CBS Sports: What was the real problem with the Thunder last season?

[Dex]

Thunder-centric article here, but good read and lots of Spurs tidbits.


Every once in a while, a team comes around that challenges for the title and accomplishes more by not winning it -- something people talk and argue about can have more of a lasting effect than actually accomplishing your goal.

For instance, what would you say about the Spurs? They're great? We've kind of covered that, right? Is there any new marrow to suck from the bones of their consistent, unending, and unfathomably admirable success?

No one's arguing how to fix the Kings. They'll mock the Kings. But no one's talking about how to fix them. Well, we will, but that's not until their offseason report later this month.

But one team people love to argue about, a team that drives the conversation of sports and about whom everyone has an opinion?

The Oklahoma City Thunder.

Read more: http://www.cbssports.com/nba/eye-on-basketball/24649705/what-was-the-real-problem-with-the-thunder-last-season

[Mr. Body]

Uninspired coaching? Ball-dominance by two of its players? Over-reliance on key veterans (who are no longer there) instead of developing young talent? Massive logging of minutes on its stars throughout the season? A chintzy ownership that forced their third star to be traded for dimes on the dollar?

[velik_m]

Uninspired coaching? Ball-dominance by two of its players? Over-reliance on key veterans (who are no longer there) instead of developing young talent? Massive logging of minutes on its stars throughout the season? A chintzy ownership that forced their third star to be traded for dimes on the dollar?

This about sums it up.

[xmas1997]

Now Durant has abdicated his Team USA responsibilities.
Go figure!
Can you spell "P a u l G e o r g e"?

[Brazil]

This about sums it up.

that's not what the article is saying tho backed up with some legit points

[EVAY]

Uninspired coaching? Ball-dominance by two of its players? Over-reliance on key veterans (who are no longer there) instead of developing young talent? Massive logging of minutes on its stars throughout the season? A chintzy ownership that forced their third star to be traded for dimes on the dollar?

Far more concise than the article but equally impressive analysis, imo.

[r0drig0lac]

Spurs

[vander]

That article brings nothing tbh. They do miss harden. Brooks isn't a good coach just because the team had a good record. Of course the 2nd best team in the league will also be good near the end of games within 2 points...

[wildbill2u]

The thing for the Spurs to worry about is whether the Thunder will unite after last season like the Spurs did after the Miami loss and come back with renewed dedication. The psychology of winning is as important as BB talent.

If they get their minds right they only need a few squad tweaks, a healthy team in the playoffs, and some luck to be right there next June.

[Seventyniner]

Uninspired coaching? Ball-dominance by two of its players? Over-reliance on key veterans (who are no longer there) instead of developing young talent? Massive logging of minutes on its stars throughout the season? A chintzy ownership that forced their third star to be traded for dimes on the dollar?

Well damn, what are the excuses for the rest of the league outside of San Antonio and Miami? For every problem with the Thunder, you can find two for any team in the league other than the Spurs.

[TheyCallMePro]

This is absurd. The Thunder were the 2nd best team in the NBA this season, and if Durant makes a wide-open 3 in game 6, the Thunder and Spurs play a game 7 that's up for grabs. And there's no doubt in my mind the Thunder would have gone on to beat the Heat in the Finals if they had managed to win a game 7.

The Thunder have a GREAT team. Westbrook and Durant are two of the league's top five players. Ibaka is a top 15 player, and the league's best defender. And the Thunder have great role players. There was and is NOTHING wrong with them. The Spurs were simply the better team, and it's an insult to suggest what the Thunder's problem was. I hate how people do this. Blame the loser instead of giving credit to the winner.

And by the way, Matt Moore is a moron. He hates the Spurs and constantly assigns blames to other team's flaws to justify why his predictions fell apart. He's a hack writer. Check how many misspelled words are in his articles. He's plain-out unprofessional.

[exstatic]

The thing for the Spurs to worry about is whether the Thunder will unite after last season like the Spurs did after the Miami loss and come back with renewed dedication. The psychology of winning is as important as BB talent.

