2011-2012 OKC Thunder Season Preview
No longer is the Oklahoma City Thunder referred to as an up-and-coming team. They are now officially a contending team. Their 55-27 record last season placed them first in the Northwest Division with home-court advantage in the first two rounds of the playoffs. Their run came to a screeching halt during the Western Conference Finals vs. the Dallas Mavericks.
Now as they start the 2011-12 season with virtually the same roster, can they make it to the Finals?:
| Five Guys Think… |
| Last season was a breakthrough year for the Thunder and there’s no reason to think that they won’t continue to improve and contend. The midseason acquisition of defensive-minded center Kendrick Perkins paid off big time and he wasn’t even at 100%. He’s a lot closer to full health now. The Thunder have transitioned from being a team that was on the rise to now being recognized as one of the favorites out West. They have a target on their back and will no longer sneak up on anybody. The dynamic duo of Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant ensure that they’ll be able to handle that transition smoothly.
1st Place, Northwest Division - Yannis Koutroupis
Continuity is huge in the world of professional sports, and the Oklahoma City Thunder have embraced that concept wholeheartedly. Each season we’ve seen the Thunder take another leap forward, and after making it to the Western Conference Finals last season it would seem their next step is to the NBA Finals. Barring some major injury it’s hard to see the Thunder as anything but contenders this season. 1st Place – Northwest Division - Bill Ingram
Throughout the entire lockout, Oklahoma City served as the quintessence of a successful small market team, and if they play as well as they’re expected to this year they could very well represent the Western Conference in the Finals and prove once and for all that you don’t need huge TV contracts and major free agent signings to compete for a ring. Kevin Durant is my early pick for MVP, and the Thunder will roll right along with him. And let’s not forget Russell Westbrook, James Harden, and one of the toughest benches in all of basketball. One way or another, OKC should be right in the thick of things as the playoffs wind down in the spring. 1st Place, Northwest Division - Joel Brigham
The Oklahoma City Thunder are coming off their second straight regular season with at least 50 victories and with that level of success it’s only natural expectations for the franchise are also rising at the same pace. But is this the year the club goes from league feel good story to legitimate title contender? The team’s fortunes rest on the slender shoulders of two-time scoring champion Kevin Durant who showed tremendous leadership during the club’s march to the Western Conference Finals last season. Rugged veteran center Kendrick Perkins and rising young power forward Serge Ibaka round out the talented frontcourt. The emergence of point guard Russell Westbrook as a bona fide 20 point per game performer provides Durant with a sidekick capable of taking over games. The Thunder are primed to continue their ascent up the Western Conference ladder, however it remains to be seen if they can wrestle the throne away from the old guard. 1st Place, Northwest Division - Lang Greene
The Oklahoma City Thunder is the sexy pick to come out of the West this season. Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and company seem ready to take the next step forward and the 66-game schedule will likely favor young teams like Oklahoma City. The Thunder worked out together several times during the offseason, holding pick-up games and practices in Oklahoma and Texas among other places. Many of the juggernauts in the Western Conference are aging and this could be the Thunder’s year. They haven’t added any significant pieces, but they may be able to finish higher than the fourth seed if everything goes as planned. 1st Place, Northwest Division - Alex Kennedy |
| Top Of The List |
| Top Offensive Player: Kevin Durant. Obviously this is a no-brainer. Durant captured the league’s top scoring honors (27.7 points per game) last season for the second year in a row. He led his team in average field goals (9.1), three-pointers (1.9) and free throw performance (7.6 at .880 percentage). He was also ranked fifth in the league for Offensive Win Shares (8.6). Hopefully, he’ll take up right where he left off last year, only better. He got stronger over the summer; Thunder coach Scott Brooks is looking for an improved post game and more focus on playmaking without any scoring loss.
Top Defensive Player: Kendrick Perkins. The Thunder’s defense took a step back to start the season last year. Things changed when center Kendrick Perkins was acquired. An intimidator under the rim is just what the doctor ordered. A return to a defensive identity is Brooks’ plan; Perk showing up at training camp with healthy knees and weighing thirty pounds lighter sets the stage to accomplish their defensive goals. Top Playmaker: Russell Westbrook. Only three players – Steve Nash, Chris Paul and Rajon Rondo – had more total assists than Westbrook last year. His 8.2 assists per game easily led the team. Nobody was even close; his backup, Eric Maynor, was second with 2.9 apg. Westbrook’s critics are quick to point out how he should try harder to get Durant involved rather than looking for his own shot. However, during the regular season Westbrook led the league in assists (279) to a single player (Durant). Chris Paul was next, feeding the rock to David West 212 times. Last season’s high-pressure playoffs revealed some short-comings in Westbrook’s decision-making, but the same could be said for the rest of the team as well. Top Clutch Player: Kevin Durant. In a clutch situation, you need the ball in the hands of a team’s best player. Durant was league-ranked sixth last season in clutch points (per 48 minutes). The clutch stats are remarkably close between Westbrook and Durant, but KD has the edge with better efficiency. Durant has room for improvement in clutch play, as evidenced in the postseason. Top Unheralded Player: Eric Maynor. His gift is the confident way he runs the offense when Westbrook rests. He’s quite a different point guard than the starting player; sometimes during a game, a change in tempo and style is exactly what’s needed. His quiet, disciplined control of the game usually results in maintaining leads, sometimes improving it, and rarely losing it. Best New Addition: Reggie Jackson. Since there are just two from which to choose – Jackson and just-acquired forward Lazar Hayward – we’ll go with Jackson, a 6’3” guard who was chosen with the Thunder’s 24th pick in June’s draft. The three-year Boston College stand-out arrived in Oklahoma City plaintively proclaiming his goal is to be the best point guard in the league. In his junior year at BC, he averaged 18.2 points at an impressive .503 percentage with 4.5 assists. He’s smart and athletic, and his seven-foot wing span should really help with defensive pressure. - Susan Bible |
| Who We Like |
| 1. James Harden:Whether Brooks inserts him in the starting line-up or not, Harden is a true asset to the Thunder. He’s a versatile left-handed guard who can defend, shoot and take it to the rim. Harden is a pick-and-roll master and his ability to draw fouls on his drives is uncanny. Just 22 years old, his upside is off the charts.2. Kevin Durant: Durant’s down-to-earth persona and pure love of the game continue to win new fans. During the extended offseason, Durant was arguably the busiest NBA player in the league. Not only was his name connected to nearly every charity and pro-am basketball game played across the land (including a couple overseas), he also played flag football, hosted basketball camps and filmed a Hollywood movie and multiple commercials. He’s a serious dabbler in music and is a Twitter mainstay with well over one million followers. Despite the mountains of accomplishments, he remains humble and just “real”.
