Wednesday Bolts – 4.13.16
Anthony Slater: “On the game’s first possession, Andre Roberson — 4-of-23 on non-corner 3-
pointers this season — swished in a 3-pointer from the right wing. On the Thunder’s next possession, Cameron Payne, getting his first career start, drove at Tony Parker, shook by him with a spin and then finished over LaMarcus Aldridge with contact. Payne finished with a game-high six turnovers. Parker scored 20 points, baiting Payne into some overaggressive fouls. But in all, the rookie held his own, going for 17 points, seven assists and a pair of late lefty scoops that helped keep OKC in it.”
Zach Lowe’s NBA awards: “Kanter might win the damn thing, and I’d have no problem with that. Post-up brutes do better against backups; dump the ball to Kanter against some second-unit sad sack, and he’s eating buckets. Pair him with a drive-and-kick star like Westbrook or Durant, and Kanter morphs into perhaps the league’s pre-eminent scoring mooch — gobbling up drop-off passes and offensive rebounds when his man leaves to help on a Thunder stud. He’s still bad on defense, but not as bad as he once was. Kanter is trying harder this season, and he can usually survive if the other team plays at least one traditional big man. Still: Kanter gives back a lot of points, and the Thunder will have to cut his minutes against elite postseason offenses who target him like chum.”
Kevin Arnovitz of ESPN.com on team hotels: “For the better part of their year, hotels are the primary interior in an NBA life. Players and team personnel spend maybe five hours at arenas, and that’s only on game days. The rest of their time on the road — both waking hours and sleeping ones — is spent in a hotel. It’s not home, but it’s where they take refuge and where their needs are met. It’s a business, but one infused with trust. Trust that a room service meal won’t upset a player’s stomach before tonight’s game, trust that a front-office clerk won’t dish if she overhears an argument or if someone comes in a little tipsy, and trust that if any unforeseen needs surface, the hotel can respond without a hitch. Trust that even if a coach needs an emergency dress shirt in 15 minutes, someone on the hotel staff will literally give an NBA team the shirts off their backs.”
Russ gets his fashion critiqued.
Jenni Carlson on playoff opponents: “There is no doubt the Thunder can beat the Spurs and the Warriors in the playoffs. It’s not probable, but it’s possible. OKC has the talent, the athleticism and the experience of a championship-caliber team. But does it have the habits? Teams like the Warriors and Spurs have developed good habits this season. You don’t win as many games as they’ve won with wild swings and unexpected valleys. They do what they’re supposed to do, and they do it on a consistent basis. The Thunder? Perhaps the most consistent thing about this squad has been its inconsistency. Extremely sharp and unbelievably impressive for stretches, but then in a flash, inexplicably careless and excruciatingly frustrating.”