If they get their minds right they only need a few squad tweaks, a healthy team in the playoffs, and some luck to be right there next June.
I really don't see that happening. I think there is a big divide between the locker room and ownership. How can you bust your ass for a cheapskate organization? They traded away an all NBA guard for scraps and pieces. They intentionally drafted a second rounder at 29 so he would sign a d-league contract and not count on their cap. I think Durant is a goner, first chance he gets.

[ajh18]

I'm not entirely sure that the Thunder would have won the title last year even if they'd beaten us. Playoffs are in a large part about matchups, and the Thunder don't match up well with the Heat (or the Cavs now, either). Lebron is a good enough athlete that he can disrupt almost any player's game. With the Thunder, disrupting Durant's game really is a huge hit to their offense. Meanwhile, the Thunder have no one who can check Lebron the way Green or Leonard can.

Bosh/Love are both decent enough outside shooters that they can draw Ibaka out of the paint the same way Bonner did for us. That basically leaves Westbrook to outscore Lebron (who has no lockdown defender on him) and Wade/Irving.

We didn't have those problems with a Lebron team in-part because even if he locks down Parker, our offense can run without much of a hitch. The Thunder are a bit more challenging for us because all their best players are great athletes with strong mid-range games (shots the Spurs are more willing to concede to most teams).

[heyheymymy]

The thing for the Spurs to worry about is whether the Thunder will unite after last season like the Spurs did after the Miami loss and come back with renewed dedication. The psychology of winning is as important as BB talent.

If they get their minds right they only need a few squad tweaks, a healthy team in the playoffs, and some luck to be right there next June.

great point, i see what you're saying and it's certainly of concern. but i think the spurs situation was heightened by the fact they were literally 1 bounce away from winning the Finals, OKC was competing, but couldn't force a game 7, never really "had it in the bag" like the spurs did but it was pretty close, and it was only the WCF, not the NBA Finals

Still missing the personnel at OKC to get it done imho too. morrow, lamb, and pjIII are not all going to bust out imho. Adams may, however, but will that be enough? Spurs can go deep and OKC looked thin in the WCF last season even with ibaka back.

[Dex]

The Thunder have a GREAT team. Westbrook and Durant are two of the league's top five players. Ibaka is a top 15 player, and the league's best defender. And the Thunder have great role players. There was and is NOTHING wrong with them. The Spurs were simply the better team, and it's an insult to suggest what the Thunder's problem was. I hate how people do this. Blame the loser instead of giving credit to the winner.


You apparently didn't read the entire article, which he spends debunking the typical "problems" that the Thunder had, and concludes that the Thunder are a good team that got beaten by a better team in the Spurs.

[travis2]

There was a comment I found interesting...


For better or worse, the Thunder's wagon is hitched to the tandem of Durant and Westbrook. Both of those men have settled into their game. They won't make any drastic changes now. What Oklahoma City has from KD and Russell is what they'll have from them in two years, in five years, and even in ten, should they play that long.

In '05 and '07, the Spurs offense was basically lots of 4-down to Tim with the occasional kick to the wings or the upper 3-point line. Now the offense is a maddening mix of screens and passes until someone gets open.

In other words...Tim/Tony/Many didn't just "settle into their game". They did what was required to evolve and win again.

Meanwhile, OKC seems to be stuck in the iso-ball mentality.

[TheyCallMePro]

There was a comment I found interesting...



In '05 and '07, the Spurs offense was basically lots of 4-down to Tim with the occasional kick to the wings or the upper 3-point line. Now the offense is a maddening mix of screens and passes until someone gets open.

In other words...Tim/Tony/Many didn't just "settle into their game". They did what was required to evolve and win again.

Meanwhile, OKC seems to be stuck in the iso-ball mentality.

And people blame Scott Brooks for letting those two play their game. If I was the Thunder coach, I'd allow those two to do their thing and dominate too. Ridiculous.

[skulls138]

The thing for the Spurs to worry about is whether the Thunder will unite after last season like the Spurs did after the Miami loss and come back with renewed dedication. The psychology of winning is as important as BB talent.

