As the Oklahoma City Thunder took to the court for the first time in the 2014-2015 season, there was no Kevin Durant, no Anthony Morrow, no Jeremy Lamb, and no Reggie Jackson for head coach, Scott Brooks, to utilize during the Thunder's 106-89 defeat. Considering the outstanding play of Russell Westbrook, who ended the night with 38 points, it was OKC who led at the end of the first 3 quarter. But a speedster like Westbrook needs his breather too, eventually, and Brooks sat him at the start of the final quarter, and that's when things got hairy for Oklahoma City. The Thunder couldn't hit a basket to save their life, and once Russell was inserted back into the game, the Portland Trailblazers caught fire from behind the 3-point line, and OKC just couldn't catch up. The perimeter shooting for the Thunder had been a concern coming into Wednesday night's game due to the fact that the team shot so poorly during the preseason, and that showed very obviously as they went 2 for 18 The starting lineup, which consisted of Russell, Andre Roberson, Perry Jones, Serge Ibaka, and Steven Adams, started the game very well, and Westbrook was unstoppable throughout most of the evening. OKC got some help though, because the Trailblazers shot very poorly from beyond the arc for most of the evening, and without the barrage of 3-pointers that fell on target in the waning moments of regulation, it was a pretty pedestrian showing for the team that won over 50 games last season. But it was opening night, and there are now 81 games left for OKC and Portland to play, so for Thunder fans already pushing the panic button...just stop it.
Russell Westbrook converses with an official in last night's loss to the Portland Trailblazers. The Thunder guard finished with an astounding 38 points in 44 minutes of play. |
As far as they game on Saturday is concerned, the Thunder are not favored at all, and respectively so. Without another offensive powerhouse next to Westbrook, the next man up to become the second leading scorer for this team is up for grabs. Lance Thomas, a late edition to the team, had a solid night off the bench and scored 14 points, but Serge Ibaka, the projected second leading scorer on the team, only finished with 10 points. Serge did also grab 8 boards and blocked 4 shots, but the final score indicates that those numbers just won't cut it, especially against the Clippers. Los Angeles has a very strong front court that Adams and the Thunder's other center, Kendrick Perkins, will have to deal with, and judging from the 27 points they gave up to Portland center, LaMarcus Aldridge, they will have their hands full. Just something to think about, as the Thunder take the today to travel to the City of Angels and look forward to playing the Clippers at 9:30 CT, on ESPN, tonight.
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