Friday Bolts – 2.8.13

Darnell Mayberry with a trade thought: “O’Neal for Maynor works straight up, and the beauty of that swap is that it actually would save the Thunder nearly $1.5 million by shedding Maynor’s $2.33 million from the books. Another idea is for the Thunder to try to get P.J. Tucker in that package as well. Tucker is a bulldog defender, and, if nothing else, he’s another body the Thunder could throw at LeBron James in a potential Finals rematch. And because Tucker is making the league minimum, the Thunder still would be saving about $700,000 even in that two-for-one swap.”

Kevin Pelton of ESPN Insider simulating the West playoff seeding: “With the Los Angeles Clippers slumping, it has become a familiar two-team race for home-court advantage throughout the West playoffs, with San Antonio once again claiming the role of favorite. Oklahoma City actually has the slightly better point differential thus far (plus-8.8 points per game versus plus-8.5), but when we account for schedule, the Spurs move just ahead of the Thunder. Naturally, that means San Antonio has the easier slate the rest of the way. Add in the Spurs’ current 1.5-game lead in the standings and they land the No. 1 seed in 63 percent of simulations.”

Charles Barkley: “To me, the key to that team is going to be (Serge) Ibaka,” Barkley said. “(Russell) Westbrook and Ibaka are the keys. Westbrook has to get better at making people around him better. He has not done that. He’s already an All-Star. Now comes the point where he (needs to be) like, ‘Oh, I’ve got to make the guys around me better.’ “But Ibaka to me is the guy. The only way to beat the Miami Heat is down low. And Ibaka shoots a lot of jumpers. He’s got to post up and punish Chris Bosh down low.”

You heard Russ is coaching in the All-Star celebrity game? Guess who’s playing? USAIN BOLT. Yeah, for real. But then there’s this. Oh.

Justin Kubatko for the New York Times: “Win shares is a statistic that estimates the number of wins contributed by a player to his team due to his offense and defense. Durant currently leads the league with 12.0 win shares, 1.2 more than the runner-up, LeBron James, and just 0.2 off his total from last season. Durant’s rate of .301 win shares per 48 minutes also leads the N.B.A. and puts him on pace to become the fifth player in league history — joining Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain, LeBron James and Michael Jordan — to average at least .300 win shares per 48 minutes in a season. Three consecutive All-N.B.A. first-team selections have cemented Durant’s place as a superstar, but his performance so far this season ranks with the all-time greats. And given that Durant is just 24 years old, the best may be yet to come.”

Mark Jackson defended Russell Westbrook.

Ian Levy for HP on shot selection: “Three of the best teams in the league this season have been the Heat, Thunder and Clippers. From their placements on this graph they would appear to be entirely unremarkable offensively and defensively. However, we know that to be the exact opposite. Each of those teams is so wealthy with individual talent that they can overcome a lack of extreme efficiency in their systems. Degree of difficulty is nothing to Chris Paul, Kevin Durant and LeBron James. On the other end of the spectrum you find the Spurs, Nets, and again, the Rockets; teams with a decided deficit of individual talent as compared to those other teams. They compensate with an enlightened intent and efficient design. Knowledge and scheme, don’t negate athleticism and natural talent, but they can help level the playing field.”