Friday Bolts – 11.5.10

John Hollinger on OKC’s win: “Ibaka would play the rest of the game, barring a couple of last-second situational substitutions, and his low-post defense helped solidify the rest of the Oklahoma City defense and pave the way for their rally. In fact, the question now is how long the Thunder can get away without starting him. While Brooks said before the game he would be very careful to make any lineup changes with his group, the case for Ibaka is becoming overwhelming. He doesn’t space the floor as well as Krstic and fumbles a lot of passes, but his athleticism and defensive energy more than offset those deficits.”

Phil Jackson in his new book: “Oklahoma City has a bright future with its Thunder. They will be heard from in the coming years.”

Ben Golliver of CBSSports: “Durant, meanwhile, was steely-faced before  the game and animated throughout, looking to make up for a 6-24 shooting  night in an ugly blowout loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday.  He did so in a big way Thursday, out-dueling Roy by putting up 28  points, 11 rebounds, two assists and three blocked shots. ‘We need that a  lot, man,’ Durant said. ‘It’s kind of like a monkey off of our backs  once the buzzer ended. It’s a good win for us but we’ve got to move  on.'”

Darnell Mayberry: “What shouldn’t be lost in a hard-fought defensive win, though, is how, for the first time in five games, the Thunder’s offense came alive and provided its defense with some relief. OKC shot 49.4 percent from the field, the first time the team has converted more than 41 percent. Durant and Russell Westbrook shared game-high honors with 28 points apiece and each had 11 rebounds to help the Thunder out-rebound the Blazers 47-38. The Thunder’s perimeter shot (3-for-15 from deep) was still off the mark. But one night after finishing a career-worst 0-for-10 from behind the 3-point line, Durant bounced back by making two of five 3-pointers against the Blazers.”

Kevin Harlan – who is one of my very favorites – made a little mistake at the end of the game:

Hollinger looking at some early trends before the Blazer game: “The absence of Nick Collison (leg) doesn’t help, nor does the departure of assistant coach Ron Adams, who was in charge of the Thunder’s schemes last season and is now with the Bulls. But that isn’t nearly enough to explain such a severe slippage. It’s only four games and maybe they caught the wrong teams on the wrong nights — certainly the 47.2 percent opponent 3-point shooting is unlikely to continue — but we’re officially worried. With a brutal stretch of schedule upcoming (I projected each of their next nine opponents, including Portland and Boston twice, to have winning records this year), the Thunder need to get it figured out soon.”

Chris Silva: “The Thunder forward finished with seven rebounds and two blocks . More importantly, when he checked into the game in the second half with the task of making things difficult for LaMarcus Aldridge in the paint, Ibaka executed the game plan to a T. After Ibaka checked into the game at the 5:52 mark of the third quarter, Aldridge went just 1-for-6 from the field the rest of the game. Credit Ibaka for pushing him off the block and getting physical every time he touched the ball.”

I had some thoughts at CBS Sports as well.

Blazersedge: “That difference is stark and telling. Those free throw numbers get straight to the heart of the issue tonight.  At the sloppy end to a thrilling game, Oklahoma City was the aggressor. An exhausted aggressor, perhaps, but still the aggressor. And that made all the difference.”

Portland Rounball Society: “Brooks’ star player extolled the same values, that the Thunder are a defensive team. The coach and player may, however, differ on one point: Durant said he feels like the Thunder are right where they left off last year. Indeed, after squeaking out a come-from-behind victory against a divisional opponent—in front of their energetic crowd, no less—Durant and co. have reason to feel good.”