If they get their minds right they only need a few squad tweaks, a healthy team in the playoffs, and some luck to be right there next June.Eh, Im not seeing it. Dont want to underestimate them but its how I feel. Have they made any off season moves?

[Chinook]

This is absurd. The Thunder were the 2nd best team in the NBA this season, and if Durant makes a wide-open 3 in game 6, the Thunder and Spurs play a game 7 that's up for grabs. And there's no doubt in my mind the Thunder would have gone on to beat the Heat in the Finals if they had managed to win a game 7.

The Thunder have a GREAT team. Westbrook and Durant are two of the league's top five players. Ibaka is a top 15 player, and the league's best defender. And the Thunder have great role players. There was and is NOTHING wrong with them. The Spurs were simply the better team, and it's an insult to suggest what the Thunder's problem was. I hate how people do this. Blame the loser instead of giving credit to the winner.

And by the way, Matt Moore is a moron. He hates the Spurs and constantly assigns blames to other team's flaws to justify why his predictions fell apart. He's a hack writer. Check how many misspelled words are in his articles. He's plain-out unprofessional.

Honestly, I think the Heat would have smoked OKC in the Finals. James can beat the Thunder by himself, and Bosh would have had a much easier match-up. The Heat were also a lot smarter of a team than OKC.

The Spurs were the better team. They are the most talented team in the league. But the Thunder really did have huge issues that will hurt them going forward. And it's not like they really got better. They're relying on their young players developing, but that hasn't happened to the extent they were hoping for. Their Big Three and Adams have gotten better, but a lot of guys like Lamb, PJIII and even Jackson are the same players they were the year before. They're not going to be the youngest and most athletic team for much longer.

[exstatic]

Eh, Im not seeing it. Dont want to underestimate them but its how I feel. Have they made any off season moves?

They lost their best perimeter defender. They drafted a second rounder at 29 in order to not have to pay him.

[Uriel]

People here seem to forget that OKC was one Serge Ibaka injury away from potentially winning that series against us. I wouldn't be surprised if revenge fuels them to new heights next season, the way Game 6 did for us this season.

[J_Paco]

People here seem to forget that OKC was one Serge Ibaka injury away from potentially winning that series against us. I wouldn't be surprised if revenge fuels them to new heights next season, the way Game 6 did for us this season.

Could have, should have, would have won't win you shit in the NBA. The Thunder will only go as far as Durant, Westbrook and Ibaka can take them, unless someone of the group of Jackson, Lamb or Adams becomes a star and dependable 3rd scoring option. The fact that Ibaka has settled into being a "stretch 4" when his physical gifts suggest he's more than that is what is holding them back the most, IMO. He needs to become a near 20-10 guy and develop one or two reliable moves in the post. He's still way too reliant on Westbrook, and to a lesser extent Durant, to help create his offense.

[Cry Havoc]

This is absurd. The Thunder were the 2nd best team in the NBA this season, and if Durant makes a wide-open 3 in game 6, the Thunder and Spurs play a game 7 that's up for grabs. And there's no doubt in my mind the Thunder would have gone on to beat the Heat in the Finals if they had managed to win a game 7.

The Thunder have a GREAT team. Westbrook and Durant are two of the league's top five players. Ibaka is a top 15 player, and the league's best defender. And the Thunder have great role players. There was and is NOTHING wrong with them. The Spurs were simply the better team, and it's an insult to suggest what the Thunder's problem was. I hate how people do this. Blame the loser instead of giving credit to the winner.

And by the way, Matt Moore is a moron. He hates the Spurs and constantly assigns blames to other team's flaws to justify why his predictions fell apart. He's a hack writer. Check how many misspelled words are in his articles. He's plain-out unprofessional.

I doubt it. I think the Heat match up too well with OKC. LeBron locks down Durant, and if WB starts to go off they switch. Miami had a lot of physical bodies to throw at either player, their entire defensive scheme is perfectly suited to stopping one or two scoring threats. The Spurs beat the Heat because they put 5 guys on the floor who could hurt them and Miami couldn't play it's cheat (like a football cheat) defense to slow down penetration.

