 his teams won 61, 67, 57, 72, 69, and 62 games. I've actually seen a number of interviews where MJ talked about the importance of the regular season. And MJ competed for MVP nearly every year. What am I missing?

As someone obsessed with MJ as a kid, I've never really hard that reputation for him. I mean, starting in '90-91 his teams won 61, 67, 57, 72, 69, and 62 games. I've actually seen a number of interviews where MJ talked about the importance of the regular season. And MJ competed for MVP nearly every year. What am I missing?

I thought about all of those high-win seasons before I typed it - and agree - but I do remember it being a point of discussion at one time, at the very least where he had one speed during the regular season and one during the playoffs. Not unusual for anyone, of course, but his playoff intensity was next-level. I think the high win totals - while obviously due in large part to his overwhelming talent - were also about team construction and coaching. By the time they were winning titles, they were just superior. So they didn't have to try too hard. Bad example maybe, because obviously the wins were still coming. But the point I was making was about being able to flip the switch and bury talented teams.

Watched a true leader in Russell Westbrook who swallowed his tongue after several brutal assaults by the Warriors. He didn't complain, just acknowledged being hit. The refs review half-time moments crafted by the NBA replay center, they undoubtedly saw the 2 assaults on Westbrook.

Refs sucked on both sides. No way each team should be shooting over 30 FT's.

What's lost in the Oakland fog are the facts that the Thunder & Rockets are 2 - 0 against the Warriors; the Nuggets are 2 - 1 against the Warriors.

Thunder 125 @ Warriors 105
Thunder 108 - Warriors 91

Warriors' 13 losses:


Thunder 125 - 108
@Nuggets 115 - 108
@Jazz 125 - 106
@Rockets 125 -106
Clippers 125-106
Hornets 111 - 100
Nuggets 96 - 81
Sacramento 110 - 106
@Thunder 108 - 91
@Boston 92 - 88
Detroit 115 - 107
@Memphis 111 - 101
Rockets 122 - 121

IMO the Warriors could exhaust some valued energy in a match-up against any these 3 teams in the Western Conference playoffs.

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Oklahoma City Thunder 110 - Memphis Grizzlies 92

Box score: http://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=400975585

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Oklahoma City Thunder 121 - Memphis Grizzlies 114

Box score: http://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=400975607

Still, that’s not to say these two are best friends or that Westbrook won’t come at KD with the same vengeance Thunder Nation has witnessed in the previous two wins against the Warriors this season. Rather, it’s to say there is less vitriol between the pair given the passing of a full season since KD’s departure.

Russell Westbrook, Durant relationship status remains topical: https://thunderousintentions.com/2018/02/18/update-russell-westbrook-kevin-durant-relationship/

Man, the last two meetings against the Warriors; Russell has put on a dominant game face. IMO, you can see that Durant now knows he doesn't want to get under Westbrook's skin. RW let it be known that KD doesn't want to go there with him.

Not sure if a team has ever blown so many up 20+ leads in one season. Looking forward to Sat night!!

Last time OKC blew this many leads and close games, they went to the WCF and took the greatest team of all time to 7 games.

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Oklahoma City Thunder 110 - Sacramento Kings 107

Box score: http://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=400975617

Russell Westbrook - 18th Triple-double; wins the game on a dagger with 1 second left in the game.

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Oklahoma City Thunder 112 - Orlando Magic 105

Box score: http://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=400975649

It's long past time for Donovan to quit playing Ferguson. That's why you have a G League team. I think he's going to be a good player someday, but he's 19 and not ready now. Every lineup with him gets destroyed. Every game Donovan keeps playing him in this tight playoff race I lose a little more faith in him... Come at me, Urbanized! ;)

Donovan needs to give all of Ferguson's minutes to Huestis and Abrines and start fine tuning these lineups for the playoffs.

Someone asked him about the questionable lineups last night. And his answer was basically something along the lines of he wants to keep everyone active and involved come playoff time. Seems like he wants to be able to switch out players based upon matchups. Which is basically how he was able to finesse the other coaches in 2016's playoff run.

This seeding battle in the West is going to be insane.

^^^^^^^^
Yep. All of the Donovan haters have completely forgotten ‘15-‘16, when the team seemed super clunky and everyone was giving his line-ups the thumbs-down... ...right up until the playoffs, when all was revealed and it became quite obvious he was pretty a pretty masterful coach and that the weird line-ups had been a part of the larger plan of evaluation and experience-building. He out-Popped Pop in the playoffs, and but for KD’s on-count defection during the WCF we’d have had a title.

