The Thunder beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 115-111 to extend their road win streak to 8 games, and also to avoid a season-low three straight losses.
If people doubted the Thunder without Westbrook, one man, the team’s best player, Kevin Durant, proved them incredibly wrong. The way KD rallied the team around him and led the Thunder to victory from 13 points down in the third quarter was nothing short of magical.
An overall impressive performance saw Durant finish the game with an NBA season-high 48 points, as well as 7 assists and 7 rebounds.
The Thunder had struggled in their last 2 games, especially in the fourth quarter, where they lost to Portland and Brooklyn with an especially poor showing in the fourth quarter. It was added incentive for KD to show that those games weren’t just unlucky accidents, but that the Thunder are as strong as ever, even with star point guard Russel Westbrook still out after his third knee surgery.
But let’s not take anything away from the team and Coach Brooks. The bench also produced plenty of points for OKC today with a total of 40, players like Fisher (13 points), Lamb (9 points) or Adams (10 points) in good form.
Make no mistake, Westbrook’s injury will continue to trouble the Thunder, and his absence is definitely felt, but it also provides a great opportunity for the team to grow as a whole and for backup players to improve both in quality of play and confidentially. OKC needs its entire roster to win the NBA Championship this year, and with Kevin Durant in top form, with a more effective bench and the return of Westbrook, the Thunder’s championship hopes are very much alive.
The players to watch are:
Jeremy Lamb, a second-year pro, very young and getting better with each passing game. He scored an all-time high of 22 points for himself 3 games ago, and was also strong against Minnesota with 9 points and 8 rebounds of which 6 were defensive, also 5/5 free throws even after getting slightly injured in the last minutes of the game. fourth quarter. This kid is going far and with Durant, Ibaka and Westbrook by his side, he really has a lot of potential to become a star.
Reggie Jackson has been tasked with taking on the WB responsibilities and is making the most of this opportunity. Another quiet but important performance from him with 10 points/4 rebounds and 4/4 free throws.
Oklahoma will be back in front of their home fans to face the Boston Celtics and should have high morale in what should be a return to form at home after losing their previous 2 games.
Expect a very solid performance from the Thunder, Durant is in top form and Oklahoma is clearly a world-class team, even without its star point guard.