Tuesday Bolts – 5.29.12

Sam Smith of Bulls.com: “Well, the playoffs finally started Sunday night with two talented and deep teams, which doesn’t exist in the East. It was a delight to watch after so much miserable Eastern ball, and you’d expect loads of Thunder adjustments after their loss. The Thunder blew it not playing Serge Ibaka the entire fourth quarter with Kevin Durant moving to power forward, which they do. Kendrick Perkins is a fraud, as we know, and had zero rebounds in almost nine fourth quarter minutes. Without any shot blocking, the Spurs won driving the ball to the basket. I know Derek Fisher was hitting shots. But nine fourth quarter minutes? No wonder the Spurs scored 39 points in the fourth. Yes, the Thunder isolates too much, but they always do, and it’s their Achilles. But they win when their defense closes. You sit Thabo Sefolosha late and go with Ibaka, Perkins, Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden. They gave away Game 1. But on the road. This series still is well in doubt.”

Tim Varner of 48 Minutes of Hell says OKC should re-think small: “The Spurs had 97 possessions last night. They’ve now won 22 straight in games with more than 94 possessions. The Thunder should re-think small. It’s the right approach most nights, and against most teams. It’s not the right approach against San Antonio.”

Via ESPN Stats and Info: “Although they didn’t win last night, the numbers prove that the Thunder are better when Russell Westbrook takes more shots than Kevin Durant. Including last night’s loss, the Thunder are 27-6 when Westbrook shoots the ball more than Durant.”

Neil Paine for ESPN.com: “For San Antonio’s and Oklahoma City’s stars, the basic stats and the eyeball test tell you why they are so vital to their teams’ championship hopes. But for the unsung heroes of this series, you need to dig deeper, looking at how they impacted the team’s performance when they were on the court, to determine their worth. Without players like Green, Splitter, Bonner, Collison and Sefolosha, these two teams wouldn’t be in a position to punch a ticket to the Finals.”

You probably already know why, but a nice feature on why KD wears 35.

A bunch of new shirt ideas for Russell Westbrook.

Sam Eifling of Deadspin on The Flaming Lips’ new song: “Perhaps the Thunder will take the hint and change that. Because as loud as the earnest, lumpy, lower-bowl Okies at your typical Thunder game get, they have nothing on the army of delirious furries and dehydrated art school dropouts that caterwaul for the likes of “Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots” and one of the most enrapturing “Bohemian Rhapsody” covers this side of an Albertan drunk tank. Do the right thing when this series comes back home, Oklahoma. Thunder Up.”

Manu Ginobili on OKC’s Big 3: “We never had those kinds of legs and athleticism,” Ginobili said Monday at the Spurs’ training facility. “They are just amazing. Their strength, their speed. And they can all shoot, too.”

Scott Brooks: “I think every decision you make, if it doesn’t work out, you say, ‘Why’d you do that?’ and I’m right (there) with you on that. I wish I would have played Serge Sunday night.”

Luc Ricard Mbah a Moute for TrueHoop: “Undoubtedly, the biggest player for Oklahoma City on defense is Ibaka. Serge’s one-on-one defense and his shot-blocking ability on the weak side have made a big difference. He’s been able to handle any forward he’s guarded. I thought he did a good job on Dirk Nowitzki and even better on Pau Gasol. He really didn’t let Gasol get off, and a lot of the scores Pau got in that series were off dropoffs and offensive rebounds.”