Wednesday Bolts – 1.15.14
Matt Moore of CBSSports.com on LeBron’s jealousy: “According to NBA.com, Durant produces 35.8 percent of all Thunder points. James produces 32.4 percent. So a 3.4 percent difference. That’s what happens when you play at a faster pace. There’s actually not much difference in the amount James scores vs. Durant. Durant takes 30.1 percent of all field goal attempts, while James takes 28.3 percent. This isn’t some insurmountable gap. Furthermore, if James really wanted to take more shots … who’s stopping him? It’s not like he couldn’t dabble in heavy-usage scoring and then switch back when the playoffs came around. Larry Bird was famous for things like this, deciding how to play on any given night just to not get bored.”
Eric Freeman of BDL on KD saying he should shoot less: “Regardless, we can be sure that Durant at least feels as if he’s shooting too much. But this likely says more about his desire to win than any deficiencies on his part. In a system dependent on the individual brilliance of stars, Durant must take on an outsized role as scorer and facilitator in order for the Thunder to succeed. If the team isn’t winning as much as he’d like, then it makes sense that he’d see his current form (shooting significantly more than with Westbrook in the lineup) as not enough. Durant’s approach only seems off if you assume that his performance is the only one that matters, but that’s only a passable view for the man himself (who must focus on what he can control) or the sport’s more ridiculous analysts.”
What should KD’s role be until Westbrook gets back?
Darnell Mayberry: “Back to Ibaka’s miss. The funny thing about it is Durant has spent the past five days going on and on about how he needs to better help his teammates. Yet Ibaka’s miss was a microcosm of this team’s recent struggles and served simply as confirmation for what we already knew: Durant isn’t getting nearly enough help offensively. To that end, Durant finds himself stuck between a Sefolosha and a Kendrick Perkins. On one hand, he’s got to keep teammates involved, knowing that he needs to keep their confidence high because he’ll need them down the line. On the other, he’s got to decipher when to take over and downright dominate to make up for teammates who aren’t true offensive threats and aren’t making defenses pay for leaving them open. It’s a tough act.”
The Clippers are going to sign Hedo Turkoglu.
Danny Green is out four weeks with a hand injury.
KD’s No. 1 in NBA.com’s MVP rankings: “Anything you can do, LeBron James, Durant wants the world to know he can do just as well or better. The Thunder star didn’t take kindly to losing the top spot here to start the New Year and responded with two 48-point games in four days. All jokes aside, Durant’s response to losing Russell Westbrook for six weeks is what really sticks out. He’s made it clear to anyone paying attention that he will not allow the Thunder to buckle with their other catalyst sidelined for an extended period of time. KD put up 48 in a loss to the Jazz and didn’t have a single turnover and had just three to go with his 48 in torching the Minnesota Timberwolves. These next few weeks should be extremely entertaining.”