It's the old system vs. the new, which Midnight Pulp and I have been touching on. Old system - superstar ISO ball. The Heat are built to smash it. New system - Constant movement and dual purpose screens with excellent ball handlers and fast players who can shoot from everywhere on the court and still get back to play D. Kawhi is the perfect blueprint for that system (LeBron is the elite prototype), and it's going to change the way the NBA is played. This evolution of centers falling behind because they are slow is no accident -- and it's going to continue as the pace of the game evolves.

[Spurs 4 The Win]

People here seem to forget that OKC was one Serge Ibaka injury away from potentially winning that series against us. I wouldn't be surprised if revenge fuels them to new heights next season, the way Game 6 did for us this season.

Lol, even with Ibaka they only split 2-2 against us and that was with some suspect as shit officiating in games 3, 4, and 6, his health was irrelevant in our win over them. They couldnt do shit in our house, healthy or not we still wouldve been up 2-0.

[Mr. Body]

Heat would have beaten the Thunder. Bad matchup for them.

[DAF86]

Such a crappy article. It looks as if Presti paid someone to justify every move he made. You just have to look at the Thunder so called offense to see they need some sort of coaching change there.

And lol at Fisher playing more than 7 4th quarter minutes per game not being "overplaying him by much". :lol

[ElNono]

Hindsight is 20-20 and the premise isn't necessarily wrong... sometimes the other team is just better. The Spurs have found themselves on that other side of the coin plenty of times in the past.

[HI-FI]

http://assets.sbnation.com/assets/1190820/brooks.gif

[hater]

I actually rewatched game 4 and 5 of the Spurs vs. OKC series this past weekend.

I can summarize what happened to OKC:
1) Westbrook and Durant were played to death. By beginning of game 5, they were running on fumes.
2) Ibaka's injury limited him greatly
3) Jackson also was limited by an ankle injury sustained in game 4
4) OKC coach ran out of material

looking at that list above, you can see exactly how OKC lost the series. And all of those factors were symptoms of their major flaws: they are not a deep team and they have a mediocre coach.

in other words, unless OKC can get a Harden calibre player, they will never go anywhere.

[sprrs]

Gem from the article. Spurs were 10-2 in games with 30 seconds left in which they were up or down by 2. That's insane. Sums up our team perfectly: Clutch and with precise execution.

[manu2timdynasty]

Uninspired coaching? Ball-dominance by two of its players? Over-reliance on key veterans (who are no longer there) instead of developing young talent? Massive logging of minutes on its stars throughout the season? A chintzy ownership that forced their third star to be traded for dimes on the dollar?

The Spurs were very close to losing this series. Its all relative, if you were to swap the thunder for the heat it would be the thunder with 4 straight finals appearances and lebron searching for his 1st ring. The Harden trade definitely hurt but its like Pop said, you lose by a point and your too old, you win by a point and your experienced.

[in2deep]

I actually rewatched game 4 and 5 of the Spurs vs. OKC series this past weekend.

I can summarize what happened to OKC:
1) Westbrook and Durant were played to death. By beginning of game 5, they were running on fumes.
2) Ibaka's injury limited him greatly
3) Jackson also was limited by an ankle injury sustained in game 4
4) OKC coach ran out of material

looking at that list above, you can see exactly how OKC lost the series. And all of those factors were symptoms of their major flaws: they are not a deep team and they have a mediocre coach.

in other words, unless OKC can get a Harden calibre player, they will never go anywhere.

thanks for the analysis :tu

[Ice009]

The Spurs were very close to losing this series. Its all relative, if you were to swap the thunder for the heat it would be the thunder with 4 straight finals appearances and lebron searching for his 1st ring. The Harden trade definitely hurt but its like Pop said, you lose by a point and your too old, you win by a point and your experienced.

Swap the Thunder for the Heat?

