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Thunder Notes: Durant, Westbrook, George, Technicals

February 17th, 2018 at 8:20pm CST by Arthur Hill

Kevin Durant is taking the blame for the strained relationship with former teammate Russell Westbrook, according to an article on NBC Sports Bay Area. Since Durant left the Thunder in July of 2016, he and Westbrook have been engaged in a simmering feud, and Durant believes he could have handled the situation better.

“Well I just got outta my own head, got out of my own ways and stopped thinking it was even a thing,” he said when asked about the topic at today’s All-Star Weekend press conference. “… I feel like I made it a thing when it a thing when it shouldn’t have been. It’s cool to kind of get past that and just appreciate these guys for who they are and what they do. And it’s all love at the end of the day.”

Westbrook seemed less open when asked about his feelings toward Durant. “Communicatin’, that’s about it,” he responded. “All the other stuff is kind of irrelevant. Just keeping it cool, talking when we need to and just moving forward.” Durant and Westbrook are All-Star teammates for the second straight year, this time on the squad captained by LeBron James.

There’s more Thunder-related news tonight:

Fans in Los Angeles, hoping to see Paul George sign with the Lakers in free agency this summer, serenaded him during the press conference with chants of “We want Paul,” tweets Fred Katz of The Norman Transcript. Westbrook quickly dismissed that possibility, shouting at the crowd, “Paul ain’t goin’ nowhere! It’s over for that,” relays Tania Ganguli of The Los Angeles Times (via Twitter).
When reporters asked George if he knows what he will do when he becomes a free agent, he responded, “I don’t,” then paused and said, “I know what I feel is best.” (Twitter link)
Thunder players understand better than anyone the on-court tensions that led to today’s meeting between representatives of the players’ and referees’ unions, writes Berry Tramel of The Oklahoman. OKC leads the NBA in technical fouls with 41 in 59 games. Carmelo Anthony and Steven Adams each has seven, with George close behind at six. “The reality is, the officials have a really hard job, and our players have a hard job, and it’s a very, very competitive game,” said coach Billy Donovan, who has seven technicals of his own. “There’s going to be emotions that get in there. The communication part is really important. The officials want that, the players want that. … But the reality is, you have to have a coexisting relationship there. I think it’s important you have to control your emotions and you can deal with them, because again, they do have a hard job.”

Thunder Notes: Roberson, George, Abrines

January 31st, 2018 at 8:55pm CST by clarkcrum

A top-five ranked defense took a major hit Saturday evening when Thunder swingman and 2017 NBA All-Defensive Second Team member Andre Roberson had his season end abruptly after rupturing his left patellar tendon. Erik Horne of The Oklahoman opines that the team has two good options: make a trade, or seek a difference maker on the buyout market later this month.

A trade may be difficult, as the Thunder don’t have a first-round pick to trade until 2024, and not many attractive assets with whom the team would be willing to part. The Thunder do have two trade exceptions acquired in the Paul George trade, but the larger of the two exceptions is only worth $2.5MM – an amount unlikely to fit a salary equal to Roberson’s value.

Should the team test the buyout market, Horne mentions Andrew Bogut as a potential option to maintain the team’s defensive prowess, with more names to materialize after the Feb. 8 trade deadline.

Here’s more on the Thunder:

George initially being omitted as an All-Star ending up working out in the Thunder’s favor, writes Royce Young of ESPN. George, who will make his fifth All-Star Game appearance in his hometown of Los Angeles on Feb. 18, received an outpouring of support from teammate Russell Westbrook after being overlooked for this year’s event, and George clearly noticed. Now, the two L.A. natives will be teammates on Team LeBron, and it stands to reason that the closer the two become, the more likely it is that George will remain in Oklahoma City.
If the Thunder are unable and/or opt not to replace Roberson via trade or free agent acquisition, look for second-year player Alex Abrines to step up his role for the team, reports Brett Dawson of the The Oklahoman. Head coach Billy Donovan stated before yesterday’s game that he “definitely” wants to find more minutes for Abrines, saying of the Spaniard, “I’ve got to find ways to get him on the floor and help him because I think he can help our team.”
In his latest piece for Bleacher Report, NBA Capologist Eric Pincus analyzes whether the Thunder will dole out the cash necessary to keep George in Oklahoma City should he wish to stay. Facing the repeater tax and Carmelo Anthony‘s all-but-assured decision to opt in next season, the Thunder could be faced with a roster costing somewhere between $250MM and $300MM.

