vs. 
Denver Nuggets (0-1, 0-1 road) vs. OKC Thunder (1-0, 1-0 home)
TV: TNT (Cox 31, HD 730); FSOK (Cox 37, HD 722, Tulsa Cox 27, DirectTV 679, UVerse 754)
Stream: Click here
Radio: WWLS The Sports Animal (98.1 FM, 640 AM, 97.1 FM Tulsa)
Time: 7:00 CT
Series: OKC leads 1-0
View from the enemy: Roundball Mining Company
Getting that first game out of the way was big. Having a 1-0 cushion and a little pressure off I think will help the Thunder more than you think. But here’s the thing: Denver only came to OKC really looking for a split. And that’s still very much on the table.
Taking a 2-0 lead to Denver is big for a lot of reasons (the biggest that you’re up 2-0…) but not giving the Nuggets any added confidence is very large. Taking control of a series like this entirely is what OKC needs to do and the opportunity is there tonight.
Obviously the Nuggets main focus will be to tone down Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook a bit. And I agree with George Karl. Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook aren’t going to average 70 points a game together for this series. They’re really good, but not that good.
But here’s news to Karl: James Harden isn’t going to average just five a game either.
That was the Thunder sixth man’s output from Game 1 where he went 0-4 from 3 and 1-5 from the field. Since the trade that sent Jeff Green to Boston, Harden averaged more than 16 points per game and almost 20 the last couple weeks of the season. He’s a legit third scorer for the Thunder and a player Scott Brooks can turn to when in need of extra offense. Shutting down Durant is priority one for Denver, then Westbrook. The Nuggets caught a break with Harden being off in Game 1. Don’t count on that happening again.
Both teams shot the ball extremely well in Game 1. Durant and Westbrook combined to go 18-25 on jumpshots. Can these teams keep it up? Both teams are gifted offensively and have scorers all over the floor, but maintaining a 50 percent clip in the playoffs no less is difficult. Will it continue? I say no, which means this game will likely be more about defense and rebounding. Who has the edge there? Probably the Thunder.
I know that I’m not nearly as anxious or terrified heading to the arena tonight. That doesn’t mean anything of course but I feel like the team will be a bit more relaxed as well. The Thunder won Sunday despite playing a good amount of poor basketball. OKC is better than Denver. It’s hard to argue with 3-0. But if the Thunder slacks in any way, the Nuggets will beat them. I have a good feeling though. Which is what is starting to scare me most.
Happy Holidays :)
This thread needs 2 more comments
@Dr. Rumble
I was sitting behind the Denver bench and at one point JR SMITH came out with a taped and ice-packed shoulder. When I looked again, the ice pack was gone and he was in his grey sweats.
Afflalo has actually done a good job on KD in prior meetings. I dont think he is that much of a difference maker for them though. Yeah I dont see Denver beating us. They seem beat down and in turmoil
Scott VanPelt just refered to the "Nuggets-Jazz" game during the top 10. Of course it was a Nene dunk he was referring to. I've been flipping between ESPN and NBA channel since getting home from the game and nary a comment-- except the inadvertent dis by SVP. Why no love for the Thunder. Its almost like if they don't have anything bad to say, they don't say anything at all
@DJ 7
Why are you spending any time on the ESPN boards at all? It's full of the dregs of every team's fanbase.
Daniel :
Dr. Rumble :
Wasn’t Birdman supposed to be the difference maker in the series compared to the final two games of the regular season??
Haha, try telling Denver fans that. I can’t wait until Afflalo comes back so all their excuses will be used up…(though I’m fully expecting them to come up with new ones)
lol, now instead of excuses over on the ESPN Boards, they're not even responding. They no showed after all the trash talk, the best they came up with was "Okay Redneck Hick go milk a cow or whatever you guys do down there."
My response "You do know Colorado beats Oklahoma in Dairy Production,"
on another thread with the same response i just put the guy in his place and mentioned im Latino.
@justin
I was wary of RW gaining more confidence in his 3Per, but if all his 18-22 footers turn into 3PAs, I guess that's not such a bad thing.
@justin
Its mind blowing
CP3 is ridiculous.
Westbrook 6-10 from 3pt range first two games.
@shiki
And leading at half. Kobe doin' invisible work!
Kobe only shots 3 and gets 3 pts now
@Keith
@okc baby
Russ existence = Out of control Russ. But I guess we'll see. I doubt Denver comes back from 2-0. But we definitely need one in Denver for me to not backtrack and pretend I never said that.
@okc baby
See, I think it just wouldn't make much sense. Afflalo doesn't have big hops like Harden, and isn't super long like Thabo. KD would be able to shoot right over him.
@James Church
Shit rolls down fast with him and in flurries. He needs to control himself
@James Church
True. Russ is his own worst enemy sometimes. But I don't think it's fair to take away from strong defense either. Felton simply isn't quick enough to guard Russ while Lawson doesn't have the size/strength. Afflalo would do a better job than either of those guys. I'm not saying he'll shut Russ down or anything, just that he could make it a lot harder - possibly leading to a frustrated (read: out of control) Russ.
Like I said, Afflalo wouldn't have won tonight's game for them at all. But it's still a long series, and if future games end up more like game 1 than game 2, Afflalo could legitimately be the difference in a game.
