I love the way both teams competed last night. The game to me had the feel of what Game 7 could have been like last season if the Thunder could have extended the series beyond Game 6 in Salt Lake City. Incredible crowd and emotion in the building like a prize fight.
Paul George led OKC with 45 points and Russell Westbrook added 43 points. Donovan Mitchell led the Jazz with 38 points on 35 shots. Up until Russell lost his poise in the game’s final two minutes it was going to be his signature game of this season. Instead, Russell turned over the ball with an over pass to Steven Adams and then fouled out of the game with a charge. This is what I mean about Russell and the endings of games when he loses his poise and plays too fast. This game very much reminded of the ending in Philly where actually it appeared the Thunder were better off at the end with Russell on the bench. I can’t believe I just wrote that on the night a guy scored 43 points and almost tripled doubled…but that’s just the way I feel about this. If I were Donovan I’d go ahead and start making Paul George the point forward in the final two minutes because he’s in such a confidence zone mode and take the ball out of Russell’s hands to some degree. Much like Scott Brooks did with Harden in 2012.
Markieff Morris was the first guy off the bench and did absolutely nothing in 17 minutes of play except rotate very slowly to the ball on defensive rotations. No points, no rebounds, nothing. I was stunned he got 17 minutes his first game in Oklahoma City. Obviously, he was told by the Thunder he would assume this role. He did nothing except look rusty and slow.
Nerlens Noel only played ten minutes. Patrick Patterson didn’t see the floor. Diallo didn’t see the floor. So much for making a guy ease into things and somewhat earn his minutes. Morris actually entered the game before Sixth Man of the Year candidate Dennis Schroder which is absurd even though Schroder had a tough night. When I see something like this it gives me the feel this was ordained from Sam Presti. I’ve never viewed Markieff as a game changer in his NBA career. He has had some moments, but I’m surprised he was the first guy off the bench in his first game.
Other than with Fisher, this hasn’t worked in the past. Caron Butler fizzled. Corey Brewer fizzled and we’ll just have to see how this plays out. But let me say this…on a night when OKC was hammered on the boards by a 60-43 margin…Morris had zero rebounds in 17 minutes of play. I thought his movement to the man and the ball were equally slow. He looked like the slowest Thunder player on the floor kind of like Carmelo in that regard. I say this because pace is a big deal with this Thunder team because they’re the fastest team in the league.
Utah turnovers were a big deal in this game and saved the Thunder’s ass because of how badly they were mauled on the boards. OKC turned the Jazz over 25 times by my sheet and made up for some of the rebounds they didn’t get.
Steven Adams usually struggles against Gobert and Utah and he did once again on Friday night. But both Terrance Ferguson and Jerami Grant showed flashes of brilliance.
One thing Billy Donovan did which I liked was use Abdel Nader in the second half. Nader showed some grit and hit a huge three in one of the game’s biggest moments. He didn’t shy away from the moment. He embraced it.
I thought it was a great NBA regular season game. I ran into a couple of Thunder fans after the game in a 7-11 and they were just like me…they thought it was epic and agreed with me on using Paul George as a point forward in the end to help Russell out with his decision making at the end of games.
One last thing. I watched the game on Fox and full marks for how nice both Antonio Daniels and Michael Cage dressed for the game. Antonio looked superb with the burgundy jacket and burgundy tie. Michael Cage looked equally dapper with his attire as well. Chris Fisher needs some help. Just saying. He looks like Dana Carvey on a bad hair day and this isn’t Mr. Rodgers Neighborhood…this is the NBA. I’d get rid of the sweater. Otherwise…he’s doing fine.
Great game. Sacramento tonight at the Peake which should be an excellent game. The Kings are one of the most improved teams in the league this season.
Tell me Chris Fisher doesn’t look like Dana Carvey.
Nice job, Mike. Just one thing, I noticed that some of your stats are different from what the espn box score says. I show PG with 45 points, Russ with 43, and Mitchell with 38. Morris had 0 rebounds, and Utah had 24 turnovers.
You’re exactly right and I’ll correct it. I was tired and didn’t do my recheck. But I’m not totally sure which Utah turnover number is right…24 or 25. Thanks for reading my blog and taking the time to comment. That was a lot to take in on this one game. Hope you keep reading. What are your thoughts on Markieff getting all these minutes when he hasn’t even played in over two months? I don’t get it. I mean…if he’s not in game shape, then why not keep his minutes around ten minutes a game until he gets his legs back? He’s never been a star per se in the NBA. He’s a role player.
Do you have any ideas for creating short articles? That’s where I
always struggle as well as I just wind up gazing empty display for long period of time.
I wouldn’t put limitations on any blog post. I never count words. Just write from your heart and be honest, knowledgeable and passionate in what you’re writing about. Yes, there will be those in your genre who don’t adhere to these principles, but my take is to value content over traffic… and that’s why I don’t have a message board or use a Twitter account to attract traffic to my blog. In the end, if you can write something of interest with some integrity attached you’ll be satisfied with your blog.
Happy blogging, Mike