2019-20 OKC Thunder

[Laramie]

Correction:
Today's Thunder-Wizards game will be played at 11:30 A.M. Central Time via Fox Oklahoma

[Laramie]

.

Thunder 121 - Wizards 103

Box score: https://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=401224760

[Laramie]

(43-26)

Oklahoma City Thunder @ Phoenix Suns
1:30 PM CT, Monday, August 10, 2020
Visa Athletic Center, Orlando, FL


(31-39)

Standings: https://www.espn.com/nba/standings

[Laramie]

Suns 128 - Thunder 101

Box score: https://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=401224767

[Laramie]

(43-27)
Oklahoma City Thunder at Miami Heat
7:00 PM CT, Wednesday, August 12, 2020
Walt DIsney World Resort, Orlando, FL


(43-27)

NBA ESPN Standings: https://www.espn.com/nba/standings

[dclark87]

Looks like they tanking for the 6 spot.

I don’t blame them. That’s smart.

[Laramie]

Looks like they tanking for the 6 spot.

I don’t blame them. That’s smart.

Utah may be trying to sow up the 6th seed as well and get a higher pick in the draft. Thunder already have an abundance of picks in their pantry.

[Anonymous.]

Personally I think OKC matches up better against the Rockets than Nuggets. Obviously everyone wants to play against the Jazz, but we would have to get pretty lucky for that matchup.

[Bill Robertson]

I admit to being a fringe NBA fan only because I’m a Thunder fan. But the league (or the teams?) just had to have X number of games before starting the playoffs. It doesn’t seem to me like the teams are using these games to tune up the starters that sat for 5 months or to try to make moves in seeding. So why didn’t we just have a couple practice “scrimmages” and get to the playoffs?

[Anonymous.]

^
They did have scrimmages before these seeding games.

The point of having these games is to give teams that were close to making the 8 seed, a chance to play-in. Especially in the West, where records were/are much more competitive for the 8 spot. The reason you see teams sitting starters and such is because of injuries/injury prevention and a little bit of gaming the seed matchups.

Homecourt doesn't exist this playoffs, so the only thing that matters is your matchup. The result is we have some interesting strategies going on since having a better record is essentially meaningless after the initial seeding.

[Laramie]

Dennis Schroder

The Thunder confirmed Tuesday that Schroder (personal) returned to the NBA bubble in Orlando, Erik Gee of SI.com reports. He'll complete a mandatory quarantine for four days before he's eligible to rejoin the Thunder for workouts.

Heat vs. Thunder - 7 p.m., Fox Sports Oklahoma

[dankrutka]

I admit to being a fringe NBA fan only because I’m a Thunder fan. But the league (or the teams?) just had to have X number of games before starting the playoffs. It doesn’t seem to me like the teams are using these games to tune up the starters that sat for 5 months or to try to make moves in seeding. So why didn’t we just have a couple practice “scrimmages” and get to the playoffs?

This is how the end of the regular season is every year. A lot of teams get locked in their spot with several games left and then balance playing and resting. The entire East playoff matchups are now set and the only drama in the West is the 9 seed.

The Thunder are almost for sure locked into the 4/5 series with the Rockets. Unfortunately, that means OKC will lost their top 20 protected pick to the 76ers. I was hoping OKC could get the 6 seed in the West and keep the pick, but the Jazz seem set on avoiding the Rockets and losing out.

[Jersey Boss]

I admit to being a fringe NBA fan only because I’m a Thunder fan. But the league (or the teams?) just had to have X number of games before starting the playoffs. It doesn’t seem to me like the teams are using these games to tune up the starters that sat for 5 months or to try to make moves in seeding. So why didn’t we just have a couple practice “scrimmages” and get to the playoffs?

Not every team that was in the bubble qualified for the playoffs. Practice scrimmages would not have addressed that.

[Laramie]

.

Heat 115 - Thunder 116

Box score - https://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=401224781

NBA Standings: https://www.espn.com/nba/standings

[Anonymous.]