[KaiRMD1]

Gem from the article. Spurs were 10-2 in games with 30 seconds left in which they were up or down by 2. That's insane. Sums up our team perfectly: Clutch and with precise execution.

Well, after the ol' sports blew the finals after being up 5 with 28 seconds left, you can bet they made sure it wouldn't happen again

[Venti Quattro]

Westbrook shooting the team out when it counts. Did it ever change?

[100%duncan]

Well, after the ol' sports blew the finals after being up 5 with 28 seconds left, you can bet they made sure it wouldn't happen again

:lol

[Spurs 4 The Win]

I actually rewatched game 4 and 5 of the Spurs vs. OKC series this past weekend.

I can summarize what happened to OKC:
1) Westbrook and Durant were played to death. By beginning of game 5, they were running on fumes.
2) Ibaka's injury limited him greatly
3) Jackson also was limited by an ankle injury sustained in game 4
4) OKC coach ran out of material

looking at that list above, you can see exactly how OKC lost the series. And all of those factors were symptoms of their major flaws: they are not a deep team and they have a mediocre coach.

in other words, unless OKC can get a Harden calibre player, they will never go anywhere.

Wrong, Ibaka was 100%, jumpin around like his usual monkeyball self all series when he came back. Jackson had 20+ points in game 6(Game 5 we destroyed them and nobody played well for them but Jackson started hot that game). Wtf were you watching. You were right on point 1 but point 2 and 3 are just flat out incorrect. Our execution did them in, plain and simple, it wasnt an "injury" or any shit like that.

[hater]

Wrong, Ibaka was 100%, jumpin around like his usual monkeyball self all series when he came back. Jackson had 20+ points in game 6(Game 5 we destroyed them and nobody played well for them but Jackson started hot that game). Wtf were you watching. You were right on point 1 but point 2 and 3 are just flat out incorrect. Our execution did them in, plain and simple, it wasnt an "injury" or any shit like that.

Ibaka's FG% and Rebounding dropped considerably after his injury. Sure he was limited.

You do make a good point on Jackson thou. Sure his #s were solid, but his defensive game dropped off considerably after his injury. He just couldn't stay in front of his attackers.

[Chinook]

Ibaka's numbers dropped in large part because Splitter seemed to take Serge's Game Three outburst personally. He did a great job on Ibaka. The biggest reason, however, was that Matt Bonner pretty much shut down everyone he faced in Game Five. I think Ibaka thought that Bonner was an easy opponent and constantly tried to beat him in the post or off the dribble. But Matty wasn't playing that game. The result was a lot of Ibaka misses on ill-advised attempts.

[spurraider21]

Ibaka's numbers dropped in large part because Splitter seemed to take Serge's Game Three outburst personally. He did a great job on Ibaka. The biggest reason, however, was that Matt Bonner pretty much shut down everyone he faced in Game Five. I think Ibaka thought that Bonner was an easy opponent and constantly tried to beat him in the post or off the dribble. But Matty wasn't playing that game. The result was a lot of Ibaka misses on ill-advised attempts.
This. Ibaka saw Bonner as a mismatch and was uncharacteristically aggressive with the ball... worked out well in the Spurs favor since Serge doesn't really know how to be a scorer

[Spurs 4 The Win]

Ibaka's FG% and Rebounding dropped considerably after his injury. Sure he was limited.

You do make a good point on Jackson thou. Sure his #s were solid, but his defensive game dropped off considerably after his injury. He just couldn't stay in front of his attackers.

I can agree on Jackson's defense being limited but man, I really feel like Ibaka was 100%, he really didnt seem to have any issues, even late in the games and into OT, he always seemed ready to jump all over the place and play defense. And as the above posters mentioned, ill advised attempts dropped his numbers.

[Russo21]

The main problem for OKC is they played against a buzz-saw that was just getting warmed up

[dg7md]

Uninspired coaching? Ball-dominance by two of its players? Over-reliance on key veterans (who are no longer there) instead of developing young talent? Massive logging of minutes on its stars throughout the season? A chintzy ownership that forced their third star to be traded for dimes on the dollar?

