Thunder 4th quarter melt down results in Game 1 Loss.

The Thunder looked pretty good going into the fourth quarter yesterday as they led by 9. The defense was playing amazing but suddenly the Spurs closed the gap to 6 then 4 then 2 then they starting running away with the game. The Thunder had no answer for Ginnobli who had 26 points including the 1st quarter buzzer beater. Westbrook looked pretty awful in my opinion with 17 points but only 5 assists which isnt enough for a "Point Guard". Heres my real problem though Durant the so called "Super Star of this team" only took 2 SHOTS IN THE FOURTH QUARTER now how are you supposed to close out a game when he doesnt shoot at least 6-7 shots. This could not saying it was could have been the result of Russell Westbrook who took 21 shots compared to Durant's 19! My theory is back on until Westbrook starts acting like a PG and finding Durant good looked shots which he never does he just passes it to him when hes like right next to him and until he limits his shots this series will be a long one! Harden also looked dazzled as he couldn't find an answer for Ginnobli. I wasn't very pleased with the big men either who let Duncan get 16 Points and 11 Rebounds but thats a whole different story. The Thunder need to split the difference in Game 2 because you cannot go down 2-0 or you will have to win both in OKC.

Thunder win series 4-1 Conference Finals Thunder vs Spurs

The Thunder were handed the torch yesterday vs the Lakers as they pounced them with a 106-90 win in game 5. The crowd was going crazy, Westbrook and Durant again had huge games with Westbrook having 28 Pts and Durant 25. My earlier theory (Courtesy of Skip Bayless) that Westbrook shooting more than Durant will lead to disaster is obliviously wrong, Westbrook has had more points than Durant in most of the games but Durant still had 3 Game winning shots and over 20 points in every game so its not like Durant was sloutching. Westbrook just had a huge mismatch with Sessions and Blake covering him. Now off to the Thunder-Spurs Series I think even with the Thunder problems with the Spurs they have beaten the past 2 champs and know now from both series how to win close down the the wire games. The big matchups are Westbrook vs Parker which is just the showdown everyone wants to see then a huge off the bench battle begins with Harden vs Ginnobli that is going to be fun but with Hardens ability to serge (Ibaka) to the hoop I think this will be the NBA Champ whoever wins this series mainly because of how much the Heat are struggling with the Pacers. My prediction is the Thunder win in 7 which will be a nail biter kind of like the Thunder-Grizzlies Game 7 of last years second round. Game 1 kicks off on Sunday at 8:00 ET lets THUNDERUP!


                             

Thunder win a thriller to go up 3-1

The Thunder the whole game just could not seem to get the Laker lead down they would score and make it a 6 pt game but then the Lakers would come right back down and Kobe would make a 3 or something. Instead of the Thunder regrouping for Game 5 the Thunder stayed and decided to fight and w/ Westbrook and Durant leading the charge they pulled it out. With about 11 seconds left Durant pulled up for a 3 and drained it over Metta World Peace to go up 101-98 this put the Thunder in great position but then here comes Kobe with 5 seconds left being covered hard by Harden who did a great job all night defending Bryant so Kobe pulls up a fade away 3 ...it hits the rim bounces again and Perkins made an amazing one handed catch to snag the rebound and that did it. Westbrook showed a lot of maturity keeping his teammates up and not giving up he had 37 Points and was dominating in the second half. Durant and Westbrook combined for 21 points in the 4th quarter which outscored the hole Laker team who had a total of 20 points. The Thunder go back to OKC looking to move forward to the Western Conference Finals against probably the Spurs who are up 3-0 on the LA Clippers. Look to see the Thunder come out with huge energy and I think they get the job done.

