HOOPSWORLD | Basketball News & NBA Rumors

Sometimes it’s easy – tempting, even – to get ahead of ourselves. For instance, we take a look at the Oklahoma City Thunder, we see MVP-caliber players like Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, we see emerging talents like Serge Ibaka and James Harden, we see solid veterans like Kendrick Perkins and Nick Collison, and we start thinking we see a championship team. What’s easy to forget is that we’re also looking at a very young team, a team that is still discovering their true collective identity, but just happens to be winning a lot of games while they’re doing it.

The first two games of the Thunder’s second round series against the Memphis Grizzlies illustrate this point pretty well. For starters, Westbrook took some heat for his inability to finish at the rim, having missed six shots that should have been easy lay-ups. It wasn’t a bad game from the third-year point guard, who posted 29 points, eight rebounds and six assists, but the missed lay-ups, his shot selection, his seven turnovers and his five fouls offset some of the good things he did. Had he played a little more under control, the Thunder might have won the game and preserved home court advantage.

Likewise, second-year guard James Harden had a rough Game 1, recording five points and five fouls in 24 minutes. That was a far cry from the 12.2 points he averaged during the regular season, and he didn’t do much of the driving and attacking that was so much a part of his arsenal during the season and the first round, either. After being a significant factor in helping the Thunder beat the Denver Nuggets in the first round, Harden disappeared in Game 1 of the second.

In the time between Game 1 and last night’s Game 2, the Thunder held a series of video sessions and even a players-only dinner, talking about who needs the ball where, who needs to do what in which sequences, how to get certain guys open and involved. You know, basic Basketball 101 stuff. Remember this is a young team, still very much feeling their way through the playoffs and the pressure that mounts with each passing round. But learn, they did.

Game 2 was more like the Thunder team we saw down the stretch of the regular season and in the first round, with Westbrook attacking and finishing or dishing, taking better care of the ball, and compiling 24 points, six assists, three steals and just four turnovers and one foul. Meanwhile, he made a special effort to get Harden involved the moment the latter checked into the game. Westbrook found his teammate on a fast break, resulting some early free throws and also got him a nice, open jumper, which he drilled. Harden was in his comfort zone, and turned in 21 points and five assists on the evening, including 11-for-11 from the foul line.

You see, the Thunder are so good at times that it’s easy to forget just how young they are, just how much growing they still have to do, both individually and as a team. The playoffs are like a compression chamber, accelerating the growth process as games come to mean more and more, and so far this Thunder team is showing that they won’t shy away from the pressure. But don’t be surprised if they sometimes forget the game plan, or if a young player has an off game here and there.

The truth about the Oklahoma City Thunder is that they’re still a very young team, just beginning to tap their enormous potential . . .and that’s a scary thought for the teams who lie between them and their goal of being perennial contenders.

Mike Conley’s Journey

When the Memphis Grizzlies traded Kyle Lowry to the Houston Rockets last season it was a vote of confidence in Mike Conley. Since then, Conley has been on a journey that’s seem him emerge as the floor leader for a playoff team, and he talks with HOOPSWORLD about that journey, about making the playoffs and winning without Rudy Gay, his front court duo, and more in this exclusive interview:

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Dalembert And The Knicks?

One thing New York Knicks fans couldn’t help but notice after their team’s roster was revamped mid-season was the unaddressed gaping hole in the middle. Head coach Mike D’Antoni talked about how much it helped to have Jared Jeffries in the paint after they added him mid-season, but the reality is that Jeffries is not a center, and certainly not a starting center. Ronny Turiaf filled the role in the playoffs, but with limited success, as he is also not a center. If the Knicks are to address their defensive inadequacies – exacerbated by the fact that neither Amar’e Stoudemire nor Carmelo Anthony is exactly a defensive juggernaut – they’re going to need a legitimate center doing battle in the paint to set a new defensive tone for New York.

Enter Samuel Dalembert. That’s right, Mr. Stopper himself. Reports out of New York today indicate that none other than the stifling defense of Dalembert will be the Knicks’ answer this summer as they approach free agency.

What?

Not impressed?

You mean, you don’t think Dalembert is the answer to New York’s every defensive need?

Trust me; you’re not alone. Nonetheless, according to the New York Post’s Marc Berman, Dalembert will be New York’s big target this summer.

{AUTHOR_BOX}The reality is that the Knicks won’t be able to afford the player they really need, someone like free agent-to-be Tyson Chandler, restricted free agent DeAndre Jordan or even Nene or Marc Gasol, the top four centers who could potentially be available this summer. Even if the Knicks could afford someone like Chandler, they can’t afford to put all of their money into one contract, as they lack depth at multiple positions after all but gutting the roster to land Anthony from the Denver Nuggets at the trade deadline.

Dalembert, then, is not the best option, but rather potentially the most affordable option given the Knicks’ big-picture needs. Of course, with so many teams looking for help at the center position, it’s entirely possible the Knicks won’t be able to lure Dalembert, either, or that they will be forced to over-spend to get him. One way or another, finding a true starting center has to be priority number one for New York. Without one they can’t hope to get much further than they did in this year’s postseason run: a first round flameout.

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NBA Chats: There will be just one NBA Chat today as Steve Kyler’s weekly NBA Rumors Chat is moving to Friday for the foreseeable future. HOOPSWORLD rookie Mark Nugent will host his NBA chat today at 10am EST. Mark is one of our Newsline editors and covers the entire NBA. Senior NBA Writer Tommy Beer is ill, and so will not host his normal chat this evening. You can always find the next chat here: Upcoming NBA Chats.