Monday Bolts – 1.25.16

Anthony Slater on that loss: “The Thunder put together one of its few solid defensive possessions

of the night, double-teaming Brook Lopez to force a pass and missed fadeaway from Thaddeus Young midway through the fourth quarter. For OKC’s sluggish defense, facing the league’s second-worst offense, it nearly qualified as an important and elusive stop. But to complete it, Serge Ibaka needed to secure the rebound. He rose up and had it in his grasp. But instead of corralling it, he accidently tipped it. The ball kissed off the glass and back through his own hoop. Two more points for the Nets. Two of an eventual 116 for a Brooklyn team that entered averaging only 95.1 per game, 29th in the league, ahead of only the Sixers.”

Matt Moore of CBSSports.com buying OKC as a contender: “The Thunder, however, can keep pace. You can’t make a defensive adjustment to “solve” Durant and Westbrook. They’re too good individually and together, and their role players are good enough to make you pay if you recklessly throw help at them. There is no Tony Allen on the Thunder, not even Kyle Singler or Andre Roberson. If they can get the kind of work from Kanter described above, and if they can get the best version of Durant and Westbrook, which we haven’t seen since 2012, OKC can at least push Golden State. Make no mistake, the Warriros are definitively better, and might blow them out because, well, they’re the Warriors. But contrast that with San Antonio, and OKC might want to think about aiming for the Warriors’ side of the bracket, as insane as that sounds.”

Mike Mazzeo of ESPN.com tries to come up with reasons the Nets might be KD contenders: “Well, let’s start here: Durant is represented by Roc Nation Sports and Jay Z. And which team did the hip-hop mogul turned power agent formerly hold a minority ownership stake in? The Nets. Now, let’s add this: The president/chief of branding and strategy of Roc Nation is Michael Yormark. Who is his twin brother? CEO of Brooklyn Sports & Entertainment Brett Yormark. Other potential enticing factors could include: the New York market and a chance to play home games in a topflight $1 billion arena; the potential for a prideful player such as Durant to be the top dog in town; and the opportunity to potentially play with more of a pass-first type of point guard, whom the Nets would have to acquire via free agency or trade.”

The Thunder aren’t rebranding… yet.

But here’s another fan concept. Not as good as the other one, in my opinion.

Billy Donovan explaining Adams’ elbow injury: “I think he kinda went up to dunk the ball, kinda grabbed on the rim and basically around his elbow got stretched or jerked,” Donovan said. “I don’t know if it was as much a hyperextension as much as it was kinda like a strain in his elbow with his ligaments.”

Brian Davis in a Q&A: “I want people who are watching our shows, I want them to turn the TV off a little bit smarter about something, whether it’s Xs and Os or storytelling. I want them to be a little bit smarter than when they turned the TV on because that’s how I like it.”

Durant on last night: “They [Lopez and Young] kicked our ass all night — rebounding the ball, scoring in the paint. They did what they wanted to. And we have to do a better job helping our bigs out down there. They kind of controlled the game, their bigs.”