Thunder lead Lakers 2-0 after 76-75 win

The Thunder won a close low scoring game last night in game 2 and this game really showed me they can win in playoff games by blow out or close games. Just look at the first round for example the Thunder won the first 2 games by very close margins and then blew out the Mavs both times in Dallas. Now the Thunder are going up against a better Laker team and Durant, Westbrook and the hole team is doing exactly what they did in Round 1. Executing on offense by limiting turnovers and actually passing the ball. Also Westbrook cannot be stopped in this series due to the Lakers lack of talent at the point guard position. I have also been very impressed by how Sefelosha and Harden have handled Bryant holding him to 20 and 22 Points in the first 2 games. The big men for the Lakers have been pretty good but as shown if the Thunder can hold them to a certain amount then it will be alright. The Thunder face the Lakers Friday at 10:30 ET at Staples Center.

Thunder vs Lakers Round 2 Preview.

The Lakers defeated the Nuggets yesterday in Game 7 96-87 so they will now face the Thunder in round 2. Game 1 is Monday at 9:30 ET and this series is going to be a good one. Metta WorldPeace will return after his elbow to Harden's head that gave him a 7 game suspension. Kobe came off an amazing performance last time he faced the Thunder. The Key to this matchup is Perkins and Ibaka vs Bynum and Gasol. The Nuggets with Faried and Mcgee showed that its not hard to shut down the two Laker big men and I think Perkins and Ibaka are better than both those Nuggets so if they can do what the Nuggets do and Durant,Westbrook, and Harden keep up their offensive ways (And Westbrook's great defensive play) the Thunder should win this series but Sefelosha/Harden have to shut down Kobe maybe even putting Durant on him because last time these 2 teams faced they went to Double-OT and Kobe was unstoppable. I will predict that the Thunder win this one in 6 games. 

Who would you rather face Nuggets or Lakers

The Nuggets and Lakers game 7 is tonight and winner takes on OKC Monday for Game 1 the Lakers big men are struggling and Kobe cant do it all alone so maybe Denver defies the odds but to be honest I would rather play the Lakers and here is why. Perkins and Ibaka can stop Bynum and Gasol if Mcgee and Faried can. Lack of talent at PG for Lakers to stop Westbrook who had a amazing defensive and offensive 1st round. Kobe cant keep doing what he did last time he played the Thunder they wont allow him to make that many shots on a consistant bases Harden and Sefelosha will do enough to contain him enough thats a winnable situation. Denver is just too fast and scary to what they can do plus we always struggle against them just look at that OT game....Just a thought. 

Thunder sweep reigning champs.

The Thunder last night beat the Mavericks and swept the series with a 103-97 win. The Thunder overcame a 13 point deficit in the fourth quarter which showed me how much the Thunder have matured with being able to stick in the game. James Harden had a playoff career high 29 points and 13 of them came in the 4th quarter. He thrived so much off the pick and roll and Durant played great d and o with 24 Points and 11 Rebounds. Westbrook shut down Terry to only 11 Points and had 6 Assists and had 12 Points. This was a great series and shown they can play with the best and I respect the former champs a lot this made a huge statement. Next up in the second round the Thunder will face winner of the Denver/LA series dont care who wins that one we can beat both but im scared of Kobe but we can take them. 

Thunder Get off to 2-0 Lead on Mavs

So Game 1 was a nail biter with Durant making another game winning shot with 1.5 seconds left. Then another down to the wire game in Game 2 My take on the first two games was Game 1: Turned over the ball way too much and the Mavs scored almost on every single one. Durant though played great defense and put up 26 points. Westbrook was lights out as usual with 28 points. The guy I was most impressed with was Serge Ibaka who did great covering Dirk Nowitzki and put up 22 points. Game 2: Durant again plays great defense getting 10 rebounds and still gets 25 points but his inconsistency shooting the ball the first two games worry's me a little but hey Westbrook isn't missing a shot. I am loving the smack talk between Perkins and Dirk last night after Durant nailed a 3 and Perkins let Dirk know that the new champs have arrived! Game 3 is Thursday at 9:30 ET another late one for us Eastern Timers. Lets see if the Thunder can go up 3-0 against the reigning champs.