The more I watch the Oklahoma City Thunder rack up wins and inch closer to the league’s best record, the more I question my preseason predictions. Can the Thunder win the NBA title this season? Back in December I said no, although I did have them facing the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals. After watching the Thunder cruise to a 40-12 overall record thanks to Sunday’s 92-78 thrashing of the Derrick Rose-less Chicago Bulls, and putting the rest of their season
The (mostly) young Oklahoma City Thunder have been the most consistent team in the Western Conference this season. The Lakers — a team full of veterans (with the exception of the one they’ll have a reunion with tonight) — are trying to get back to a level of consistency they once held over the Thunder. In a meeting between two of the top scorers in the league, Kobe Bryant and the L.A. Lakers take on the visiting Kevin Durant and the Western
LeBron James has been the subject of debate for much of the season due to his perceived inability to perform in the clutch, despite having a jaw dropping statistical season for one of the most dominant teams in the league. He has been referred to by many as a choker and a second-tier closer. On Saturday night at home against the Pacers, the opportunity to show late-game execution presented itself again as the world watched to see what James would do in the
As dominant as the Oklahoma City Thunder have been this season, they seem to get the benefit of the doubt when it comes to late controversial calls. The Thunder trailed by a point with 46 seconds remaining Tuesday night when Dallas center Ian Mahinmi appeared to cleanly block Serge Ibaka’s shot, but the whistle was blown for a foul, much to the dismay of Mahinmi and Rick Carlisle. Ibaka made both free throw attempts and the Thunder never looked back as they
Do the Oklahoma City Thunder have a toughness complex? One of the reasons the Thunder have the NBA’s second-best record is because they have three young, explosive players – Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden – who simply cannot be contained off the dribble. When defensive schemes cannot prevent a player from getting to the basket, teams usually resort to rough stuff as discouragement. Michael Jordan went through it. So did Allen Iverson. Tony Parker still gets thrown to the floor
The story of Jeremy Lin has been that of a fairy tale, an unscripted movie, since he took over the reins of the Knicks some three weeks ago. Capturing the hearts of basketball fans around the globe, he answered all questions and exceeded all expectations one big game after another, be it Kobe Bryant or the NBA champs. On Thursday, Lin faced LeBron James and the suffocating defense of the Miami Heat. The best team in the league came prepared to
Derrick Rose scored 23 points in his return as the Bulls handled Atlanta. It was a makeshift lineup for the Hawks, with Marvin Williams (personal) replaced in the starting five by Willie Green. Then Joe Johnson left early with a sore knee, though it doesn’t sound too serious. Neither Jeff Teague nor Kirk Hinrich had a great afternoon; seldom-used Jannero Pargo outplayed them both. After complaining in public about his playing time, Tracy McGrady got almost 22 minutes. Around the League Deron
