Tuesday Bolts – 2.11.14
Zach Lowe of Grantland: “Several potential buyers have their own picks to dangle, including, at the very top of the league, the Spurs and Thunder. Both teams typically bypass the trade deadline, and they haven’t made all that much noise on the market so far. The Thunder have their own pick, some interesting young guys, and a valuable future first-rounder from Dallas. Oklahoma City knows it has a chance to win the title right now, and if it could find a wing player on the right contract that could really boost those chances, I suspect it would think very hard about pulling the trigger on at least its own first-rounder.”
Berry Tramel on KD’s shooting consistency: “That’s 15 games, during which Durant has made 179 of 322 shots. That’s 55.6 percent shooting. For a guy who takes a huge number of shots outside the paint. In fact, over those 15 games, Durant has attempted 90 3-pointers. That’s six per game. And the guy still is making higher than 55 percent of his shots. Durant’s game started high this season and has only risen. But his shooting has been beyond phenomenal.”
Adi Joseph of USA Today: “LeBron James is amazing, but let’s not call him peerless. Why? Well, Kevin Durant is around. And he’s pretty amazing, too. James is the defending NBA MVP, and his Miami Heat are the defending NBA champions. So let’s not make any missteps when speaking about Durant, the Oklahoma City Thunder star and James’ only one-on-one rival. The only trophies he has won in his career are the 2007-08 NBA Rookie of the Year Award and the 2012 All-Star Game MVP. But he’s turning a corner.”
Read Kevin Arnovitz on Michael Sam’s impact.
Bradford Doolittle of ESPN Insider on Melo vs. KD: “So Durant makes more shots, takes better shots, does more for his teammates on both ends of the floor, and makes quicker decisions. Is there anything else left? While it’s far from a bold statement to note that Durant is better than Anthony, it is instructive to examine just why that’s the case. Instructive for whom? Well, Anthony, for one, because while he probably isn’t capable of playing at Durant’s level from an innate talent standpoint, there is plenty about the way Durant goes about his business that Anthony can still incorporate into his game.”