[Raven]

not playing their young talents during the season.

[Dex]

Westbrook shooting the team out when it counts. Did it ever change?

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vi3GYcX23zo/U4qe-q46CMI/AAAAAAAAHKo/MAPhB6jq7fE/s1600/4.gif

[Dex]

This. Ibaka saw Bonner as a mismatch and was uncharacteristically aggressive with the ball... worked out well in the Spurs favor since Serge doesn't really know how to be a scorer

That, and Bonner is a seriously underrated post defender. He's not gonna jump out of his sneakers or swat shots or play help defense like the Ibaka's of the league, but he has deceptively good positioning, knows how to get into his opponents body, and stays straight up when he is defending one on one in the post. For a 4th-5th big, his defense is adequate.

The fact that he looks like a bagger from HEB probably doesn't help from guys trying to go aggressively at him.

[exstatic]

Oh, boo hoo. They had injuries. It's part of the game. TP, our ONLY All NBA player, missed the second half and OT in game 6. You man up and get it done.

[buttsR4rebounding]

Now Durant has abdicated his Team USA responsibilities.
Go figure!
Can you spell "P a u l G e o r g e"?

Next season we should hand out pics of the Paul George injury and wave them behind the basket when he shoots free throws. Would that be in bad taste? Or wickedly funny?

[Brunodf]

People arguing about Ibaka injury seem to forget that Tony was not even close to 100% either...

[Darius McCrary]

I actually rewatched game 4 and 5 of the Spurs vs. OKC series this past weekend.

I can summarize what happened to OKC:
1) Westbrook and Durant were played to death. By beginning of game 5, they were running on fumes.
2) Ibaka's injury limited him greatly
3) Jackson also was limited by an ankle injury sustained in game 4
4) OKC coach ran out of material

looking at that list above, you can see exactly how OKC lost the series. And all of those factors were symptoms of their major flaws: they are not a deep team and they have a mediocre coach.

in other words, unless OKC can get a Harden calibre player, they will never go anywhere.


I clearly remember Durant and Chuckbrook looking gassed, particularly the night of elimination.
It was a breath of fresh air to see another team's young, star players looking so tired against US, rather than the opposite story. I loved it.

[hitmantb]

OKC and Cleveland are the #1 and #2 obstacles to a Spurs repeat next season, barring injuries.

I am sure OKC will take a look at Spurs player development and minute management and take a page from it. Spurs proved less is more and GDP during first 20 minutes of each game can still match up against most other stars in this league.

Depth is created by playing your supporting cast critical minutes. A night off here and there for Durant/Westbrook, reduced minutes etc etc. OKC does not need home court to beat SA if they can keep their big three healthy and rested. Sam Presti came from SA after all, with SA's title this year he should have enough ammunition to cut through the politics and get a bit better passing, minute management and player development.

With GDP another year older, it is a 40-60 in OKC favor if both teams are at full strength considering Duncan/Ginobili being yet another year older (make no mistake about it, they carried SA in that critical game 6, a game 7, win or lose would have been disastrous for the Spurs).

[baseline bum]

OKC and Cleveland are the #1 and #2 obstacles to a Spurs repeat next season, barring injuries.

I am sure OKC will take a look at Spurs player development and minute management and take a page from it. Spurs proved less is more and GDP during first 20 minutes of each game can still match up against most other stars in this league.

Depth is created by playing your supporting cast critical minutes. A night off here and there for Durant/Westbrook, reduced minutes etc etc. OKC does not need home court to beat SA if they can keep their big three healthy and rested. Sam Presti came from SA after all, with SA's title this year he should have enough ammunition to cut through the politics and get a bit better passing, minute management and player development.

With GDP another year older, it is a 40-60 in OKC favor if both teams are at full strength considering Duncan/Ginobili being yet another year older (make no mistake about it, they carried SA in that critical game 6, a game 7, win or lose would have been disastrous for the Spurs).