George: Westbrook Making Free Agency Decision Easier

January 25th, 2018 at 8:55am CST by Luke Adams

While the Lakers are still expected to be a strong contender for Paul George in free agency this summer, the forward’s latest public comments suggest he might be leaning toward remaining in Oklahoma City. As ESPN’s Royce Young writes, Russell Westbrook, who told reporters in strong terms on Wednesday that George should have been an All-Star, is a key reason why George will seriously consider re-signing with the Thunder.

“Russ is the reason why this decision is becoming even more easier to make… the character Russ [has],” George told ESPN’s Rachel Nichols. “A stand-up guy, and he has his teammate’s back.

“It was awesome for a teammate to have your back and to stand up,” George continued. “And to be honest, he should be a starter. He’s been the MVP, been the best player at his position. He should’ve been a starter, but that’s another story. But the fact Russ had my back, that’s my guy forever, and it’s more apparent what this decision needs to be made when it comes down to it.”

Although George sounds today like a man ready to stick with the Thunder when his current contract expires, plenty could change in the next five months — an early playoff exit, for instance, could hurt the team’s offseason recruiting pitch. Still, Oklahoma City will have George’s Bird rights, giving the team the ability to offer more years and more money than rival suitors, and the front office has to be encouraged by the relationship between its star forward and star point guard.

Westbrook is under contract with the Thunder through at least 2022, so if George wants to continue playing with the reigning MVP, re-upping in OKC on a long-term deal this summer would be the logical move.

NBA Competition Committee To Review Out-Of-Bounds Replays

December 31st, 2017 at 7:15pm CST by clarkcrum

Just last week we highlighted how the growing tension between NBA players and officials had gotten to a point where leaders of their respective unions felt compelled to meet. Then, in response to an NBA Officiating Last Two Minute Report, LeBron James came out and stated that the issue irking him most about the officiating is when an official refuses to acknowledge that an infraction occurred (per Dave McMenamin of ESPN).

Now, based at least in large part on a call missed by the officials during the Bucks win over the Thunder on Friday night, the NBA’s competition committee will look into making missed out-of-bounds calls replayable, according to Royce Young of ESPN.

The controversial non-call occurred with less than 5.0 seconds remaining in the game. The Bucks called timeout and set up a play for Giannis Antetokounmpo, who spun around Josh Huestis and finished with a dunk over Russell Westbrook. However, replays visible in the arena clearly showed that Antetokounmpo stepped out of bounds on his way to the hoop.

Unfortunately for the Thunder, the officials were not permitted to review the play because it did not meet the criteria to trigger a review. In order for a review to be triggered under the current replay system, the officials would have needed to make a call on the floor signaling that Antetokounmpo was out of bounds.

As succinctly explained by head official Derrick Stafford after Friday’s game, “In any reviewable matter, there has to be a whistle called on the floor. There was no whistle blown for the play, so we couldn’t review it.”

The NBA’s competition committee will meet in March to discuss this and other issues, but a change, if any, would not be implemented until the 2018-19 season.

Northwest Notes: Westbrook, Huestis, Abrines, Jones, Jazz

December 30th, 2017 at 10:27am CST by marksuleymanov

In the middle of the Thunder’s resurgence and winning streak has been reigning NBA Most Valuable Player, Russell Westbrook. As Oklahoma City has tried to create a balance for Westbrook and two other All-Stars, Carmelo Anthony and Paul George, the team has struggled to find consistency. Playing behind Westbrook’s lead and not with him trying to lead is how the Thunder will find success, ESPN’s Royce Young writes.

After a slow start, OKC is in fifth place in the Western Conference with a 20-16 record. Anthony believes that Westbrook’s hot streak and the team’s improved play are no coincidence.

