When the schedule came out this appeared to be a game with great viewing promise. OKC back in the championship hunt with a healthy Durant, the Pelicans a young team on the rise with their star Anthony Davis and new head coach Alvin Gentry. Scratch most of that tonight as New Orleans limps into the Chesapeake Energy Arena with a Western Conference worst 1-10 record and Anthony Davis suffering from a hip injury.
This is Day 7 for the evaluation of Kevin Durant’s hamstring strain, so maybe there might be some good news on that front for OKC. Otherwise—this appears to be an early season meeting of two of the league’s most exciting young teams derailed by injury to date.
Both teams coming off losses. OKC coming off a road loss to Memphis on Monday night, the Pelicans coming off a 115-98 loss to the Denver Nuggets last night. New Orleans precariously close to reliving OKC’s injury riddled past season as they close in on exceeding OKC’s 3-12 start. Adding to the surreal feel of it is Kendrick Perkins and Ish Smith now play for the Pelicans–although Perk won’t play due to a pectoral injury.
OKC enters 6-5 and very much in need of Kevin Durant’s return. The Thunder are 1-2 without Durant and even looked shaky in the win over the still winless Sixers. The same problems which have daunted OKC in the past still exist–namely overall team defense and the inability for this team to trust an offensive system which goes beyond Durant and Westbrook in the fourth period against good teams. The bench inconsistency has been an issue for OKC as well.
The internet GM’s in Thunder Nation have already deemed the Billy Donovan Era in OKC doomed eleven games in–cancel the season…sigh. Russell Westbrook and Billy Donovan have this in common—they both need Kevin Durant back in the lineup as soon as possible so the internet GM’s don’t declare the Thunder season over before Thanksgiving arrives.
Just win this game tonight against a Pelicans team which will probably be missing Anthony Davis, Tyreke Evans, Jrue Holiday (back to back medical restriction), Kendrick Perkins and possibly Omar Asik. Just win the game, improve to 7-5, take a collective deep breath, hopefully get Durant back in the lineup—and restart the process of Billy Donovan figuring out his team.