I'm sure Scott Brooks will look at the WCF and think he just didn't have Ibaka in Games 1 & 2 and will use the injury as an excuse for Ibaka's horrible Game 5. You give that little faggot too much credit tbh.

[Man In Black]

Uninspired coaching? Ball-dominance by two of its players? Over-reliance on key veterans (who are no longer there) instead of developing young talent? Massive logging of minutes on its stars throughout the season? A chintzy ownership that forced their third star to be traded for dimes on the dollar?
Ditto.

[J_Paco]

OKC and Cleveland are the #1 and #2 obstacles to a Spurs repeat next season, barring injuries.

I am sure OKC will take a look at Spurs player development and minute management and take a page from it. Spurs proved less is more and GDP during first 20 minutes of each game can still match up against most other stars in this league.

Depth is created by playing your supporting cast critical minutes. A night off here and there for Durant/Westbrook, reduced minutes etc etc. OKC does not need home court to beat SA if they can keep their big three healthy and rested. Sam Presti came from SA after all, with SA's title this year he should have enough ammunition to cut through the politics and get a bit better passing, minute management and player development.

With GDP another year older, it is a 40-60 in OKC favor if both teams are at full strength considering Duncan/Ginobili being yet another year older (make no mistake about it, they carried SA in that critical game 6, a game 7, win or lose would have been disastrous for the Spurs).

Keep dreaming, brother. Brooks has been there going on his 5th season, I believe, and has done a terrible job bringing along or developing anyone not named Durant, Westbrook, Harden or Ibaka. He's ran Durant into the ground - with no quality backup in the prospect or amongst their veterans - every season he's coached (remember in the '12 WCF when Durant played the ENTIRE game) the guy. His offense revolves around Durant and Westbrook forcing their way into to the paint and either scoring or being fouled ("we're a free-throw team"). He's underdeveloped both Perry Jones and Jeremy Lamb, while Reggie Jackson - who does share some physical characteristics with WB - has been made into a 6th man carbon copy of Westbrook.

Then, there is Serge Ibaka who has all the traits to be an all-star caliber big man but he's been reduced to mop up duty on offense. There is also his insistent need to play too many washed up (Caron Buter, Derek Fisher & Kendrick Perkins) veterans or one dimensional (Thabo Sefolosha and Nick Collison) role players in his rotation. We saw first-hand how flawed and ineffective that strategy can be from 2008-2011 with our very own Spurs. I could go on but if they can't win it all this upcoming season, well then I think Presti will need to bite the bullet and dump Scott Brooks.

[hitmantb]

Pop wasn't pop when he first started. 2003 Spurs played Duncan 42.5 minutes a game in the playoffs. Pop was also very very pro-veteran early on.

Obviously not saying Brooks is anywhere near Pop's level, but he doesn't have to be when he has a much stronger deck. Spoelstra was considered a great coach until games 3, 4, and 5 of the finals. You don't need to be elite if you have elite talents. Brooks just need to pick up a little bit and they can get over the hump.

[exstatic]

OKC and Cleveland are the #1 and #2 obstacles to a Spurs repeat next season, barring injuries.

I am sure OKC will take a look at Spurs player development and minute management and take a page from it. Spurs proved less is more and GDP during first 20 minutes of each game can still match up against most other stars in this league.

Depth is created by playing your supporting cast critical minutes. A night off here and there for Durant/Westbrook, reduced minutes etc etc. OKC does not need home court to beat SA if they can keep their big three healthy and rested. Sam Presti came from SA after all, with SA's title this year he should have enough ammunition to cut through the politics and get a bit better passing, minute management and player development.

With GDP another year older, it is a 40-60 in OKC favor if both teams are at full strength considering Duncan/Ginobili being yet another year older (make no mistake about it, they carried SA in that critical game 6, a game 7, win or lose would have been disastrous for the Spurs).

Yeah, the Spurs have been doing that for a couple of years now, with really good results, and OKC has shown no inclination to follow.

To me, the key to the whole series was game 4. Our bench forced Brooks to play both KD and Westchuck over 40 minutes, because their bench was so pathetic, and let ours almost destroy their huge lead.