“I think the fact that Russ is just playing — not trying to defer to anybody, to any one of us — just playing his game and letting us play off him … I think he’s much more effective by doing that rather than deferring to myself or Paul,” Anthony said. “We know what we bring to the game. We understand it. We accept it. And by that, he’s able to just play his game, relax and do what he does best. We need that. We need that Russ out there. Not the one who defers to us. Let us figure it out.”

Check out other Northwest Division news below:

After the Thunder lost to the Bucks on Friday, head coach Billy Donovan said the team needs Alex Abrines to play better, Brett Dawson of The Oklahoman writes. Abrines, 24, got the start on Friday but OKC was down 24 points after one quarter and he never returned. “My feeling is that Alex needs to help our team, and trying to find ways to get him going would be positive for our team,” Donovan said. “That’s why I kind of started him.”
Following Abrines’ removal, Josh Huestis got the chance to play the rest of the game and showed some defensive promise against the Bucks, Dawson writes in a separate story.
With Jeff Teague sidelined 2 to 4 weeks with a left knee sprain, Tyus Jones will take over the Wolves‘ starting point guard role for the second time this season and he feels prepared, Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune writes. “Just because it’s not the first time now,” Jones said. “It’s something I’ve done, something we’ve gone through as a team. I’m just ready to go. My first-time experience, I learned it was still just basketball. You’re in the game to start rather than coming in a few minutes into the game, but it’s just basketball at the end of the day.”
The month of December has not been kind to the Jazz as the team searches for an identity, Eric Woodyard of the Deseret News writes.

Central Notes: LeBron, Oladipo, Osman

December 17th, 2017 at 4:35pm CST by clarkcrum

LeBron James is well on his way to another First Team All-NBA selection and perhaps a fifth MVP Award. And while the Cavaliers star will be the first to tell you that that he plays for team accomplishments, even he was able to admit how sweet it would be to add more personal hardware to his trophy case, reports Nick Friedell of ESPN. James also elaborated on what his continued excellence over time could mean for future NBA generations.

“Team success is always the No. 1, but along the way if you’re able accomplish some individual awards, individual achievements, it would mean a lot,” James said. “I feel good. This is my 15th year, but this is one of the best years I’ve had as far as how I feel, and I want to continue that. I want to kind of try to break the mold for the next generation.”

“Hopefully I can break the mold, so when the next guy comes, he can still get $200 or $300 million and be 33 years old. I’m serious. You guys are laughing, I’m serious. This is the mold I’m trying to break. It’s not just about me, it’s for the next crew, as well … I’ll be 33 in 15 days. This is my 15th season, and this is the best I’ve felt in my career.”

There’s more from the Central Division:

Despite the recent narrative that being traded to Indiana from Oklahoma City (and particularly away from Russell Westbrook) has generated a career season for Pacers guard Victor Oladipo, the opposite is actually true, reports Brett Dawson of The Oklahoman. Oladipo himself specifically references how Westbrook’s level of play made him realize how much work it takes to become a star. “Going there and seeing (Westbrook) do that, just seeing his year overall last year definitely helped me realize that I gotta put in a lot of work to get on that level,” Oladipo said. “So, he definitely helped influence my growth both on and off the court. He was an amazing resource, especially last year, to learn from him. And I apply it to everyday life today.”
In a piece for the The Plain Dealer, Terry Pluto opines that this season’s Cavaliers team has so far had a much more encouraging regular season than last year’s team. Among other topics, Pluto analyzes the surprising fit of Jose Calderon and general manager Koby Altman’s decision to give him a fully-guaranteed contract, head coach Tyronn Lue’s relationship with newcomer Jeff Green, and how potential All-Star Kevin Love seems to be thriving in an environment without Kyrie Irving.
After being traded to Cleveland from Minnesota on draft night in 2015, Cavaliers swingman Cedi Osman had spent the last two seasons playing overseas in Turkey, waiting for his NBA break to come. And now that he’s in the NBA, Osman is looking to make the most of his opportunity, writes Chris Fedor of cleveland.com. In last night’s win against Utah, Osman scored a career high 10 points in 23 minutes (also a career high), with Lue opting to keep Osman in during crunch time in the fourth quarter.