That said, Dan, I don’t disagree that T-Ferg isn’t an NBA player yet. I think it’s a possibility that they believe he could be at least serviceable by Playoff time. They just have such a poor bench right now, last night’s performance notwithstanding.

^^^^^^^^
Yep. All of the Donovan haters have completely forgotten ‘15-‘16, when the team seemed super clunky and everyone was giving his line-ups the thumbs-down... ...right up until the playoffs, when all was revealed and it became quite obvious he was pretty a pretty masterful coach and that the weird line-ups had been a part of the larger plan of evaluation and experience-building. He out-Popped Pop in the playoffs, and but for KD’s on-count defection during the WCF we’d have had a title.

That said, Dan, I don’t disagree that T-Ferg isn’t an NBA player yet. I think it’s a possibility that they believe he could be at least serviceable by Playoff time. They just have such a poor bench right now, last night’s performance notwithstanding.

Donovan outcoached Popovich and Kerr in 2015-2016. He was amazing. Last playoffs, he had some funky lineups that never worked out and he was outcoached against Houston. But, there is not a matchup or lineup where Ferguson is beneficial to this team. If we just didn't have anyone to absorb the minutes that would be one thing, but every stat and lineup suggests that Huestis and Abrines should be getting all those minutes. Huestis needs way more experience and time, and he's been vastly more effective as an individual and team defender. That's why sticking with Ferguson at this point is indefensible in my opinion. The Thunder aren't fighting for just position right now, they could miss the playoffs. It's time to start playing winning lineups and gearing up for the playoffs.

Not so set on Ferguson being the recipient of more or less minutes; he's got to be tested, however you don't want to destroy his will.

Ferguson has professional experience, sure he's 19, needs more meat on his bones. It's Donovan's call to decide just how long you can stretch Ferguson--he's got to be ready in case another Thunder domino falls (injury). Play him with the starters and the reserves--he's ready to have a break out moment.

Reminder of how Thunder fans are impatient; we kept calling for a reduction in Andre Roberson's minutes, now we see the value of Dre's defensive prowess--despite his free throw ineptness.

Yeah, the obsession over trading Roberson has me convinced to take the opinions of the most outspoken Thunder fans with a grain of salt, including Donovan haters. Clearly the team and Donovan were seeing things in Roberson that the casual fan is just incapable of seeing. I believe the same is true of Donovan haters right now. They don't like and or don't understand what they are seeing on the court, and the only answer they have is fit throwing and to blame the coach, call for his head.

I felt like replacing Scott Brooks was a very reasoned process. Nobody really wanted to see him go - nice guy, great community member, players for the most part liked him, good cultural fit - but the reasons for making the change (mostly resistance to analytics use I think) proved to be pretty sound. I still believe Donovan is an excellent coach who is continuing to tinker. Last year is mostly an outlier because I think the handwriting was on the wall early that the entire season was about retaining Russ, with no real eye to championship contention. I think that explains some of the funky lineups; the talent just wasn't there. This year (I believe) is about putting a scare into a team or two with a deeper-than-expected run and a chance to bring back this core next year.

All of that said, I am not necessarily disagreeing with Dan about the need to start drastically limiting T-Ferg. And also for the record I'm not lumping Dan in with Donovan-haters.

By the way, I haven't seen anyone post this really great article on Carmelo - and by extension the rough patches and growth the team has experienced this season - but if it is true it pretty much confirms the stuff I was saying when everyone was ready to jump ship back in November-December. We just need some patience as a fan base.

http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/22545271/oklahoma-city-thunder-star-carmelo-anthony-learning-accept-new-role

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=USV5x2AMlFA

Didn't see anyone behind Pachulia. Recall the GSW's Nutcracker (Green), he claim that he kicked out his leg every time he goes up for a shot. Watched him closely, you only see a kick out against players in his face. If that were the case a number of his teammates should be singing soprano.

If you've never had your nuts cracked just wait; it's not only painful, it's troubling to think about the potential damage.

If you've never had a solid musk ox looking-size person fall on you just wait; it can cause potential damage to any part of your body.

