Thursday Bolts – 1.22.15
Darnell Mayberry: “A white banner stretched across the railing at the bottom of the 400 level. ‘KD4DC2016,’ it read. The freshman basketball team from his high school alma mater, Montrose Christian, served as the halftime entertainment, playing a free-wheeling yet strategic game of 5-on-5. An in-game weather report on the Jumbotron snuck in a “Come home KD” graphic during an early fourth-quarter timeout. At least one fan arrived wearing a custom-made Wizards jersey with his last name and No. 35 on the back. On a night Washington rolled out the red carpet for Kevin Durant, wooing him with subtle and not-so subtle reminders of where he hails, Russell Westbrook again put on a performance that raised the question that no one in the nation’s capital — or anywhere else outside of Oklahoma — seems willing to ask themselves. Why would Durant ever leave?”
Jorge Castillo of the Washington Post: “Whether he has contemplated a return, the possibility is real. Durant would be, on paper, an ideal fit alongside Wall and Beal, the last piece for a formidable big three. The Wizards, however, aren’t waiting on the Thunder superstar to become legitimate contenders. They’ve resurrected a roster with the flexibility to pursue the superstar and the talent to compete now.”
Zach Lowe of Grantland on the Lopez talk: “Lopez could actually help the Thunder’s spacing in some lineups. Oklahoma City is going to have trouble playing Adams and Andre Roberson, which is a problem, since they’re both starting now. We’ve seen this movie in the playoffs with Perkins and Thabo Sefolosha, only Roberson, a nice kid and tenacious defender, makes Sefolosha look like Kyle Korver. Slide Lopez into some of those minutes, and Roberson is suddenly playable again.”
My postgame story for ESPN.com.
Anthony Slater: “Russell Westbrook provided the game-deciding play and celebration of the year, but his running mate — who was playing in his home town, if you hadn’t heard — was just as vital down the stretch. At halftime, Kevin Durant was struggling. He’d missed his first three 3s on Wednesday and 13 straight dating back to the Orlando game, the longest string of long-range misses he’s had in his career. But you knew that wouldn’t continue. And it didn’t. Durant hit a big one to spark a huge third quarter Thunder run and four total after halftime. And that included a Slim Reaper-esque fadeaway 26-footer with 35 seconds left that lifted the Thunder from down one to up two.”
Kevin Pelton of ESPN Insider has KD in the starting five of the All-Star Game: “Other West frontcourt players have been more valuable, but if you’re building a cohesive lineup, there’s no better option at small forward than Durant. By the end of the season, Durant will surely reclaim his spot as one of the West’s most valuable players. So why deny him a spot because of bad timing with his injury?”
KD says he’s never thought about playing for the Wizards. And from yesterday, all the DC talk is just noise.
Pretty remarkable stat: Westbrook and Durant both scored 30 points in same game for the 31st time last night. Jordan and Pippen were together for 10 seasons and did it only 16 times.
Wizards fans in the arena were pretty subdued last night. Wizards fans on the internet are thirrrrrrsty.
Umair Khan of Bullets Forever: “This one stings, just as it did a few weeks ago in OKC. The fourth quarter offense was borderline dreadful for long stretches, and once again the backcourt failed to make the right decisions when the game tightened up. There isn’t many silver linings to speak of because this game could have been won with the right adjustments.”
Dan Steinberg of the Washington Post on the KD2DC “movement”: “If that’s an overstatement about the city at large, it probably isn’t among diehard Wizards fans. Seifert, whose site debuted its eighth Durant-to-D.C. shirt design Tuesday, said they’ve sold more than a thousand shirts. Another site, ComeHomeKD.com, has sold well over a hundred t-shirts featuring Durant in Wizards colors and the D.C. flag. Yet another site, the #KD2DC Spreadshirt site, will sell you iPhone covers, buttons and hoodies with Durant’s head floating above a Wizards logo. Hyre — who shares a birthday with Durant — gave KD-to-D.C. shirts to three family members for Christmas, and owns two himself.”
Lee Jenkins — who is obviously the best — tweeted this last night: “For OKC, this must be like watching the wife run into her high school boyfriend.” But were they ever dating? I feel it’s more like Durant is the guy that girl in the back of the class has been looking at, but he’s never noticed her.
