HOOPSWORLD | Basketball News & NBA Rumors

Let’s pause for a moment and think of the improbability that both the Oklahoma City Thunder and Memphis Grizzlies are playing in the NBA semifinals right now.  Further, one of these teams is going to the Western Conference Finals to face either the Dallas Mavericks or Los Angeles Lakers.  Based on how that series is going, the Mavs appear the likely opponent.

As Thunder coach Scott Brooks says, "You don’t get to the second round without being a good team," and he’s right.

The Grizzlies have made three postseason appearances since relocating to Memphis (Vancouver had no playoff runs in their six-season duration); each of these three resulted in first-round eliminations.  This season, their 46-36 record landed them in fourth place of the Southwest division with an eighth seeding.  Memphis then promptly made history by knocking off the first seed, the San Antonio Spurs (4-2), in the first round.

The Thunder famously threatened the Lakers last season in the franchise’s only postseason appearance since relating to Oklahoma City in 2008; the Lakers came away with the first-round victory.  This season, OKC’s 55-27 record put them atop the Northwest division; as the fourth seed, they dominated the Denver Nuggets in the first round (4-1).

From the start, the Thunder/Grizzlies promised to be an enticing matchup.  Both squads play up-tempo ball and have young players who are hungry to prove themselves as real contenders.

The story of Game 1 was the dominating play of Zach Randolph, along with a solid Marc Gasol, over a low-energy, unfocused Thunder team.  Memphis stole the road win, leaving the Thunder and its fans stunned, 114-101.  The two Memphis big men combined for 54 points (22-of-33 field goal shooting) and 23 rebounds.  A startling 52 points were made in the paint.  Perhaps it wasn’t too startling considering Memphis led the league in paint points during the season.

Oklahoma City’s all-star duos, Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, combined for 62 points, but their bench was a non-factor.  And turnovers were the kiss of death.

Afterwards in the locker room, the Thunder players owned up to their mistakes and vowed to get it together by Game 2.  A split of these first two home games was not the game plan, but it was their reality.  The team knew all would not be lost if they managed to tie up the series before heading to Memphis.

Kendrick Perkins was refreshingly candid after Game 1 in assuming responsibility for the loss.  He explained how he let his emotions get the best of him, telling reporters "I felt like I let us down."  He said Game 2 would be different.

And then something perfectly appropriate happened.   We should have seen it coming given the nature of this team.

At Perkins’ suggestion, the players gathered at Durant’s house the next evening to enjoy a feast and to watch that previous game together while critically dissecting key plays.

This is exactly why the Thunder needed an experienced player in their midst.  Perkins is a 26-year-old veteran leader with eight years’ experience in the league and a championship ring.  Durant is the undisputed star – make no mistake, it’s his team – but when Perk speaks, the guys listen.  When he advises, they act.

The story of Game 2 was two-fold: Oklahoma City took the win 111-102 by effectively protecting the paint and their bench played strong, really strong.

Sixth man James Harden and backup point guard Eric Maynor scored a total of 36 points.  A far cry from the eight points they contributed in Game 1.  In fact, the Thunder bench outscored Memphis 48-29; quite an upgrade considering the Grizzlies bench dominated that area in Game 1 (27-16).  

"I think we’ve got the best bench in the league," said Westbrook to HOOPSWORLD following the game.

"We wanted to come out and match their intensity and get the first hit," said Harden.  "We just did a great job through all four quarters of making sure we had contact and rebounding."

The Thunder successfully packed the paint, forcing the Grizzlies to settle for jump shots.  Randolph and Gasol were limited to a combined 28 points at 5-of-22 field goal shooting.  This time, the Thunder won the paint battle with 38 points compared to the Grizzlies’ 34.  Nick Collison turned in a memorable performance making Randolph uncomfortable on the floor.

Turnovers were still high for OKC, but equal with Memphis at 16 each.

Harden controlled the nerves this time as he coolly dropped 21 points in nine attempted shots and went 11-for-11 at the free throw line.  Maynor picked a great time to get hot; his 15 points were a season high.  He shot 6-of-7 in field goals and added three steals.

"After a tough Game 1, of course we wanted a win on our home floor," noted Durant.  "We want to try to go to Memphis and get one as well.  So we’ve got to come back, be prepared, come in locked-in in practice, and work on what we did wrong in this game.  It’s all about progressing."

"I think that we did a great job in starting the game out with some big-time intensity," Durant continued.  "Everybody was physical.  There was a lot of pushing and grabbing and holding from both teams, but that’s the type of game you like in the playoffs.  I think we responded very well."

That type of effort was exactly what Brooks repeatedly urged them to maintain in time-out huddles.

{AUTHOR_BOX}"It was important that we came out and treated this game as the most important game," said Brooks.  "But one of our things that I’m proud about our guys when we lose, they always bounce back and refocus; do the things that are important that help us be successful.  We were moving the basketball, we were making shots, we were shooting the ball in rhythm.  The key to our team is defending every possession and sharing the basketball on the offensive end."

"We knew going into this series that it was gonna be a very difficult team," Brooks added.  "I felt that we came out and played with a lot of effort in the right areas and that is on the defensive end."

Westbrook answered simply when we asked why Game 2 turned out so differently.

"Protect the paint.  Most of the shots they made were jump shots.  That was the biggest thing we did, protect the paint, and everybody did a good job in contributing in that."

"We were settling for too many jump shots tonight," agreed the Grizzlies’ point guard, Mike Conley.  "And that goes for our big guys too.  They were settling for too many jump shots."

So here we are, 1-1, in this battle.  The series continues in Memphis (where they are 3-0 in these playoffs) for the next two games, then back to OKC in this best-of-seven series.

Obviously, the Thunder is counting on the adjustments and effort that worked in Game 2 to carry over to Game 3.

Memphis has other ideas though.  After watching film, they are re-dedicated to proper spacing and improved ball movement.  Now they are the ones saying the next game will be different.

"We’re still gonna do what we do to pack the paint regardless if they’re spacing out," shared Westbrook at the Thunder’s last practice session before Game 3.

"The first game, that just wasn’t who we are.  The second game, it showed who we are all season long."

Oklahoma City faces a hostile crowd and a determined Memphis team in the next two matchups.  Brooks said he likes road games because the usual distractions of home life disappear.  Westbrook shared his take on road games.

"We come together a lot more," he said.  "We tend to slack a little bit at home, which is a tendency I think of all home teams.  And on the road, we come together a lot more, especially us.  I like playing on the road.  It’s a great feeling to go on the road and try to steal one."

One concern involved Ibaka’s injury; he tweaked his ankle and bumped knees in Game 2, missed some practices and was listed as probable for Game 3.  Brooks definitively ended the speculation.

"Serge practiced today.  He’s feeling much better.  He’s playing."

Durant and Westbrook – averaging 31.6 ppg and 24.6, respectively, during the playoffs – will score points.   Now-healthy Ibaka should continue his double-double effort and monster blocks (4.4 ppg) as seen in seven playoff games thus far.

The second concern is bench play on the road.

Harden and Maynor have given less than desirable production in playoff road games to date.  Harden logged a career average of 5.6 (three games in Los Angeles last season and two games in Denver this season), while Maynor averaged 2.8 ppg.  These two have got to step it up and bring the same effort displayed in Game 2.  This may well be the key to the series.

Keeping the Grizzlies out of the paint is the other key.