Durant gets hurt in DC, but the Thunder roll anyway, 125-101
WASHINGTON D.C. — Well, that didn’t go like it was supposed to.
The good news: The Thunder roasted the Wizards, getting a triple-double from Russell Westbrook (22-11-11) in 28 minutes, 25 points on 7-10 shooting from Dion Waiters and 23 from Serge Ibaka on 9-15 shooting.
The not as good news: Kevin Durant got hurt again. Wait, wait, wait, settle down. It’s just a left hamstring strain and by all appearances, not that serious.
“Little sore, man,” Durant said postgame. “I’ll get it checked on tomorrow and see what it’s looking like after that.”
In the 17 minutes he played, Durant scored 14 points with 10 rebounds and four assists. Of course, this was his only trip to D.C., and despite there being ample buzz about his future and visit, the atmosphere was incredibly tame, with some fans even booing Durant when he touched the ball.
“Nah, I didn’t,” Durant said when asked if he heard the boos. “They were? I don’t care.”
There weren’t many signs, and really the only Durant jerseys I saw were of the Thunder variety. Maybe Durant’s comments simmered everyone down or maybe this is more of a media generated story than we previously thought. Either way, the energy in the Verizon Center was non-existent, except for when Steven Adams missed two free throws in the fourth quarter which got everyone a free Chick-Fil-A sandwich.
So, the takeaway. Would you like my hot take angle? Even without the Wizards having Bradley Beal, the Thunder flexed their improving depth while exposing the Wizards’ lack of it, with Westbrook building a lead and the second unit extending it. Westbrook severely outplayed Wall, and the Wizards’ bench group of Drew Gooden, Garrett Temple, DeJuan Blair, Jared Dudley and Ramon Sessions was laughably bad.
But nevermind that. This isn’t really about that stuff, it’s about the Thunder going to D.C. and beating a solid team, building on the improvements we saw against the Suns on Sunday. The ball movement was once again crisp and solid, the defense was better and although you can’t bank on hitting 15-23 from 3 very often, the offense continues to hum along.
The Thunder have a chance to keep pushing ahead, even if Durant wants to rest, with the hapless 76ers coming to OKC on Friday. And now this game is already behind them.
NOTES:
- Fun fact: Kyle Singler wasn’t supposed to start the second half. Dion Waiters actually was, but Waiters was still in the locker room, so Donovan just threw Singler in. Donovan said Waiters has been dealing with a little stomach issue lately and stayed back in the locker room for a little extra time.
- Donovan on Westbrook: “It’s a great luxury as a coach when you never have to worry about your point guard coming ready to play. I don’t know if people overlook that. He may not always play great, but you never have to worry about his energy, his fire, and his passion. He always comes ready to play.”
- Westbrook on the team responding to not having Durant: “It’s just being professional. It’s what we’re supposed to do. We’re not walking out with a championship. We’re trying to play at a level that is championship basketball level and we took care of business tonight.”
- Enes Kanter was a +21 in 23 minutes. WHAT NOW ANALYTICS.
- Cameron Payne scored his first NBA points.
- Kyle Singler was mildly better tonight. He had eight points on 2-2 shooting (both 3s) and did an acceptable job defensively. Maybe this is a game for him to build on some. The guy isn’t as bad as he’s played lately. He just isn’t.
- Serge Ibaka has quietly been playing really, really well. He had 23 on 9-15 shooting, which included knocking in two corner 3s. It’s funny how he can put up 23 in 30 minutes and it just sort of has become a bit ho-hum.
- Andre Roberson played a little 4 tonight. That was because of the Wizards crazy small lineup and the fact there was no Durant, but it was interesting nonetheless.
- Speaking of Roberson, another decent offensive game from him. He hit a 3, and scored seven points. Gary Neal and the Wizards’ backcourt did little against him, too. He even guarded Wall a number of times and did an excellent job taking away his dribble-drives.
- There’s no other way around it: The Wizards crowd was not good. I was here last year as well and it didn’t get going until late in the fourth when the game got close. It’s a very laid back vibe, with little energy for anything.
- Another game with low turnovers (13). Dare I say it’s been corrected?
- When Dion Waiters is doing things, he’s such a fun guy to watch. His shot selection has improved so greatly in the past month. More 3s, fewer long 2s, more attacks on the paint.
Next up: Home against the 76ers
