Thursday Bolts – 1.7.16
Anthony Slater: “Russell Westbrook carved through a softer-than-usual Memphis interior, knifing
to the rim with a hard plant left and a quick slide right, leaving him uncontested for a left-handed finish. The move is referred to as a Euro step. In recent years, Westbrook has added it to his deadly offensive arsenal. This particular one, done in the second quarter of the Thunder’s 112-94 Wednesday night blowout of the Grizzlies, was executed so well that Westbrook felt the need to manually replay it for himself. A Memphis timeout gave him that chance. So right after the whistle, Westbrook stopped and Euro stepped the air. Twice. Then he let out a smile. Kevin Durant loved it so much he started Euro stepping his way toward Westbrook. By that point, the Thunder bench had leaked onto the court for the timeout. So Mitch McGary, never one to miss out on some fun, started Euro stepping around aimlessly.”
Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com on rookies’ increased roles: “Kelly Oubre is capitalizing on an increased role with the Washington Wizards, Mario Hezonja shot well for the Orlando Magic the second half of December, and Trey Lyles (Utah Jazz), Cameron Payne (Oklahoma City Thunder) and Tyus Jones (Minnesota Timberwolves) are suddenly getting real minutes. Between positive health news and players moving to the forefront — even players from the second half of the first round — that’s a lot of surging at once.”
Kevin Durant is a good dude, part five thousand.
Berry Tramel: “So I went through the NBA rosters and found notable players who had missed at least five games. How did those teams fare without their impact players? Here are 12 players, ranked by how much their team has missed them: 1. DeMarcus Cousins: The Sacramento center is a major headache. He’s also a major force. The Kings are 1-7 without him. The Kings are 13-14 with Cousins. If Cousins stays healthy, Sacramento could be a playoff team. 2. Chris Paul: CP3 has missed five games. The Clippers are 2-3 without their point guard. They are 20-10 with their point guard. This is the guy whose value to a team approaches Durant’s.”
Also wrote something Cameron Payne actually deepening the supposedly deep bench.
Billy Donovan wired last night.
Erik Horne: “Waiters did a little of everything in a 112-94 win against Memphis. He finished with 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting, his highest scoring game since Dec. 16 and his best shooting percentage of the year (.750). Waiters also more assists in seven minutes against the Grizzlies (three) than in 19 against Sacramento on Monday. Entering Wednesday, Waiters had played exactly 82 games in a Thunder uniform, a year removed from Oklahoma City acquiring him from the Cleveland Cavaliers. He’s been the Thunder’s best combination of offense and defense at shooting guard since his arrival in OKC.”