Thunder Notes: Donovan, Westbrook, Roberson, George

December 2nd, 2017 at 9:48pm CST by Arthur Hill

The bumpy start continues in Oklahoma City as coach Billy Donovan tries to mesh Paul George and Carmelo Anthony into a cohesive unit with Russell Westbrook, writes Erik Horne of The Oklahoman. Although they are all exceptional scorers, there are concerns that they don’t fit well together, and so far Westbrook [.400] and Anthony [.422] are posting their worst field goal percentages since they were rookies. Donovan continues to experiment with different combinations off the bench as the Thunder have stumbled to a 9-12 start.

“He has a style that he knows works, and we’re all in with Billy on it,” George said. “But again, he’s good with wanting what’s best for us and wanting what’s gonna make us comfortable out there.”

There’s more out of Oklahoma City:

Horne offers grades for all the Thunder players through the first quarter of the season in a separate story, and the reigning MVP only gets a B-minus. Westbrook has adjusted his game to accommodate George and Anthony and is still searching for the right balance between taking over games and setting up his teammates, Horne says. Anthony also gets a B-minus, while George receives an A.
A change in the starting lineup might be the answer to OKC’s early-season slump, suggests Brett Dawson of The Oklahoman. He proposes replacing defensive specialist Andre Roberson with a better shooter such as Alex Abrines or Terrance Ferguson to create more spacing for the first unit. Donovan increased Ferguson’s minutes this week and gave Dakari Johnson a shot in Wednesday’s loss to Orlando, but he doesn’t seem ready to change the pairing of Westbrook, George, Anthony, Roberson and Steven Adams that has started every game this season. “I think that what happens in these situations is sometimes people look for the change for the sake of change because it looks like you’re doing something,” Donovan said. “I’ve always been a big believer of pinpointing what the issues and the challenges are that we’ve got to overcome.”
Magic coach Frank Vogel, who coached George in Indiana, described his former star as “selfless” in trying to make the union with Westbrook and Anthony successful, relays John Denton of NBA.com. He said the Thunder will benefit from George’s defensive abilities, which he described as “Allen Iverson’s instincts in Scottie Pippen’s body.’’

Northwest Notes: Thunder, Barton, Jazz

November 10th, 2017 at 8:55am CST by Luke Adams

The new-look Thunder were expected to be one of this season’s prime challengers to the Warriors’ crown, but things aren’t off to a great start in Oklahoma City. The Thunder dropped their fourth straight game on Thursday night in Denver, and are now 4-7 on the season, including 0-6 against Western Conference teams. The latest loss prompted a closed-door meeting for the club, as Brett Dawson of The Oklahoman writes.

“It was just good to get everything out on the table,” Paul George said. “Especially where we’re at right now, it’s no good if we’re bottling it up, because then we could carry it over to the next game and the next game. Just leave everything out in the open.”

As Oklahoma City looks to turn things around after the team’s slow start, let’s round up a few more items from out of the Northwest…

George, Russell Westbrook, and Thunder head coach Billy Donovan were fined $15K apiece earlier this week for critical comments aimed at referees, notes Royce Young of ESPN.com. The trio took exception with a flagrant foul call against Carmelo Anthony in Sunday’s game against Portland.
Will Barton has been taking on some point guard duties for the Nuggets this season in the wake of Jameer Nelson‘s release, per Christopher Dempsey of Nuggets.com. The timing is right for Barton to take on more responsibilities and a larger role, since he’s in a contract year — showing off an expanded skill-set should only increase his value on the open market next July.
New Jazz point guard Ricky Rubio is still working to develop chemistry with incumbent star Rudy Gobert, as Eric Woodyard of The Deseret News details. “I’ve got to learn his game, he’s got to learn mine,” Rubio said. “It’s just a process. We’re trying but we don’t want to overdo it. It’s going to come with time.” Added Gobert: “I think it might be overthinking. We’ve just got to play basketball.”

Northwest Notes: Blazers, Westbrook, Hood, Nelson

October 22nd, 2017 at 6:59pm CST by clarkcrum

In a conversation with The New York Times’ Marc Stein, Carmelo Anthony explained that his decision not to waive his no-trade clause for the Trail Blazers was rooted in logistics, not basketball, reports John Canzano of The The Oregonian/OregonLive.

