Thunder take down the LeBron-less Cavs, 103-94

BOX SCORE

The Cavs cut it to four with two minutes left, and things immediately got tense. A 20-point lead cut down to a couple possessions, a valuable win potentially slipping away.

Except the Thunder responded with back-to-back buckets, both from Kevin Durant, one set up by Russell Westbrook and the other a nasty Dirker over Kyrie Irving. Remember how OKC lost all those close games in November without those two guys? Yeah, that’s why.

“That’s why he’s the MVP,” Westbrook said of Durant. “He does that every night. And tonight, you can see he’s getting his rhythm back and he closed the game for us.”

Durant scored the Thunder’s final eight points to secure a fourth straight win, this one coming against the LeBron-less Cavs, 103-94. Sure, you could stick an asterisk on it because of LeBron sitting with a sore knee, but forget statements and all that crap. The Thunder just need wins right now. Save the statement-making for later when they’re back in the postseason picture.

“It’s disappointing probably for the fans, but for us, we like, ‘yesss,'” Kendrick Perkins said with his trademark honesty. “That’s one less headache we have to worry about.”

Without LeBron, and Durant still working back from his injury with a 30-minute restriction and awkward substitution pattern, the best player on the floor, at least tonight, was Westbrook who ravaged the Cavs with his speed, athleticism and non-stop competitive spirit. He’s been back six games. And all six games he’s had at least 20 points, five rebounds and five assists, the longest such streak of his career. Tonight, in total it was 26 points on 12-24 shooting, seven rebounds and eight assists. Durant did the closing; Westbrook did the heavy lifting.

“His greatest character trait is he’s a winner, and winners do whatever it takes to help their team have success,” Brooks said. “He does it night in and night out. When he has a tough game, he owns up to it. When he has a good one, it’s about the team and that’s what Russell is all about.”

Westbrook was asked about how he’d describe his game. And he had a simple answer ready to go.

“Angry,” he said.

Whatever it is that Westbrook has inside of him, it’s something that completely sets him apart. His will is ridiculous and in a matchup against a player that many have tried to say is better than him, you could see the fire burning in Westbrook’s eyes. He wasn’t about to let anyone walk away from this game thinking Kyrie Irving is a better point guard. Westbrook takes every matchup personally, like it’s an insult against his core being that someone dare guard him. But in these kinds of games, he harnesses it even more to really prove a point.

Since Durant has returned, the Thunder have slowly returned to form. The schedule was kind to them early on, with games against bad to very bad teams. But this was a game against one of the elites, a Cavs team riding an eight-game win streak. A chance to say a little something, to remind everyone of the power inside that OKC locker room. Except with LeBron’s absence, all that flew out the window. It was immediately a lose-lose kind of thing. Win and it’s what they were supposed to do. Lose, and it’s real bad.

But for the Thunder, they aren’t concerned with making statements or proving points right now. Being 9-13 doesn’t allow that. They’re in the business of scrapping to wins however they can come across them. And on Thursday, they did it in a fairly classic way against a still pretty good team. Westbrook’s fireworks segueing into Durant’s finishing.

Four straight. Six out of seven. They’re coming.

NOTES:

Odd moment postgame as we all waited outside the Thunder locker room, as LeBron walked up with a bodyguard or something. He wanted into OKC’s locker room to talk to KD. Asked about what the conversation was about, Durant politely declined to answer.

However, the reporter that asked didn’t really go about it the best way. It was the very first question Durant was asked — come on man — and he phrased it, “Can you tell us a little about your meeting after the game with LeBron?” to which he responded simply, “Nah.” You can’t come out with that one first, my man. You’ve got to warm him up a little, ask about the Thunder’s defensive effort in the third and all that crap. Can’t come out guns blazing with a LeBron question when the guy didn’t even play.

Of course everyone’s first thought was about Perk’s response to an invader in his locker room. He took it in stride: “If they like it, I love it. I actually know LeBron, so I’m not going to be the bad guy in no more of those situations.”

I don’t think Durant is getting enough credit for the job he did on LeBron tonight, who was held scoreless.

It was pretty weird how David Blatt announced LeBron was out. He was asked, “Is LeBron a go?” and he responded, “Yes, we’re going to hold LeBron out tonight.” And he mumbled it completely to the point he was asked not once, but twice to clarify if LeBron was or was not playing.

Serge Ibaka caught a case of the Steven Adams tonight, coming up with zero rebounds in 26 minutes before he fouled out.

You can pencil in Kendrick Adams as a top five center at this point. Tonight: 12 points, 17 rebounds and five blocks in 42 minutes.

Adams had eight points, 10 rebounds and two blocks in 22 minutes. Perk had four points, seven rebounds and three blocks in 20 minutes.

I thought Perk was instrumental in changing the tone of the game in the first half. The Thunder were a bit soft defensively, playing without the kind of physicality they prefer. Perk entered, the interior got sealed off and the Thunder started getting a lot more stops.

Someone tweeted me this and it appeared to be awkwardly correct: Adams is the new Perk. Six minutes to start the game, six minutes to start the third, and that’s it. Adams then checked in early in the fourth and played some really good minutes, so maybe not.

The Thunder started the game 1-15 from 3. And then proceeded to hit their next six.

If Steven Adams were Brazilian, he’d look exactly like Anderson Varejao.

LeBron might not have been playing, but the NBA was in luck because the real star wasn’t about to miss — Joey Crawford was officiating.

Best rivalry in the NBA is Joey Crawford against the OKC scorekeepers. They had it out again tonight.

Reggie Jackson with a really solid game off the bench: 13 points on 5 of 11 in 26 minutes.

Jeremy Lamb was just 3 of 9, but I still thought he played a nice game. He didn’t shy away after he missed shots, and kept attacking the basket.

I swear someone is just making up rebounds for Kevin Love. Box score says he had 16 but I feel like I only noticed like six. That dude just inhales them at an incredible rate.

That play late in the third where Durant, who was 2 of 7 for eight points, was in transition and had an opportunity to attack but decided to dish to an open Morrow for 3, shows a lot of KD’s maturation. He wasn’t thinking about his own at all there, and trust me, he knew what he had at the time. He was thinking about the right play, and he made it, and it paid off.

Anthony Morrow: important player.

Adams went with the straight up knee pads tonight, Patrick Ewing style.

Dion Waiters is probably going to get really fat when he retires from basketball.

What’s Shawn Marion’s shot more like: A full body dry heave, or like when you don’t know a step is there when you walk out of a door?

There was some thought Durant might sit back-to-backs, but he’ll be available tomorrow against the Wolves.

Next up: Friday in Minnesota