@Keith
He ll be on KD. He holds KD to 23 pts when in the game. But I dont know if that will hold true now. KD is on a mission right now.
@Keith
Eh... Russ was 7-18, no one really slows him down because he does it first. And if he isn't doing that he's unstoppable because he'll either blow by or hit the pull up. Sort of is he's on he's on, if he's off we're screaming at him.
@okc baby
He'll make a difference, but not a 10+ point swing like they needed tonight. He is a deadly shooter if open, and is probably the best defender they have. He doesn't have the size to guard KD, but it would help if he could slow Russ a little.
@Sammy
My new avatar haha
I dont think alfalo will make much of a difference. maybe some but he will be rusty
Dr. Rumble :
Wasn’t Birdman supposed to be the difference maker in the series compared to the final two games of the regular season??
Haha, try telling Denver fans that. I can't wait until Afflalo comes back so all their excuses will be used up...(though I'm fully expecting them to come up with new ones)
JR may have suffered an injury. He went to the locker room when he went out
From DDL: http://cdnmo.coveritlive.com/media/image/201104/phpuBCeTrBeardOnFire.jpg
Daniel :@Dr
. Rumble
JR and Birdman were pretty bad in the time they did play tonight.
JR Smith: -17 in just 7 minutes
Birdman: -14 in just 6 minutes
I understand they played pretty bad, but not playing them one second in the 2nd half? That was a bit extreme, in my opinion. Wasn't Birdman supposed to be the difference maker in the series compared to the final two games of the regular season?? ;)
Teams down 0-2 in a 7 game series win only 5% of the time.
Spurs and memphis i hope pay 7 arduous games
Man, the crowd was great again tonight. You could tell there was a real desire to beat the crap out of them after the last few days of all this complaining about one call. Even when Denver made a late run and got to w/in about 10 peopl started cheering like it was a 1 point game. Not nervous cheering, more like demaning cheering. Then when we were walking out people could be overhead saying, "maybe that will shut them up!"
I think more needs to be said about Harden's play tonight. This was probably the best, or maybe 2nd best, playoff game he's ever had. 5-9 for 18 points with generally mistake-free play and good defense? I'll take it!
@Dr. Rumble
JR and Birdman were pretty bad in the time they did play tonight.
JR Smith: -17 in just 7 minutes
Birdman: -14 in just 6 minutes
Afflalo has a great motor and will help them out with energy at home. I still think he's limited offensively - he can shoot but cant really create his own shot. hopefully we slow the pace at their place.
@Dr. Rumble
Did you not see J.R destroy their team in the first quarter?
Just got back form the game. Great win and great atmosphere!!! I had a question which may have been answered earlier, I just dont want to go back and look. Why did Birdman and JR not play in the second half? It looked like something was said during halftime, bc they looked completely disinterested the whole half. Jr had his shoes untied the whole time! This game has to send shockwaves through the NBA. Last game everyone said we were a two man team, and others had to step up to go deep. Well guess what, we just showed the world what kind of team we can be!!! I loved this game, perfect follow up to Game 1, and exactly what I was expecting!
Great game overall. Defense wins championships, and the Thunder showed their toughness on that side of the ball tonight. It was also awesome to see such balanced scoring after the bench got a little bit of flak for not scoring enough last game.
I think in the future, though, they need to be more creative in delivering the ball to Durant. Too many isolation post ups that result in KD getting the ball close to the top of the three point line. Let's see him receiving the ball cutting through the middle or curling around screens to receive the ball 15 ft. from the basket.
Also, I saw several times when he would set a pick for Westbrook and roll towards the basket, be open, but not get the ball.
We still won the games we played garbage in. And the game we played somewhat better we destroyed Denver. If Iam a Nugget fan Iam scared right now.
It's like we scared Denver into timid shooters. Every time they took a shot, even easy bunnies, they would miss them. We were physical. They were not, and they started folding under the pressure
2 pt game w 14 sec for Spurs
@Skeletor
I hope they play 7 games with several OTs
I only got to watch the 4th quarter. But looking at the box score (and reading some of your comments about the shooting and the turnovers), I think it's incredible that we played a good bit below perfect and still destroyed them. Denver's in trouble.
I think Cheryl Miller (Moment) might be celebrating 4:20 day a bit too hard for being a "professional" sideline reporter on this LA/MO game.
Memphis losing. Suck. I really want to play them next round so we get home court advantage
54 rebounds? wtf. I love that. My only complaint is that Nazr didnt have a triple double
Also, loved Brooks experimenting with the small ball lineup with RW/Cook/Harden/KD/Perk. If we go small, that seems like the most promising lineup. Any small lineup with Thabo is pointless.
Smokey :
Is this Heaven?
ha, against teh Heat, perhaps
7 assists seems low for RW on the game. Thought he played great for the most part.
@555
Perkins stole an almost guaranteed assist from KD when he missed that wide open bunny. He was so mad at himself!
We always did great in limiting Wilson Chandler and JR in these four games.Chandler missed all shots and JR only made 1.
Daniel :@Daniel PlainviewHe played pretty good defense on Gallinari and Chandler.
Better yet, he also passed the balls great tonight and only one turnover... Beside he settle to much on jump shots he played a great game imo...
Great win, and the others chipped in nicely tonight too... :)
@Daniel
Thats beautiful. So happy harden and everyone else did great. That was a great team effort.