Game 2 Pregame Primer: Thunder (1-0) vs. Jazz (1-1)

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Tip-off:

7PM @ Chesapeake Energy Arena, Fox Sports Oklahoma ?

Projected starting lineups:

3 Big Things

• Let Darius Bazley Shine: Bazley had a huge sophomore season debut against Charlotte, putting up 15 points and 10 rebounds. It’s obvious that he put in a lot of work during the short offseason and is picking up right where he left off in the bubble. Bazley should be good for double digits every night as long as he gets the opportunity to shine. He’s still got room to grow on the defensive end, but he’s heading in the right direction.
• Keep Driving Up George Hill’s Stock: After Saturday’s game, George Hill is a walking first-round pick. He finished with 21 points on 8-9 FG and 4-4 from three plus 3 assists and 4 rebounds. It looks like it will be possible for Coach Daigneault to showcase Hill without trading off minutes for the younger players. In fact, having Hill on the court appears to be elevating SGA, Dort, and Bazley. Coach Daigneault should keep letting Hill shine because there will be several playoff contenders interested in the veteran come the trade deadline.
• More Poku (Even Though It Hurts to Watch): Poku only logged 11 minutes in Saturday’s game against Charlotte, but somehow managed to attempt and miss 6 three-pointers. Even though it’s kind of painful to watch him, we need to see more Poku. Without the G-League functioning like normal, baptism-by-fire is the only way that Poku’s shot selection and basketball IQ are going to improve. It wasn’t all bad, though–he did have a block, a steal, and 4 rebounds (so maybe it’s like an Andre Roberson situation).

Live tweeting & commenting:

• Daily Thunder beat writer Brandon Rahbar covers every game live
• Alex Roig is running the Daily Thunder Twitter handle tonight
• The comments section below will be open until the final buzzer