Well it happened. Rockets and Thunder is coming.

But all eyes on Dort. That injury did not look good. Very ACL-baddish.

Without Dort, Harden is going to get anything he wants.

[Laramie]

Oklahoma City Thunder @ Los Angeles Clippers
5:00 PM, Friday, August 14, 2020, TV - ESPN, FS Oklahoma

NBA Standings: https://www.espn.com/nba/standings

[dankrutka]

Well it happened. Rockets and Thunder is coming.

But all eyes on Dort. That injury did not look good. Very ACL-baddish.

Without Dort, Harden is going to get anything he wants.

Dort is day-to-day (good news) and Russ looks to be out at least the first couple games.

[Celebrator]

Dort is day-to-day (good news) and Russ looks to be out at least the first couple games.

Quad injuries are tough though, I think he'll miss the whole series.

[Laramie]

Television - Local & National

Game 1 FS Oklahoma & TNT
Game 2 FS Oklahoma & ESPN
Game 3 FS Oklahoma & ESPN
Game 4 FS Oklahoma & TNT

Game 5 is Wednesday August 26th TBA
Game 6 is Friday August 28th TBA
Game 7 is Sunday August 30th TBA

[Anonymous.]

Amazing Dort news. He will be important if we can make it out of R1.

[Laramie]

Amazing Dort news. He will be important if we can make it out of R1.

Oklahoma City Thunder rookie Luguentz Dort will reportedly not play Friday against the Los Angeles Clippers due to a sprained right knee, according to Erik Horne of The Athletic.

Dort suffered the injury in the first quarter on Wednesday when he collided with Miami Heat forward Jae Crowder. Dort banged knees with him but was able to walk off the court under his own power to the locker room and would not return to play.--Rookie Wire

[Laramie]

.

Clippers 107 - Thunder 103

Box score: https://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore/_/gameId/401224792

Standings: https://www.espn.com/nba/standings

[dankrutka]

I have a few bubble thoughts:
— I'll be interested if Roberson has any role against Houston. At most, I could see Donovan throwing him at Harden for 10 minutes, but I'm skeptical he'll be in the rotation. Still a great story.
— Hamidou Diallo has shown some things in the bubble. I've always been skeptical that he can be a real rotation player because he doesn't really have any defining skills (besides dunking) where he excels. But he's been hitting threes and showing some more moves getting to the basket. I'm still skeptical, but less so now.
— I think Abdel Nader could be the last guy in the rotation. I—and most people—were pretty down on Nader early in the season, but he's really proven himself. On the flip side...
— I really thought Deonte Burton could contribute this season. Wow, has he been beyond bad this season. I think his NBA career is over after these playoffs as the Thunder have a team option for next season.
— The team didn't take the second half of the seeding games seriously as they prioritized rest. I hope the team is in sync come Tuesday.
—Hopefully Schröder is in good shape and ready to go for Houston. He looked great in his minutes on Friday.

The Houston matchup will be fascinating, but there's a lot of questions. What is Adams role? Can he punish small Houston lineups? I don't think so and wouldn't be surprised if we see more Muscala than Noel. When will Russ be back? Can Austin Rivers carry Houston's second string when Harden sits? Will Harden get tired without Russ? This should be a fun series.

[Laramie]

Appreciate your thoughts, Dan. You make some very valid points.

As for Adams, he will rise to the occasion. Nader loves his role as the player who can step up to the next level; he'll need to be more consistent on threes and not rush his shot.

Blazley will be the x-factor. He needs to get away from the 'silly/frustration' fouls; concentrate more on his strength--breaking down the defense and finding an open player under the basket or dropping a dime when open.

Houston will continue to have trouble if they rely on Harden as the 'go to' factor. OKC needs to take advantage of Westbrook's absence. Schroder just needs to knock off the cobwebs; he did that against the Clippers.

[Laramie]