3. Daequan Cook: We like Cook because he hung around Oklahoma City all summer and into the fall without a Thunder contract. During that time, he made it clear to anyone who listened just how much he wanted to stay with this team. OKC extended a qualifying offer in June making him a restricted agent; once the lockout ended, Cook and the Thunder agreed to a two-year, $6.5 million deal. The sharpshooter has carved out a real niche, logging 1.5 three-pointers (at .422 efficiency) in just 13.9 average minutes last season. In Per 36 Minutes stats, his three-pointers compute to an eye-popping 3.9 per game. 4. Sam Presti: “In Presti We Trust” has become a favorite catch-phrase in Oklahoma City. The young general manager continues to build the Thunder roster his way with hard-working talented players. That’s why nobody questioned his Reggie Jackson pick…he must have good reason, and that’s good enough for most of us. 5. Oklahoma City: The good people of Oklahoma City proved they can support an NBA team. Once the novelty wore off, people kept filling the arena seats. Residents overwhelming approved a temporary one-cent sales tax that allowed major upgrades to the arena and funded the construction of an off-site state-of-the-art practice facility for the Thunder. - Susan Bible |
| Strengths |
| The Thunder is one of just a handful of teams that return with basically the same players as last season. And each one returned healthy and ready to play. While other teams were busy making roster changes or adapting to a new coach, the Oklahoma City players started training camp with all the pieces in place.This group is still young. The average age of the starters is 24.4; the average age of the second unit is 27.0.
As far as team production, these guys can score. They were fifth in the league in points per game (104.8) last year. In addition, no team beat them in total free throws (1977) or free throw efficiency (.823). Serge Ibaka’s insane skills assure that opposing teams will always prepare for the inevitable blocked shots (second in league). The youth and athleticism of this group should prove advantageous entering a 66-game season that’s crammed into four months. The Thunder will have seventeen back-to-backs, one back-to-back-to-back and one six-day stretch with five games on tap. Last season, they faced three very different type of teams in the playoffs – Denver, Memphis and Dallas – and each experience made them that much stronger. - Susan Bible |
| Weaknesses |
| The Thunder players are not particularly adept at sharing the ball. In fact, they were ranked 24th last season in team assists (20.4). Westbrook does his part; others need to step up and help create better balance on the offensive end. Brooks says a major problem with his group is that they are not vocal on the floor. If they would start talking, ball movement just might progress.
Fouls are an issue. As a team, they committed 1836 fouls last year; only two teams had more last season, Utah and Washington. Offensive rebounds need to improve. They dropped from a 10th place ranking in 2009-10 to 15th last season. Team defense also took a nosedive; their Defensive Rating went from 9th in 2009-10 to 15th last year. - Susan Bible |
| The Coach’s Chair By Anthony Macri |
| Everyone else is talking about key additions or lottery picks or adding a piece to become contenders. Everyone except us. We are talking about the group of guys in this room. This doesn’t happen often, men. We have a group who have been together for a couple years now, building, growing, and learning how to win. Now it’s time to turn all of that ridiculous experience into a championship contender. We don’t need to wait for next year, the time is now. It’s all about refinement on the offensive end, and consistent play no matter the circumstances. Russell, some people question if you are the right guy for us. We don’t. We know you can be a dominant lead guard for us this year, and that your ability to score gives us an element most teams don’t have. Kevin, we expect and, quite frankly, we demand you to rip the title of league’s best player from that guy in Miami. It’s your turn. No, better: it’s our turn. Let’s win a championship!- Anthony Macri |
| The Burning Question |
| Can the Thunder implement what they learned last season for a deeper playoff run this season? Now, with deep postseason experience under their belts and growing maturity, it’s a matter of parlaying everything they learned last season into greater success. That pressure, both internally and from the outside, to win the Western Conference title is significant. Are they ready?
- Susan Bible |
How do you see the Thunder this season, leave your comments below…
