Warriors end the Thunder’s season, 96-88
OAKLAND, Calif. — It’s going to take awhile.
Maybe a week. Maybe two. Maybe all summer. Maybe until this time next season. Maybe this time next season only if there’s a different result.
The Thunder put in an effort in Game 7. They started well. They played an excellent first half. They guarded the hell out of the Warriors.
Then the third quarter began. It was everything that makes the Warriors so impossibly hard to beat. Klay Thompson had kept the Warriors close — again — in the first half. And then Steph Curry started shaking loose in the third. The Thunder stopped scoring, and a six-point lead at half turned to an 11-point deficit after three with a 29-12 quarter.
The Thunder pushed back, just enough, getting it to four with 1:40 left as Kevin Durant scored seven straight. The ball got loose on the next trip, with Russell Westbrook diving to wrestle Draymond Green for it. The Warriors were awarded a timeout, and coming out of it, Serge Ibaka was caught on a switch, Curry drew a foul, made all three, and that was pretty much it.
I thought Durant summarized it quite well: “Games 3 and 4, you know, they missed the shots that they hit Games 6 and 7, and that was our plan. They beat us in the 3-point line the last two games. We beat them everywhere else, they beat us from the 3-point line, and that was the series.”
Those shots the Warriors hit are just absurd. It’s what they do, and we’ve all gotten used to seeing them go in. But you can play solid and sound, stick to principles and execute a gameplan, and then Curry launches a heave from his waist from 29 feet that drops. There’s truly nothing you can do. It makes it hard to trust yourselves, to stick with your own plan and not get baited into trying to answer. The Thunder mostly did a good job of this.
But what it comes to is that fateful Game 6. Game 7 went somewhat as expected. Competitive, tough, close. But Game 6 was the Thunder’s chance, and they let it get away. Thompson had a lot to do with that, but over this summer, those final five minutes are going to be what haunts you.
Eight big thoughts about this series, this season and the Thunder going forward:
1. Durant on his free agency: “I mean, we just lost like 30 minutes ago, so I haven’t even thought about it. I’m just embracing my teammates and just reflecting on the season. I’ll think about that stuff, I don’t know when. But we just lost an hour ago, 30 minutes ago, so I don’t know.” It’s official time for this question to become the reality. The Thunder are faced with the possibility of everything changing if he decides to leave.
2. That said, it’s hard to imagine he would. Not after this postseason, and not after the way the Thunder played. There’s too much upside to the roster, too much to believe in, too much connection to it all. If he just wants out, so be it. But if he’s looking for reasons to stay, they shouldn’t be that hard to see.
3. Was it Thunder isoball again that doomed them? Sure, I guess. But then what was it the Warriors were doing? How would you describe those possessions where Curry dances on the perimeter for eight seconds and fires one up? I do think Billy Donovan was fair in his assessment of their performance, especially in crunchtime: “What will keep me up is I think the habits that we were able to build during the course of these playoffs, how can we continue to build next year in training camp? In terms of how do we come in and take these experiences we’ve all been through and utilize them to grow and develop and maybe be more prepared? I thought this year with me coming in and being new and them getting to know me, and me getting to know them, there was a transition period. There was. And I appreciate these guys and their patience with me and their professionalism and the way they responded and the way they did everything. But hopeful that we can utilize these experiences and grow together to become even better individually and collectively.”
4. Steven Adams is important. He’s a monster, and one of the most unique centers in the league right now. To have a player with size that can rebound, screen, and switch onto guards and adequately defend them is something special. And if you ask me, could be one of the most important pieces in recruiting Durant. A 22-year-old center like that isn’t on many other teams. Durant knows what he has in Westbrook and Ibaka. But to have a guy like Adams? That could be the, ahem, kicker.
5. Andre Roberson may be on an All-Defense team. People saw what he’s capable of. Donovan was able to free him offensively to at least contribute, and while that dried up in Game 7, Roberson was vital in this series. His defense on Thompson was sensational, even if Thompson shook loose. For the most part though, when Roberson guarded Thompson, he didn’t score. Also: He’s 24 years old.
6. Should Enes Kanter have played more? That’s a tough thing. I actually think Donovan managed his rotation well. Kanter only got nine minutes, and they were in quick bursts against favorable lineups. He was productive, scoring eight points plus four rebounds, but he was just too much of a pick-and-roll liability to leave on the floor for extended time. Donovan abandoned the big ball of Adams and Kanter really starting in Game 4, electing for extended run of smallball lineups. With the way it all played out, you have to wonder what the other might’ve looked like.
7. Like Durant said, losing sucks. It’s not fun. It makes you point fingers and be mad. But if I had told you in February that the Thunder would be in a Game 7 in Oracle to go to the NBA Finals, you probably would’ve thought I was taking crazy pills. Donovan tried to sort out the perspective of it, with the 3-1 series lead changing the dynamic of it all. The Thunder absolutely should’ve won the series. They gave it away as much as the Warriors took it. But at the same time, all things considered, assuming that one guy signs back, they still are in a very, very strong place.
8. Appreciate this. Again, bummer city. But not a lot of fanbases even have the opportunity to feel the kind of anger and pain you are right now. It’s unique and special to be in these moments, to get to have an interest in a Game 7 of this kind of magnitude. The Thunder had a great year. Like Durant said, no moral victories. But there is room for appreciation, I think.