It’s one thing to lose to a struggling Portland Trailblazers team on the road, it’s somethings else to lose to one of the worst teams in the league which is ostensibly in tank mode along with the LA Lakers to garner the worst record in the West. But on this night, this is precisely what the OKC Thunder did in losing to the Phoenix Suns by a count of 118-111 on the second night of a road back to back.
To me, the most symbolic gesture of Thunder ineptitude on this night was the final minute of the game when twice Jerami Grant missed wide open threes which would have given Westbrook an assist and another triple double. It was symbolic of how bad the Thunder were in a game which they never should have lost and additionally cost them a chance to pull into a tie for the sixth seed and stay two games behind Utah for the fourth seed.
Losing to Portland stung, this loss makes you wonder if the Thunder minus Westbrook have progressed any as a team.
Westbrook’s line was 48 points, 17 rebounds, and 9 assists. It should have been a triple double, but wasn’t because there was no one around him hitting threes minus Alex Abrines. Doug McDermott was awful going ofer from beyond the arc. Same with Jerami Grant. But beyond as a team going 9-35 shooting threes, the performance was bad all around as the Thunder couldn’t defend the rim.
For the fifth straight game, Victor Oladipo did not play because of mysterious back spasms. For the second straight game, Steven Adams in no way played like a dude getting payed $25 million to be this team’s second best player. Way back when this started it was clear that for this team to realize its potential both Adams and Oladipo had to consistently play like the team’s second and third best players. But none of that is happening right now as Oladipo isn’t even playing and Adams’ level of play isn’t what this team needs from him.
Plus, there’s the road woes of this team. The Thunder are 12-19 on the road and these young players look like a completely different team on the road versus what they look like at home. The inability of this team to knuckle down and play better on the road is not a positive barometer for the Thunder’s chances in post season play.
The Thunder have another road game in Dallas on Sunday night. It won’t be easy even against the worst Dallas team we’ve seen in quite a while as the Mavs aren’t sure if they’re tanking or have an outside chance of somehow sliding into the 8th seed.
I know it’s the year of Westbrook, but these guys around him need to toughen up mentally and play tougher, smarter ball on the road.
Steven Adams and Victor Oladipo, your team needs you, pretty much now.