Scrimmage 3 Pregame Primer: Thunder (2-0) vs. Blazers (0-2)
Daily Thunder’s game day coverage is sponsored by Anthem Brewing Company
Tip-off:
5pm @ Visa Athletic Center, ? Fox Sports Oklahoma
Projected starting lineups:
| Oklahoma City | Portland |
| PG: Chris Paul | PG: CJ McCollum |
| SG: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander | SG: Gary Trent, Jr. |
| SF: Lu Dort | SF: Carmelo Anthony |
| PF: Danilo Gallinari | PF: Zach Collins |
| C: Steven Adams | C: Jusuf Nurkic |
3 Big Things:
- Comeback kids
- Andre Roberson
- Lillardless
Comeback kids: Last scrimmage saw the Thunder come back from 24 points down against the 76ers to win the game 102-97. While that sentence alone is impressive, it’s how they won this game that was even moreso. The Thunder initially built this comeback late in the third quarter off of two straight clutch three pointers from Darius Bazley, then another one from Dennis Schroeder right after that. But that was just foreshadowing for what was to come. Andre Roberson had two dagger three pointers in the last minute of play to cap off the comeback. This series of events proved the Thunder’s energy and fearlessness during this scrimmage and the team will ride this momentum going into the game versus Portland.
Andre Roberson: Oh yeah, did I mention Andre Roberson? The theme going into this game is confidence–and Roberson has tons of it right now. He’s obviously an elite defender with great length, but he’s also clearly worked on his shot and made it work during the most crucial part of the game vs. Philadelphia. The Thunder were 29 points better than the Sixers with him on the floor. The Roberson hype train is real and its next stop is Portland. Well, Orlando really, but you get the point.
Lillardless: We all remember the infamous “wave” from Damian Lillard? That soul crushing moment singlehandedly ended the Russ era in OKC. But, fortunately for the Thunder, the same man who waved is still listed as questionable for this game. Lillard missed Portland’s last scrimmage against Toronto, but participated in a light, non-contact practice due to an inflamed right foot. While the Trailblazers took 2-of-3 from the Thunder this season, Lillard missing could be a huge key to the Thunder finishing the scrimmage season undefeated.
Follow along on Twitter with Daily Thunder, run by Alex Mcewen during the game.