Big difference between the Ferguson & Roberson situations: The numbers always provided evidence that Roberson was valuable. Pretty much all metrics suggest that Ferguson tanks any lineup he’s in. I’m not giving up on Ferguson at all, but we need to move on from him for the rest of this season. OKC has a G-League team where plenty of developmental minutes are available.

Big difference between the Ferguson & Roberson situations: The numbers always provided evidence that Roberson was valuable. Pretty much all metrics suggest that Ferguson tanks any lineup he’s in. I’m not giving up on Ferguson at all, but we need to move on from him for the rest of this season. OKC has a G-League team where plenty of developmental minutes are available.

My concern with Ferguson, he came from a league that IMO was slightly above G-League status. G-League is not going to present any challenges for Terrance. Just might give him false confidence.

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Oklahoma City 111 - Dallas Mavericks 110

Box score: http://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=400975665

OKC with the ugliest win over supertank DAL.

The standing basically didn't change as everyone won except Spurs and probably Clippers, which should give some cushion for staying out of 9th.

But man we really need to get everyone flowing.


Is Heustis getting abducted @ halftime? Jeez, for a while there in the second half we looked like we were the team trying to tank.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DXKcTtwVwAAYr-q.jpg

Thunder could pick up Corey Brewer:


Swingman Corey Brewer is likely to sign with the Oklahoma City Thunder upon clearing waivers Friday, league sources told ESPN.

Source: Adrian Wojnarowski - ESPN: http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/22608394/oklahoma-city-thunder-likely-sign-recently-waived-corey-brewer

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Report: Thunder and Corey Brewer agree to deal. http://www.normantranscript.com/oklahoma/report-corey-brewer-agrees-to-deal-with-thunder/article_1e1d00c2-1d73-11e8-abe1-fbbf8e5718b6.html

Great, he's fast. How fast is he(?):


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSFsRxympig
Only NBA player to take 5 steps toward the basket and not get called for traveling.

Royce Young ESPN Staff Writer:

Corey Brewer is somewhat of a system fit for the Thunder, fitting their profile of length, size and defensive positional versatility. There's not another Andre Roberson out there, especially on the buyout market, but Brewer is someone that can realistically help.

We gave up 67 points in the first half to the Suns smh. Win or lose, I think we're at the point where this isn't funny anymore.

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Oklahoma City Thunder 124 - Phoenix Suns 116

Box score: http://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=400975679

All of the losses to awful teams early in the year is coming back to hurt the Thunder. Currently the 7th seed with Houston coming to town...they've won 15 straight.

Winning a playoff series has to be the goal. If they're 7th or 8th though, I don't think it's possible. What a disaster of a season.

All of the losses to awful teams early in the year is coming back to hurt the Thunder. Currently the 7th seed with Houston coming to town...they've won 15 straight.

Winning a playoff series has to be the goal. If they're 7th or 8th though, I don't think it's possible. What a disaster of a season.

Seemed like we had really turned the corner there for a minute, but things have been an unmitigated disaster since Andre’s injury.

Doesn't look great right now, but if OKC can finish strong they can still get the 3 seed. No reason to concede that just yet. They're only one game out. But, yeah, on the flip side, OKC is only 2 games away from being out of the playoffs. Now that would be a nightmare, especially considering the money being spent.

I'm not sure what the upside for this team is in the playoffs. I could see them taking a step up, but the real question for this team is, what's the path to good defense? I'm just not sure with Melo and Russ out there. Every game is important now. At least it'll be an exciting finish.

If anybody is interested, I have a ticket to tomorrow's game vs the Rockets. Just about any amount will work at this point if you're inclined to pay. Trying to cut losses in order to sit with friends from out of town.

If it helps, sec 111, row L, seat 6.

This has got to be one of the most frustrating seasons ever if only because of the potential and all the supposed firepower we have. Heres my take on this team and this season
1. Russell has regressed from last year
2. We have no identity
3. Our defense is sub par
4. Our bench is even worse
5. Our coach while a very smart x's and o's guy cant seem to find the right mix or just maybe there isnt a right mix
6. We are way to inconsistent
7. last years team was better than this years and thats a hard pill to swallow
8. The frustration is starting to show on this "team" and that can spell doom
9. I never realized how important Roberson was to this teams defense and one has to wonder how different our record would be if he was still healthy
10. If this team somehow manages to muck this up and miss the playoffs....i see big changes ahead with the front office or coaching or both not to mention certain players jumping ship.

