OKC Thunder 110 — Phoenix Suns 106
I’m still in a college football state of mind, but actually did watch most of the Thunder game. Phoenix vs. OKC games are always funs games to watch. They don’t like each other, lots of small ball, plus neither puts a premium on defense currently–so the games usually take on a playground feel. Fun games.
OKC outlasted Phoenix in a game which went down to the wire with Kevin Durant receiving an assist from Kyle Singler on a dunk which essentially sealed the game.
Durant scored 23 points on the night. Only one other Thunder player scored in double figures. As one would assume it was Russell Westbrook. Typical Westbrook night–36 points, 12 assists, and 5 steals. Russell Westbrook is my No. 1 Star of the Game.
Phoenix had six players in double figures. The Suns shot 52.4% from the field and 40% from beyond the arc as OKC’s defense continued to struggle both in the paint and from beyond the perimeter.
Phoenix drops its seventh straight and stands at 12-23. With Eric Bledsoe out for the season and two assistant coaches dismissed this week–it wouldn’t be a shock if Jeff Hornacek does not make it thru the season.
Some bright spots for OKC were the play of Cam Payne, Kyle Singler, and Dion Waiters off a Thunder bench which scored 31 points on the night.
Payne once again took all the backup point guard minutes while DJ Augustin was DNP-Coach’s Decision. Payne finished with seven points and four assists while showing his natural playmaking ability during his time on the floor. Enjoyable player to watch.
Kyle Singler had his most productive game of the season playing important minutes as Donovan mixed and matched to find small lineups to defend the Suns. Singler had seven points, four rebounds, and two assists, including the game clinching assist to Durant. For the first time this season—Singler looked like the hustle/clutch player from Duke who was instrumental in winning Coach K one of his championships. If Singler could just produce ten quality minutes a game like this a game he could carve out an every game niche on this team.
Dion Waiters had a nice game after a sequence of games in LA and back home where he looked like the broken version of Dion Waiters from last season instead of the player who looked like he might turn his game around earlier this season. Waiters went 3-6 from the field, pared down his shot selection, grabbed six rebounds, and dished out three assists. A nice solid overall game instead of jacking poor shots and making murky basketball decisions. This is the Dion Waiters who could help Oklahoma City become a better team, not the Nick Young version of Dion.
OKC won as they should have against a bad Phoenix team and improves to 23-10.
Mike Jackson