Thursday Bolts – 4.29.11
John Hollinger of ESPN.com: “Durant’s 19-foot shot over Nene was the finishing touch on an amazing
closing stretch, one that saved Oklahoma City’s bacon on a night when the rest of the team couldn’t find the basket with a GPS and a team of sherpas. Not only did Durant score 41 points on 27 shots, he did it without a single turnover. Compare that to his teammates: They were 16-of-55 from the floor (29.1 percent) and had 14 turnovers. Apologies for boring with you math, but the difference between Durant and his teammates on this night is startling once your break it down. The Thunder scored 59 points on the 84 “micro” possessions that weren’t used by Durant, and 41 on the 32 he did use. That’s 0.70 on the non-Durant plays and 1.28 on the Durant plays.”
Kurt Helin of PBT: “Is there a more fun team to watch play than the Oklahoma City Thunder? They are pure passion on a basketball court. It was true again Wednesday night as this game had everything a basketball fan (especially an Oklahoma City one) could want — a come from behind win (they were down 9 at the three minutes left), big shots from Russell Westbrook and James Harden, and bigger ones from Kevin Durant (he finished with 41). Durant helped the Thunder take the lead on running floater across the lane — how do you defend a floater that a 6’9” player releases with his arm over his head? But in the end, it was Serge Ibaka that won this game.”
Maybe Jenni was right. Chris Tomasson tweeted this quote from Kenyon Martin: “They got a young superstar in Kevin Durant and they treat him that way. The league treats him that way.”
Chris Tomasson for NBA.com: “Karl called Wednesday’s loss “tough to swallow” but said the Nuggets eventually will “wake up and realize we had one heck of a season.” Nuggets forward Kenyon Martin still wasn’t convinced the better team won. “They’re decent. They’re good,” Martin said of the Thunder. “But I don’t think they’re better than us.” One thing is sure. Every team was better than Oklahoma City 2 ½ years ago. But the Thunder since has earned the right to party as if it were New Year’s Eve.”
My postgame column for CBSSports.com.
Zach Harper of HP wrote a terrific piece on Durant and Westbrook yesterday: “However, there could come a day when they have to make a decision of whether or not Russell Westbrook is the right running mate for Kevin Durant, and it probably won’t come down to anything having to do with how good of a basketball player he is. His selfishness isn’t suffocating right now, but the potential is there. When he believes he’s the best option, it’s the riskiest game plan OKC can employ. He’ll win them plenty of games, but will his defensive decline and confidence to win ball games be the proper team basketball for this young team? More than likely, he comes out tonight and is a big part of closing out the Nuggets. But there could come a time in which Sam Presti has to decide between keeping a young star happy or jettisoning his ego for the greater good of this young and exciting Thunder team.”
Russell Westbrook is the Honey Badger. Tremendous.
Berry Tramel: “Clutch? Clutch is saving a team that’s about to lose at home, forcing a quick flight to Denver, where a bunch of mean people like Nene’ and Kenyon Martin and that goofball Sonicgate guy await. Clutch is saving a team from getting halfway to dubious NBA history. No team ever has won a series after going down three games to none, but give Denver this win, and who believes the Nuggets wouldn’t be back Sunday, tied 3-3? Clutch is making the last 10 seconds relevant in the first place. In those final 31/2 minutes, which began with Denver leading 91-82, Durant made five of six shots and all three of his foul shots.”
Darnell Mayberry: “Tonight was a classic example of why you cannot try to rein in Russell Westbrook. It doesn’t work. His effectiveness comes from playing without a conscience. Love it or hate it. That’s who he is. That’s how he plays. It was clear that Westbrook came out and tried his best to play under control. And it took him right out of the game. His aggressiveness was seen only in spots. And as a result he was rarely a threat in applying pressure on the defense.”
The Thunder are the Breakfast Club.
From Elias: “Kevin Durant scored 41 points in the Thunder’s 100-97 win against the Nuggets, sending Oklahoma City to the next round of the playoffs. Durant, who turned 22 last September, is the second-youngest player in NBA history to score 40 points in a playoff series-clinching victory. The youngest was Magic Johnson, who as a 20-year old rookie scored 42 points in Game 6 of the 1980 NBA Finals against the 76ers, helping clinch the championship for the Lakers.”
Bill Simmons: “I have some bad news for @blakegriffin … I hooked up with my ex Kevin Durant tonight. We might be getting back together.”
Andrew Sharp of SBN: “But my favorite moment Wednesday came when the final buzzer sounded, and TNT cameras caught Durant for a close-up. Reading his lips, it sure looked like he said, “THIS MY MOTHERF***IN TEAM. LET’S GO.” He was still on the court at the time. And on the court, Kevin Durant’s a whole different person. That what makes him so fascinating as an NBA superstar. He’s the perfect antithesis to LeBron. While LeBron sells himself as this larger-than-life brand off the court, when it comes to crunch time, he’s more unsure. With Durant, it’s the exact opposite. He doesn’t care about being any more famous than Westbrook or anyone else, but on the court, he wants the ball as badly as every other NBA star that’s ever been great. It’s his mother f’ing team.”