Monday Bolts – 2.8.16
Kevin Durant was a photographer last night and wrote about it at The Players Tribune: “And yeah,
before you say it, I can see the irony of ‘Kevin Durant is a member of the media for a day.’ But I had the time of my life taking sideline photos for the night. I’ve got a lot of interests outside of basketball, and one of them is doing things I haven’t done before, like stepping into the shoes of a photographer and learning about what it’s all about. I may be just starting out, but I also like to think that at my height, I might have some different angles than other photographers. After all, you’ve gotta play up your strengths.”
Jonathan Tjarks of Pattern of Basketball: “That was the big take-away from this game for me. If OKC’s going to pull off the upset, they are going to need Kevin Durant to play 40+ minutes a night at the PF position. I’m not wasting any time not playing optimal line-ups against the Warriors and the only reason he’s coming off the floor at all is so that he doesn’t collapse on the court. If it came down to a Game 7 in Oracle, which would be one of the biggest games in the history of the NBA, I’m coming into the game thinking that KD is playing all 48. Russ needs a break because of the way he plays but KD is just so valuable on and off the ball for the Thunder that they can use him even when he’s not dominating the ball and he’s taking a few plays off.”
Tom Ziller of SB Nation: “The Thunder only have one elite positional defender (Ibaka) and a few other plus defenders. The Warriors have two or three elites (Green, Thompson and Iguodala, if it were possible to assign Iguodala a position) and a few more pluses. That’s the difference in this matchup: one team has a lot of places in which to look for stops, the other team mostly has prayer. Still, OKC is in as good of a position as anyone to make the Warriors sweat this spring if they meet. Even the Cavaliers and Spurs folded when down big to Golden State recently. OKC never even flinched. That’s worth some credit even were it all for naught. These Thunder aren’t afraid of the Warriors or anyone, and that’s worth respecting.”
Ethan Strauss of ESPN.com: “It’s difficult to know what to take from this game. Those hopeful for a rebuke to Golden State’s dominance will see positives in what the Oklahoma City comeback accomplished. Those who see inevitability in the Warriors’ reign will question how you beat this team when holding the Splash Brothers to two 3-pointers means losing by eight. In any event, this much appears so. It seems the Warriors don’t know how to stop Durant, and it seems the league doesn’t know how to stop the Warriors. For that and other reasons, their powers combined comprise a vision that chills spines all over the NBA. Ironically, it’s a reality that might relax the congenitally concerned Ron Adams.”
Amin Elhassan for ESPN Insider: “The first is Golden State. The Warriors’ offense is everything the Thunder’s isn’t: fluid, decentralized and with lots of easy shots created. Defensively, they’ve really mastered positionless basketball, with seamless switches at almost every position. As a Warrior, Durant would be able to reap the benefits of an offensive system that will free him, while also adding to an already potent defensive scheme. He would potentially extend Golden State’s window of contention by another five years or more. He could play fewer minutes and manage his eventual physical decline more gradually. The second is Atlanta. Like Golden State, the Hawks would offer the freedom of a fluid offense that creates easy looks for its scorers and an elite defense that exploits the versatility of the players executing it.”