[CGD]

OKC would be much more dangerous if ibaka developed a go to post move like a jump hook. Unfortunately I don't think he cares that much on that side of the ball, or he's not smart/disciplined enough to follow rotations/plays.

[exstatic]

OKC would be much more dangerous if ibaka developed a go to post move like a jump hook. Unfortunately I don't think he cares that much on that side of the ball, or he's not smart/disciplined enough to follow rotations/plays.

...or Westchuck won't pass him the ball.

[florige]

This is absurd. The Thunder were the 2nd best team in the NBA this season, and if Durant makes a wide-open 3 in game 6, the Thunder and Spurs play a game 7 that's up for grabs. And there's no doubt in my mind the Thunder would have gone on to beat the Heat in the Finals if they had managed to win a game 7.

The Thunder have a GREAT team. Westbrook and Durant are two of the league's top five players. Ibaka is a top 15 player, and the league's best defender. And the Thunder have great role players. There was and is NOTHING wrong with them. The Spurs were simply the better team, and it's an insult to suggest what the Thunder's problem was. I hate how people do this. Blame the loser instead of giving credit to the winner.




And by the way, Matt Moore is a moron. He hates the Spurs and constantly assigns blames to other team's flaws to justify why his predictions fell apart. He's a hack writer. Check how many misspelled words are in his articles. He's plain-out unprofessional.



The Heat would had beat the Thunder in 5 games. I give OKC maybe one game where WB or Durant goes off for 70 or some absurd number where either one couldn't miss for the night. Other than that Miami handles them easy.

[exstatic]

The Heat would had beat the Thunder in 5 games. I give OKC maybe one game where WB or Durant goes off for 70 or some absurd number where either one couldn't miss for the night. Other than that Miami handles them easy.

Yeah, Miami was a terrible matchup for them.

[Man In Black]

They would have played right into Miami's hands of aggressive defense stealing dumb passes and being able to focus on 2 players instead of a collective unit of 5.

OKC would have lost in 5 probably, maybe 6 if OKC gets a 3rd scorer out of say Ibaka or Jackson. But they would have gotten thumped again.

[TampaDude]

They would have played right into Miami's hands of aggressive defense stealing dumb passes and being able to focus on 2 players instead of a collective unit of 5.

OKC would have lost in 5 probably, maybe 6 if OKC gets a 3rd scorer out of say Ibaka or Jackson. But they would have gotten thumped again.

Yup...OKC would have had no shot at beating Miami this year...none. The Heat would've dropped them quite handily. The LeBron/Wade/Bosh Heat were just an awful matchup for the Thunder.

TBQH, the Spurs were one of the few teams, and possibly the only one, who could've knocked off Miami in the Finals this year.

[Yuixafun]

Far more concise than the article but equally impressive analysis, imo.

concise is the word

just the facts ma'am

[Dingle Barry]

That, and Bonner is a seriously underrated post defender. He's not gonna jump out of his sneakers or swat shots or play help defense like the Ibaka's of the league, but he has deceptively good positioning, knows how to get into his opponents body, and stays straight up when he is defending one on one in the post. For a 4th-5th big, his defense is adequate.

The fact that he looks like a bagger from HEB probably doesn't help from guys trying to go aggressively at him.

The stereotypical HEB employee is a tall ass white dude?

[Dex]

The stereotypical HEB employee is a tall ass white dude?

Gotta be able to get that shit on the top shelf.

[florige]

Yup...OKC would have had no shot at beating Miami this year...none. The Heat would've dropped them quite handily. The LeBron/Wade/Bosh Heat were just an awful matchup for the Thunder.

TBQH, the Spurs were one of the few teams, and possibly the only one, who could've knocked off Miami in the Finals this year.



Spurs were without a doubt the only team mentally and both physically able to beat Miami. No other team would had come close to beating them. Miami would had destroyed OKC.

[jARS mEsH sEt]

No competent offensive sets. That's it and that's all.