“We had a fair bit of discussion about Portland…,” Stein said of his talk with Anthony. “… He did say that it meant a lot to him how badly those guys wanted him. I think it really was the distance (that caused him to not be interested). I don’t think it was about Portland, the place… I don’t think it was about Portland, I think it was about family… presumably his wife and son are going to stay in New York for the bulk of the year. He was in constant contact with (Damian) Lillard and (C.J.) McCollum.”

Here’s more news from the Northwest:

The Thunder’s Russell Westbrook scored only six points on 2-of-11 shooting to go along with seven turnovers in Saturday night’s 96-87 loss to the Utah Jazz. As reported by ESPN’s Royce Young, Westbrook appears to still be adjusting and adapting to the acquisitions of Paul George and Carmelo Anthony; however, Westbrook insists that this season is no different than any other. “It’s the same thing [as last season],” Westbrook said. “Basketball’s been the same for years. It’s still the same game. Obviously different players, but the game still tells you what to do. If you need to score, you score, if not, you don’t. It’s very simple.”
Despite not playing Saturday night against Oklahoma City as the result of a calf injury, Rodney Hood of the Jazz is primed to make his return to the court sooner than originally feared, as reported by Jody Genessy of The Deseret News. Despite the initial concern after Hood had to be helped off the court by teammates, Jazz coach Quin Snyder was apparently never too worried. “I’ve kind of conditioned myself to not jump to conclusions about those things one way or the other,” Snyder said when asked about being relieved the injury wasn’t worse. “Sometimes when they don’t look as bad, you kind of feel like, ‘Oh, it’s not that bad,’ and then it ends up to be worse.”
Jameer Nelson tweeted out a thank you to the City of Denver and the Nuggets early Friday morning after being released by the team on Wednesday. The Nuggets would have been on the hook for the entirety of Nelson’s $4.74MM salary if he had remained on the free agent market. However, as noted by Bobby Marks of ESPN, Denver will have the right to set-off approximately $470K at season’s end as a result of Nelson signing a pro-rated minimum salary contract with the Pelicans on Saturday.

Northwest Notes: Thunder, Harris, Dudley

October 13th, 2017 at 6:59pm CST by Austin Kent

The Thunder have three players who’ve grown used to getting the final shot over the course of long, impressive careers. Now, Royce Young of ESPN writes, they’ll have to figure out who gets the ball when the game is on the line.

While Russell Westbrook was the painfully obvious choice last season, he’s joined on the Thunder by Carmelo Anthony and Paul George. Both Anthony and George have traditionally been the focal point of their teams’ offenses and were often the go-to options down the stretch, the latter even going so far as to lambaste former teammate C.J. Miles for taking a last-second shot in the playoffs last spring.

“Carmelo’s been a closeout guy the places he’s been, the same thing with Paul. But any time you have a team you have to do it by finding the open man,” Thunder head coach Billy Donovan said. “Clearly for us last year, somebody creating and generating a shot for himself or someone else, it was Russell. But obviously now with Carmelo and Paul being here, I think it’s about making the right play and right decision.”

One knock on the Thunder in the past has been their reliance on isolation basketball when the game is on the long. Considering the roster balance last season, that style of play was more or less expected. With a number of legitimate offensive threats in 2017/18, however, the expectations for ball movement – and making sound decisions – should rise.

There’s more from the Northwest Division:

Details on Gary Harris‘ contract have emerged, Bobby Marks of ESPN writes. The cap hit for the Nuggets guard in 2018/19 will be $16.5MM and that mark will rise annually until the deal terminates at $20.5MM in 2021/22. There are also $2.5MM of additional, unlikely, bonuses each year.
There’s no clear frontrunner to fill the primary backup power forward role for the Nuggets this offseason. Chris Dempsey of Altitude Sports writes about how the changing NBA could impact Denver’s frontcourt depth chart in 2017/18.
A prediction that the Timberwolves could send Cole Aldrich and a second-round pick to the Suns for Jared Dudley has legs, Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News tweets. Minnesota has been particularly interested in Dudley’s recovery from offseason toe surgery.