Thursday Morning Sketches: Where the Thunder Have That Look to Them

In Sketches, we'll be taking you on a quick trip through the NBA blogosphere to get our finger on the pulse of all of the key happenings and storylines in the L today.

DAILY THUNDER: It’s pretty clear to me that when Durant and Westbrook play really well, the Thunder are good. When two, even just one, other players show up, the Thunder are really good. One reason being, Oklahoma City is playing some defense. Other than the first six minutes of Game 1, the Thunder’s defense has been good. Tonight, it was terrific. The Nuggets shot just 39.1 percent from the field and scored only 89 points. We’re talking about the top one or two offense in the league here. And not only did the Thunder defend, but check the glass: 54-31 in favor of OKC. With 17 offensive boards.

 

ROUNDBALL MINING COMPANY: The underlying message I got from the Thunder tonight was, “We’re on a mission, and if you get in our way, we’re gonna stomp you out.” It’s evident at this point in time, that they’ve playing with a clear goal in mind throughout the series, and that’s one thing the Nuggets are lacking more than anything in my estimation. What are we playing for? Is it to make it past the first round? Is it to win a few games in the first round? How far do these guys really want to go? With the Thunder, you never have to ask yourself any of those questions. They have a crystal clear image in mind and that’s to win a championship.

 

48 MINUTES OF HELL: In Sunday’s Game 1 loss, the Spurs managed just 13 assists on 28 field goals, and Tony Parker mentioned after morning shootaround that not having Manu in the lineup meant that Parker would be running the bulk of the pick-and-rolls during the game. Normally, he said, it was closer to a 50-50 split. With Ginobili back in for Game 2, the Spurs assists on 21 out of their 32 field goals. Having both players in the lineup allows the Spurs to attack at different angles and with different styles, and allow both players to attack pick-and-rolls with slightly fresher legs than they would with the other.

 

3 SHADES OF BLUE: Greivis Vasquez (who, by the way, I believe is a legit NBA player) is just not ready for this kind of prime time. Just ain't. His game looks the same as it did in the regular season, but the opponent's D has stepped up. He's overmatched trying to play D against anyone the Spurs want to throw at him, and Ish Smith is  the sag-off-him posterchild of the still-young millenium. Darn you, Jason Williams' spine-we could really, really use some White Chocolate right now. In the literal sense, and the figurative sense. Spine, backbone, you know what I mean. Not that the team has shown a lack of resilience-it would just be great to have an experienced floor general directing traffic with Conley on the bench.

 

ESPN LOS ANGELES: If Gasol's line offensively was bad- and it was- Kobe's wasn't much better. 3-for-1o from the floor- three FG's representing his lowest total in a playoff game since the 2000 Finals against Indiana- with two turnovers to go with a pair of dimes. As the game went along, Bryant clearly started forcing the issue, looking to create space off the dribble (without a ton of success) and hoisting some very questionable shots after very questionable clock usage. Granted, a lot of the really bad shots came after the game was decided and Bryant likely was looking to right the ship for Game 3 Friday night, but it doesn't make the results any better.

 

BIG EASY BUZZ BLOG: The Hornets knew after Sunday’s outcome that they didn’t have to play a perfect game to win on the Lakers’ home floor. But they were reminded Wednesday that their margin of error against the two-time defending NBA champions certainly isn’t big enough to withstand too many miscues and shortcomings in key categories. Two statistics – the Hornets’ 16 turnovers and 12 missed free throws – proved extremely costly in an attempt to take what would’ve been a stunning 2-0 series advantage.

 

INDY CORNROWS: Frank Vogel upped his classification of Collison’s injury as "doubtful," but Collison himself is sure that will not be the case, despite sitting out practice today. So the safer bet would probably be "game-time decision." Collison’s will won’t let him sit out, but his body may not agree.The extra day layoff will no doubt help the recovery process on an ankle sprain, but even still, the question will be just how much will he be able to contribute if he has able to go? Collison has given the Derrick Rose and the Bulls defense fits because of his speed, which will be cut considerably with the sprain.

 

HEAT INDEX: After seeing how quickly injuries plagued the Knicks, Spoelstra said Wednesday that he feels grateful for his trio’s health. LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh have missed only a total of 14 games this season due to injury. Wade recently fought off migraine symptoms before playing in Monday’s game. How often does he thank his lucky stars that James, Wade and Bosh are healthy? “After every game,” Spoelstra said.

 

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