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For a team that built their identity on defense last season, the Oklahoma City Thunder has, surprisingly, not shown the same defensive tenacity so far this season.

 

The team has displayed some incredible offensive skills, though, that keeps the win total rising.  Kevin Durant, the NBA’s leading scorer last season (30.1), is on track to capture the title again this season (leading the league at 29.0 ppg).  The 33-18 record has carried the Thunder to a first-place ranking in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference.  In fact, they would land home court advantage (with a current fourth-place seeding), if the season ended today.

                     

The question is: how far can this team get in the playoffs without a solid defensive presence?  The underlying question is: why was OKC’s defense so good last year, and so average this year?

 

HOOPSWORLD speculated just prior to the opening tip-off that the loss of assistant coach Ron Adams to the Chicago Bulls could be cause for real concern.  It was a coaching move that flew way under the radar at the time, which seemed odd given the huge credit Adams received for the Thunder’s success on the defensive end.  Instead of securing a new hire, the team elected to hand over the primary defensive reins to existing assistant coach Brian Keefe.

 

It’s not as if this group of professional basketball players, (and basically the same roster as last year), suddenly forgot the all the defensive lessons that were instilled by Adams.  They haven’t forgotten how to challenge shots or how to play angles.  Coaches continue to stress defensive philosophies; they devote time in practice, do the drills, etc.  What’s missing is Adams’ noted defensive mind; his ability to draw up a defensive plan per team and per opponent, his in-game adjustments…even his nagging.

 

Short of crowning Adams the Defense Whisperer, we would like to point out two very interesting statistics that are hard to ignore.

 

In the 2009-10 season (without Adams), the Bulls ranked 11^th in Defensive Rating of 105.3 (points allowed per 100 possessions) and 13^th in Opponent’s Points Per Game (99.1).

 

Now 51 games into the Bulls’ 2010-11 season (with Adams), they have shot up to a first-place Defensive Rating of 99.9 and second-place ranking in Opponent’s Points Per Game (92.3).

Coincidence?

 

Adams joined the Thunder in December, 2008, so 2009-10 was the only full season the team was under his defensive direction.   At Media Day in September, 2009, Scott Brooks – then kicking off his first year as head coach – and his players spoke over and over about the importance of establishing solid defense.  Brooks said it would be, above anything, the primary focus during training camp and throughout the season.  Not one soul in attendance left that event without a clear understanding of what Brooks was about: defense, defense and more defense.

 

Contrast that with Media Day in September, 2010.  Brooks and the players offered the obligatory "going to work hard…improve every day….get better on both ends of the floor", but the word "defense" wasn’t uttered ad nauseum like it was the year before.  Brooks did say "our identity is going to be the same.  We are building our team defensively and we are going to continue to do that."

 

To get a real sense of just how much Oklahoma City’s defense has regressed this season versus last season, take a look at a side-by-side comparison and league ranking of defensive stats:

 

                                                        2009/2010                   2010-11 (51 games)

 

Defensive Rating                                  104.6 (9^th)                       108.5 (17^th)

Total Rebounds per game                     43.5   (3^rd)                       42.6   (16^th)

Blocks per game                                   5.9     (1^st)                       5.5     (9^th)

Opponent’s points per game                  98.0   (11^th)                     102.7 (21^st)

Opponent’s field goal percentage           .448   (6^th)                       .468   (21^st)

                                                         

Clearly the stand-out numbers last season were blocks and total rebounds, though the other numbers were impressive as well.  These were especially meaningful given the team’s lack of that true big-man-in-the-middle type in favor of the "rebound/defense-by-committee" approach.  However, this season is quite a different story; obviously, each of these stats have fallen….some by drastic levels.

 

We were curious to see what type of shots the Thunder has struggled to stop this year vs. last year:

 

                                                          2009/2010                  2010-11 (51 games)

 

Opponent’s rim shot percentage            .601   (13^th)                     .647   (18^th)

Opponent’s <10′ shot percentage          .381   (1^st)                        .376  (9^th)

Opponent’s 10′-15′ shot percentage       .363   (1^st)                       .369   (5^th)

Opponent’s 16′-23′ shot percentage       .370   (1^st)                       .398   (18^th)

Opponent’s 3-point percentage              .340   (3^rd)                       .367  (21^st)

                                                                                                 

You can see that last year they were the best in the league at controlling opponent’s shooting percentages of shots up to 23′ from the basket.  Yet now, the Thunder has regressed overall in defending every type of shot their opponent presents.  Only Toronto allows more shots made and attempted at the rim per game this season.

 

For all the accolades premier defensive stopper Thabo Sefolosha receives, he rates fourth behind Serge Ibaka, Russell Westbrook and Durant in 2010-11 Defensive Plays (steals, blocks, charges) per Hoopdata.com.  Of course, his ability to alter/stop top scorers’ desired shots remains valuable to OKC despite his steady drop in scoring.

 

One of the more intriguing stats (possibly deserving of an in-depth study itself) begs the question: why is the team unable to control their Opponent’s Field Goal Shooting in the first half of games (.508 average) as well as they do in second halves (.429)?  And in overtime situations, it improves even further to .375.

 

On one hand, the improving crunch-time aspect of the game is promising; on the other hand, why do they come out playing defense so flat?  They’ve allowed opposing teams to score an average 27.0 points (27^th in the league) in the first quarter (32.3 in the past three games).  Are their young legs beating older ones as the game progresses?  Effective half-time adjustments?  Brooks wishes he knew.

 

Now, let’s look at the differences in offensive stats:

 

                                                          2009/2010                  2010-11 (51 games)

 

Offensive Rating                                  108.3 (12^th)                     110.5 (5^th)

  (pts produced per 100 possessions)

Points per game                                   101.5 (14^th)                     104.6 (5^th)

Field goals per game                            37.4   (19^th)                     37.0  (16^th)

Field goal percentage                           .462   (14^th)                     .459   (15^th)

3-Pointers per game                             5.1    (25^th)                     5.4    (22^nd)

3-Point shooting percentage                 .340   (25^th)                     .336   (27^th)

Free throws per game                           21.7   (2^nd)                      25.1  (1^st)

Free throw percentage                          .805   (2^nd)                      .828  (1^st)

 

Putting points on the board isn’t the problem.  The scoring duo of Durant-Westbrook is running an extremely close second (51.5 ppg) to LeBron James-Dwyane Wade (51.6 ppg).  And the roster is full of other capable scorers.

 

{AUTHOR_BOX}Winning games so far hasn’t been the problem.  Check this: 1) the Thunder has not lost more than two games in a row, 2) they are 5-1 in overtime games, 2) since January 4, they have lost six games; one by 2 pts (Hornets), one by 4 pts (Grizzlies), three by 5 pts (HEAT, Nuggets, Grizzlies) and one by 7 pts (Lakers).

 

Playing defense for 48 minutes is a problem.

 

Brooks has been candid about his team’s need to work harder to form good habits.  He stresses fundamentals.  This team is so far ahead of anyone’s perceived schedule, but taking backward steps in defense is troublesome.  An exposed vulnerable defense is not easy to overcome in the playoffs, no matter how many points you can score.  The new attention in closing out games will help.

 

The good news is the Thunder is a very young team.  Time is on their side.  The average age of the starters is 24.2; the nine rotation players’ average age is 24.0.  Keeping the core together to grow together has always been the plan, but fans would sure like to see that defensive effort that was on display last season.