But an 18-2 hole to start the game, something (Kevin) Durant cited as the reason the Thunder lost, has to be concerning. Concerning enough to change the starting five though to match Miami?

“No, not at all,” (Scott) Brooks said. “We just lost 30 minutes ago, so I just think we were missing shots. We didn’t come out with the defensive toughness, the disposition that we need to play with. We have to do that first, and then if it doesn’t work, then we’ll think about doing other things. But right now we have to play better from the very start.”

It’s more likely I get a 10-day contract than Brooks switches his starting five. It’s been the same group since the Kendrick Perkins-Jeff Green trade and it’s not changing. That’s who the Thunder are and it’s how they shall remain.

The area Brooks whiffed in Game 2 though was with his in-game adjustment in his secret weapon smallball lineup. Instead of subbing out Thabo Sefolosha in the first quarter for James Harden with about five minutes left, Harden checked in for Serge Ibaka. And then Brooks pulled the same move with five minutes left in the third. Brooks went small, but he did it with the wrong big.

Perkins has a lot of value to this Thunder team, but it’s primarily in his post defense against interior focused scorers. Like Andrew Bynum, for example. The Heat though, are playing Chris Bosh and Udonis Haslem as their 5. Which minimizes Perkins’ value. And yet Brooks is sticking with his scowling big man, for reasons unknown to many.

via Royce Young of CBS Sports