Monday Bolts – 3.14.11
Yet another team hoping to copy the Thunder model:”In Oklahoma City, the Washington Wizards see a team they would like to be; one that recognized the need to start over from scratch and reached relevance after an initially gruesome beginning. The Thunder (42-23) has yet to win a championship or a playoff series for that matter, but it already has created a team-building strategy that is referred to around the league as “the Oklahoma City model.”
From Elias: “Russell Westbrook scored 20 points in 24 minutes and watched the entire fourth quarter from the bench with Kevin Durant as the Thunder cruised to a 95-75 victory at Cleveland. Westbrook shot 10-for-16 from the field, but it was the first game this season in which he didn’t score from the foul line, snapping his streak of 67 games with at least one free throw made dating back to last April. Not to worry, Thunder fans, Kevin Durant made all six of his foul shots, extending his streak to 117 games with at least one point from the line.”
Russell Westbrook’s surprise dunk versus the Cavs.
Darnell Mayberry:” It’s starting to feel a little weird seeing the Thunder not just take care of the teams they’re supposed to take care of, but also destroy them. Of the last five teams OKC has played that fall in that category — Cleveland, Detroit, Indiana, the L.A. Clippers and Sacramento — the Thunder has won by an average margin of 21.4 points. There’s your latest sign of the strength of this team. Makes you wonder what’s in store Monday night at Washington.”
Also, Mayberry has an idea for Westbrook’s next evolution: “Here’s an idea for Russell Westbrook. Develop a floater. Most of the NBA’s best point guards have that shot in their arsenal. Steve Nash. Rajon Rondo. Chris Paul. Tony Parker. Westbrook should be next. “Have you seen his floater?” Thunder coach Scott Brooks exclaimed, almost appalled at the thought. “I’ve seen it three times. It’s not pretty.” In time, though, that added dimension could make one of the game’s most explosive point guards even more effective. Westbrook, however, has yet to buy into that belief. “That’s not my focus,” said Westbrook, reasoning that he gets his shot off just fine without owning a floater. “Why would I shoot a floater when I can dunk on you?” No holes in that theory.”
Perspective on Russell Westbrook joining an elite club. Could he be on a Hall of Fame path?
Marc Stein’s power rankings: “It’s too late for a real Sixth Man Award push but a welcome development in OKC given that Perkins hasn’t logged a minute yet: Harden is averaging 17.6 ppg off the bench since Jeff Green was dealt to Boston.”
NBA.com’s rankings: “After losing their final three games of February, the Thunder are 6-1 (best in the West) in March. With Jeff Green gone, James Harden has stepped up, averaging 18.3 points on 51 percent shooting off the bench, while registering a team-high plus-73 in the seven games.”
John Krolik of Cavs: The Blog: “One question to think about. Harden has finally started to come into his own for the Thunder — in a bizarro world where Varejao had been healthy at the deadline and the Thunder had been willing to trade Harden for him (they wouldn’t have been, and given that they got Perkins, that was probably the correct course of action), how happy would you have been with Harden instead of Varejao?”
Berry Tramel writing again on the Thunder’s shared history with the Sonics: “Give Kendrick Perkins No. 43, and someone could use it as means to reopen the court case. Claim that the Thunder has broken the agreement, even though most Sonic fans would prefer the revered numbers be used in Oklahoma City. Most Sonic fans consider it an abomination that the Thunder would try to hold onto any Seattle ties, particularly when it comes to honoring their heroes.”