Thursday Bolts – 1.27.11
The Forbes NBA value list is out and OKC is up a bit from last year, coming it at 18 at $329 million. The Thunder’s up six percent, which is one of the biggest bumps in the league. Piston Powered put all of it together in pretty graph form if you want to see it visually.
Henry Abbott wondered yesterday if KD deserves a vacation: “Let’s say you’re a big Durant fan. Doesn’t some big part of you hope he’ll just skip All-Star Weekend and head off to the Bahamas? Don’t you believe, in your bones, that if he did that, he’d be better for it in the playoffs? It’s hard for me to believe that a week of free time wouldn’t help immensely, however he chose to spend it. I say: Let Durant go to the All-Star break, and then take a week in the Caribbean. And if it has a chance to make him perform better later in the season, it’s worth it. People are tuning in to see the best athletes at their best.” I definitely see Henry’s point, but of course KD went and dropped 47 and 18 the day that went up.
KD, James Harden, Eric Maynor and Daequan Cook were in the studio with some guy named Waka Flocka. The language is bad, so you’ve been warned.
John Hollinger’s All-Star teams: “Picking Kobe as the first wing was easy. Splitting hairs between Manu Ginobili and Durant for the second spot was much more difficult. Durant has a higher efficiency mark and leads the league in scoring, even though his shooting numbers are a bit down from the past two seasons. Ginobili, meanwhile, has been the best player on the league’s best team. Ginobili has been the better defender thus far, but Durant also has a big advantage in minutes, one that I think is relevant in this case since it’s hard to imagine Manu keeping up this output while playing 40 minutes every night. It feels a little odd to leave a 38-7 team with no starters, but denying Durant is equally inexplicable.”
Awards watch from ESPN still has Russ in the running.
KD tweeted last night: “Jimmer Fredette is the best scorer in the world!!” Naturally, this came an hour after Durant dropped 47.
Nick Collison talked to Bill Simmons yesterday on the B.S. Report. Decent stuff.
From Elias: “Kevin Durant exploded for 47 points to go along with his 18 rebounds in the Thunder’s 118-117 overtime win at Minnesota. The only other active player who has ever equaled or exceeded those totals of points and rebounds in an NBA game is Shaquille O’Neal, who did it three times, all in regulation games (for Orlando in 1994 and for the Lakers in 2000 and 2003). The only other player to do so over the last 20 seasons was Sacramento’s Chris Webber (Jan. 5, 2001, in overtime).”
You know, part of me wanted a second overtime so KD could’ve gotten 50 and 20. That would’ve been pretty sweet.
Darnell Mayberry: “Jeff Green deserves a lot of credit for his performance tonight. Michael Beasley and Kevin Love combined for 61 points and 30 rebounds, and Green defended them both, I know. But Green wasn’t the only one on those two tonight. And Green’s offensive contributions were key. His runner over three Wolves defenders with 4.3 seconds left in regulation forced overtime and served as the latest in a string of clutch plays. Green’s eight boards and three assists were big as well.”
Ben Polk of A Wolf Among Wolves: “It’s hard to fault Corey Brewer for Kevin Durant’s utterly gonzo 47-point, 18-rebound spectacularium on Wednesday. Brewer ardently chased Durant all over the floor, worming his way around countless screens, recovering quickly to challenge every last shot. But Durant is a phenomenon. He plays a classic shooter’s game, running the baseline, curling off of screens, dropping subtle jab steps and hesitations, raising the ball above his head and calmly flicking his wrist with such miraculous economy that the movement itself is almost impossible to perceive. This would be an apt description of vintage Rip Hamilton except that Rip Hamilton is not 6’9″ with tentacles for arms (and he never was much of a three-point shooter). Brewer was the Wolves best defensive option against KD, and he never had a chance.”