Well when HOU hits that many threes, no one is beating them.


OKC got lucky that Denver somehow lost to Dallas last night. Thunder need to win out this little homestand, especially against the Spurs. This will help pad the playoff chances as our schedule down the stretch is pretty brutal.

This has got to be one of the most frustrating seasons ever if only because of the potential and all the supposed firepower we have. Heres my take on this team and this season
1. Russell has regressed from last year
2. We have no identity
3. Our defense is sub par
4. Our bench is even worse
5. Our coach while a very smart x's and o's guy cant seem to find the right mix or just maybe there isnt a right mix
6. We are way to inconsistent
7. last years team was better than this years and thats a hard pill to swallow
8. The frustration is starting to show on this "team" and that can spell doom
9. I never realized how important Roberson was to this teams defense and one has to wonder how different our record would be if he was still healthy
10. If this team somehow manages to muck this up and miss the playoffs....i see big changes ahead with the front office or coaching or both not to mention certain players jumping ship.

Agree with most of this. The biggest issue, in my opinion, is that we have no team identity. It seems we have gone out every game and just winged it, hoping talent alone would win it for us. It doesn't seem like they have any interest in playing together as a single unit--and I don't understand it.

Individual players put in inconsistent effort each game. Some nights Carmelo is trying hard, some nights it's like he doesn't care. Same applies to Russ, Adams, and George. The only person who seemed to be excited to play basketball last night was Corey Brewer.

Agree with most of this. The biggest issue, in my opinion, is that we have no team identity. It seems we have gone out every game and just winged it, hoping talent alone would win it for us. It doesn't seem like they have any interest in playing together as a single unit--and I don't understand it.

Individual players put in inconsistent effort each game. Some nights Carmelo is trying hard, some nights it's like he doesn't care. Same applies to Russ, Adams, and George. The only person who seemed to be excited to play basketball last night was Corey Brewer.

Yes your right about the big three or big 4 if you count Carmelo...it seems like they are never on the same page on the same night. The thing that is so frustrating to me is you can see the potential and in some of the earlier games against the elite teams you could swear your looking at a legit playoff team poised to make a run then you realize its fools gold and the reality of this team hits you and you want to throw the remote at the TV....LOL. I wish i could put a truth serum in the coach and find out his real feelings.

14505

Melo is a liability, according to TPA.

Went to the game last night, and let me tell you something - the most notable thing for me was the place was *dead*. The players. The crowd. Zero energy.

I think this team knows it isn't going anywhere, the crowd knows it, and even when the score closed to within 5 or 6 once or twice, no one actually believed they were coming back to win that game.

Houston's offense is a thing of beauty. The ball rotation, the teamwork, the obvious system of plays they use, and at least a semblance of defense. The Thunder has all but four of those elements.

Bottom line? The Thunder are a few superstars plus a bunch of guys playing something not much above street ball. Seeing three guys in blue stand in the paint feeling the whoosh of James Harden go past them for the 25th time probably gave them windburn. It might not be so irritating if it weren't just the abject lack of interest they seem to exhibit at the same time. If these guys have checked out, Presti better get on the phones - assuming ownership still lets him *have* a phone. The team I saw last night didn't deserve to be in the playoffs.

Hate to be the downer, but this team doesn't have "it," they're not finding a "magic switch" to turn "it" on, and I'm not even sure the coach knows what "it" is.

Very depressing to watch.

It was painfully obvious last night which team was elite and which team wasn't.

I don't think Paul George is going to stay. Hope I'm wrong, but I think he's gone. If that's the case, that leaves this franchise in 8-5 seed purgatory for the foreseeable future.

Call me crazy, but I don't think it's out of the realm of possibility that OKC is going to have a Griffin/Detroit type of situation here in 2-3 years.

And one more thing that just eats at me: When we acquired our team we were the darlings of the NBA and everything looked so rosy and the future looked so bright and it looked honestly like we had a chance to win 2 or 3 championships with that lineup. And then the wheels slowly came off and you saw the departure of harden, the firing of Scott brooks, the Ninja move made by Durant and now those teams with our former players are the elite teams for the foreseeable future and we are now on the outside looking in and all the moves this team makes looks futile......just so frustrating! We were going to be the golden state before they were but somehow we didnt make the right moves and they did everything right and this is where we are at now.

