Tuesday Bolts – 5.14.13

Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com: “He made a joke about being tired because it was well past midnight by the time he came into the interview room with the late, 8:30 p.m. CT start. The room offered a tepid laugh. But nothing’s funny about what has happened to the Thunder since Westbrook’s untimely injury. They’re trying, Durant is trying, and they’re making progress at times. Serge Ibaka rediscovered his midrange game with 17 points on 6-for-13 shooting. Kevin Martin delivered 18 points off the bench. But they miss Westbrook. They aren’t the same. And these Memphis Grizzlies aren’t letting up anytime soon.”

Matt Moore of CBSSports.com: “It’s a seven-nation army and it is geared to hold Durant back. And so Durant will deal with the same questions so many worthy stars have faced before, about his ability to “carry a team.” All the while, few will recognize that the real reason beyond Westbrook’s absence is that when you give a disciplined, intent team a clear roadmap of what’s coming at them, they’re going to stop it. Durant may be unstoppable when he gets going, but the Grizzlies, especially in Game 4, have made the superhuman mortal, and shown him something he never asked for: how lonely it is on his own.”

From Elias: “Kevin Durant was 2-for-8 from the field in the fourth quarter and then 0-for-5 in overtime. He was the first NBA player in five years to miss at least 11 field-goal attempts after the third quarter in a postseason game. Kobe Bryant was an identical 2-for-13 in the fourth quarter and overtime in a loss to the Jazz during the 2008 playoffs.”

Seattle rapper Macklemore is mad about OKC playing his song before games.

KD wore a Sonics hat yesterday.

Darnell Mayberry: “I can’t wait to see Reggie Jackson next year. This experience is so good for him and his development. Couple that with next year being his third year and he could enjoy a huge jump. Some of the things he’s doing on the court even right now are just mind-blowing. Like that baseline drive and reverse layup in traffic with just over eight minutes remaining in regulation. Or that smooth fast break lay-in he had two minutes later. Or the driving, two-handed dunk he had with just over three minutes left in the first quarter. Already, in his 10th playoff game, Jackson is able to provide explosive plays like those while also getting a game-high eight assists and grabbing a boatload of rebounds. Young fella’s got a bright future.”

Berry Tramel: “In this same situation two years ago — down 2-1 at Memphis in the West semifinals — the Thunder won an epic three-overtime game. But Durant that night had help from names that now are gone. James Harden, gone to Houston, and Russell Westbrook, gone to injury. This Thunder team, at least against Memphis, can’t rely on offensive heroics to win. It must win with defense. And the defense disappeared for too long in Game 4, and now the Thunder season is in serious jeopardy.”

Tom Ziller of SB Nation: “Durant has been as good as ever in these playoffs, taking the ball in his hands more than ever. But the rest of the Thunder can’t crack the Grizzlies’ defense enough to get OKC wins. The next time you question the value of Westbrook taking so many shots, remember this series. Remember that Durant needs help (like every other NBA star in history), and remember that this team is not built to provide that absent Westbrook. Maybe that’s a retroactive argument against trading James Harden, who can handle more than Martin. But this is the team OKC has now, and it needs Russ desperately.”

Tom Haberstroh of ESPN.com on big men: “That’s five of the remaining eight teams with centers playing a monster role in their playoff efforts. And that’s before we get into Andrew Bogut (averaging 11.8 rebounds in just 28.7 minutes per game) and Tyson Chandler who’s clearly limited by a bulging disk in his neck. The only person who hasn’t realized that Serge Ibaka — who put up 17 points, 14 rebounds and three blocks on Monday — is the Thunder’s best center is his coach Scott Brooks, who inexplicably still plays the offensively-bankrupt Kendrick Perkins 20 minutes a night while Kevin Durant desperately searches for scoring help.”

Interesting post on Serge Ibaka not being a No. 2 option: “Our analytics don’t see great tidings for Ibaka moving forward. Using regression analysis, Ibaka should only be expected to shoot .408 eFG% in a given game without Westbrook out as compared to .589 eFG% with him around. Granted, that’s with a small sample size of games without Westbrook (that’s what happens when Westbrook had played in every game since the Carter Presidency), but it’s still an interesting figure to look at.”