Six games into the Billy Donovan Era in Oklahoma City with two off days before a Sunday evening home game against the Phoenix Suns…maybe a time for some thoughts.
Coming into this NBA basketball season most serious observers had four to six teams in the league as favorites to win the title. LeBron’s Cavs, the Spurs with the additions of LaMarcus Aldridge and David West, the defending champion Golden State Warriors, OKC’s Thunder, the LA Clippers and perhaps the Houston Rockets as an outside possibility.
Golden State, Cleveland and the LA Clippers appear to be what we thought,–the Spurs, Thunder and Rockets still groping with various issues though. San Antonio with the integrations of LaMarcus Aldridge and David West, plus the reality of Tony Parker’s wear and tear at the point guard position. Houston with some early season injuries. Oklahoma City with the coaching change from Scott Brooks to Billy Donovan, plus the eight month injury layoff of Kevin Durant.
To me at least, OKC is the most puzzling of the group, but it shouldn’t be shocking considering Durant’s layoff and Billy Donovan’s introduction to the NBA way of doing things. The four games in five nights didn’t help. You look at the Oklahoma City schedule and it may have been the Thunder’s toughest stretch of the entire 82 game marathon slate.
But several things from a team standpoint glare about Oklahoma City early on which can’t continue if OKC wants to remain on this list of serious contenders. Namely team defense, turnovers and establishing coherent bench rotations, plus maybe a relook at what to do with starting Andre Roberson at the shooting guard position.
The team defense part is simple. As in it might help if Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant start leading at this end of the floor instead of taking possessions off here and there. I’ve never believed leadership is about rah-rah speeches, but rather your best players leading by example in their play. If Durant and Westbrook want to win a championship it will be because they lead defensively instead of just padding their offensive stats night to night.
Turnovers. OKC has always been near the top during the Durant-Westbrook Era. You can get away with this in the regular season against the bottom twenty-four teams just because of Durant and Westbrook’s talent, not so much when you’re playing against other elite talent. OKC has to clean this up, especially during the final six minutes of games where every possession means something.
Bench rotations. Why is one of the most effective three point shooters in the league from last season not getting minutes? Anthony Morrow–start playing him and get him sixteen minutes a game. Nick Collison-Mitch McGary–this is what I’d do… play Collison against the tougher teams. Play McGary against the bottom level fifteen teams in the league, but don’t just waste his obvious ability to energize offensively from the bench. Nurture Mitch McGary.
Andre Roberson and Kyle Singler. Both are alleged to be seriously good wing defenders. I haven’t seen it. Decent, but not special. You never discount perimeter defense with the mathematical importance of the three point shot. Never. But even Shawn Marion got to where he could make some shots. Maybe try something different at the starting shooting guard position and if it doesn’t work, try something else. Maybe try Anthony Morrow for those sixteen minutes and use Roberson and Singler as situational players. If Westbrook would start trying defensively–this might actually work.’
I would think and hope Billy Donovan, Monty Williams and Mo Cheeks at least discussed some of this today. Be interesting to see if some tweaks are made on Sunday night against the Phoenix Suns.
MJ