This season has been frustrating, but... I don't think this team has given up. Houston is really hard to guard and some of their layups are partly the result of OKC trying hard to take away something else (threes). They're an elite team. But I do think guys are trying. PG is just not making shots since the all-star break and that's been a huge problem.

I'm not giving up on this team. There are good signs. I actually think Melo played his role well last night. He tried hard as the Rockets continually forced him into switches. He took the right shots. I just think Russ and PG, and they're capable, can play better. I also am still concerned with Donovan's lineups. I absolutely don't understand Ferguson getting minutes over Abrines. Patterson needs more of a role too. But I do think Donovan is trying to get OKC to take smart shots. But when things start to fall apart, Russ tends to veer from the plan.

To add to my earlier comment, I don't think OKC will miss the playoffs. While there's a logjam from 8-4, the other teams OKC is competing against also have tough schedules.

Also, while PG is probably going to leave, I think Presti has done a good job at GM overall. I think he has a good track record drafting and making deals that help the team out most of the time.

So, while I think leaner times may be ahead, I don't think the franchise is ruined or anything. I'm still going to support the team no matter what.

I hope you're right, Dan, but I just don't see the commitment or energy in this team to play consistent team-ball. Perhaps the ASB worked as a reset and it's like we're back to the beginning of the season when we struggled and we're now about to hit our stride just as the playoffs begin.

Donovan said in an interview today that against the Rockets the gameplan was not to switch on defense. Haha wtf. That is literally all the team did the entire game. So do they not care about what coach says or are they too lazy to fight over screens?

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Oklahoma City Thunder 115 - Phoenix Suns 87

Box score: http://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore/_/id/400975721

Russ and crew played like their old selves last night. Loose, fun, and with energy on defense.

I know it is the tanking Suns, but it felt nice to not just barely scrape by with a W. We are tied with MIN (they have TB). And we play the Spurs on Saturday. If OKC can pull out that W, we will be in decent shape. Especially considering the Blazers play the Warriors tonight; however Steph hurt his ankle, so it will be up to the snake and donkey to pull out a W for us.

Hope there's some light at the end of this tunnel:

The top 4 teams in the WC (Houston, GS, Portland & NO) all have current win streaks of 7 to 17 games. From 5 thru 8; all of these teams struggle as they jockey for those 4 final WC positions:

Last 10 games (L10) last column of standings:


7. Thunder 6-4
8. Clippers 6-4
6. T-Wolves 4-6
5. Spurs 3-7


9. Nuggets 6-4
X. Jazz 8-2

Thunder control their own destiny. Saturday's home game against the Spurs will be a must win.

NBA Full standings: http://www.espn.com/nba/standings

Minnesota & San Antonio have a brutal schedule with their games that remain.

.

Oklahoma City Thunder 104 - San Antonio Spurs 94

Box score: http://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=400975736

The bench shot well, which always makes everything look better, but I loved Donovan’s rotations. The bench guys looked confident. Corey Brewer won’t keep shooting this well, but he’s been great thus far. His hustle and cutting are what OKC needed.

Steven 'Stonewall' Adams injury update:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DyZt5H9No-Q

Probably won't know anything until Monday.

Just hope it's nothing serious. Let's pray, hope & wish for the best for our Big Kiwi.

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Oklahoma City Thunder 106 - Sacramento Kings 101

Box score: http://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=40097574

Westbrook: 20th Triple double this season.

.

Oklahoma City Thunder 119 - Atlanta Hawks 107

Box score: http://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=400975753

Westbrook: Triple doubles: 21st this season &100th career triple double - 32 points, 12 assists, 12 rebounds.

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Oklahoma City Thunder 121 - Los Angeles Clippers 113

Box score: http://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=400975778

Russell Westbrook: Triple doubles: 22nd this season & 101st career triple double - 16 points, 11 assists, 10 rebounds.

Let’s face it, this scribe wasn’t exactly jumping up and down for joy over his selection as the Thunder’s choice buyout candidate. Yet, there is no denying his effect on the squad. Fact– the Thunder are 5-2 since his arrival and there is palpable energy when he hits the court.

Thunder In the news: Is Corey Brewer OKC’s lucky charm(?): https://thunderousintentions.com/2018/03/17/okc-thunder-news-is-corey-brewer-okc-lucky-charm/

Might have been a bit early to call this “a disaster of a season.”