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Thursday Bolts – 8.6.15

Thursday Bolts – 8.6.15
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Kelly Dwyer of BDL with the ThunderSonics’ all-time starting five: “Had the team stayed in Seattle, the comparisons between Gary Payton and Russell Westbrook would have already resulted in several Sports Illustrated covers touting the two’s similarities. It may seem like a bit of a jump to place Westbrook on a list that features a roster of players that dates back to 1967, but it’s just impossible to ignore what he’s done so far. On a team with Kevin Durant taking up much of the scoring load, Westbrook has averaged 21.1 points, 7.1 assists and 5.1 rebounds in only 34 minutes a night, including a 28.1-8.6-7.3 turn in a mostly Durant-less 2014-15. Westbrook’s induction into the starting lineup after just seven seasons with the Thunder might surprise a few, but what also might surprise is this: Gary Payton isn’t even the franchise’s all-time steals per game leader.”

Kelly Scaletta of BBall Breakdown on scoring types: “The goal here is a way to distinguish the pairs beyond the numbers, but not just by trusting in the ‘eye test,’ which is prone to both subjectivity (beauty is in the eye of the beholder) and confirmation bias. Now, it’s important to note that these primarily represent points out of set offenses. They don’t include things like transition points or putbacks. But if you want a tool to see who is effective out of set plays, and how they get their points, we’ve got something for you.”

By this defensive measure, Enes Kanter isn’t the worst!

Tom Ziller of SB Nation on arena deals: “Of course, that $100 million would be $100 million of profit the 30 bosses of the NBA would be giving up. Why pay for something when you get it for free? There’s no space for altruism in the corporate space, and the only thing that will end the NBA’s arena scam is a conscience call from the league or a massive public revolt against the practice in all circumstances. That sentiment is certainly brewing, but it’s nowhere near strong enough to stop efforts like the one in Milwaukee. So long as there’s one city willing to pay for an arena to poach a team — so long as there’s one more Oklahoma City sitting out there at the ready — the scheme will continue. (There are at least four such Next OKCs out there: Seattle, Vegas, Kansas City and Louisville.)”

5-on-5 picking top teams, Arash Markazi of ESPN.com: “Teams don’t normally go from the lottery to championship contenders unless they add LeBron in the offseason, but it feels like the Thunder are doing the next best thing in adding Kevin Durant, who missed all but 27 games last season with a fracture in his right foot. Russell Westbrook also missed 15 games with a fracture in his right hand and Serge Ibaka missed 18 games with right knee issues. It was a disastrous season for the Thunder injury-wise and cost Scott Brooks his job. But if Oklahoma City can stay healthy, Billy Donovan’s first season as an NBA coach should be a successful one.”

Love is dead.

Kevin Durant can’t even take a vacation in the offseason without it somehow being tied to possibly being maybe a possible potential signal he’s signing there. It’s dumb.