Tag Archives: Steven Adams

First Round Preview vs. the Utah Jazz

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I’ll be honest with you. These last few days have been refreshing. I haven’t had to worry about the Western Conference standings. I haven’t had to worry about not knowing what Oklahoma City Thunder team was going to show up on a night to night basis. I didn’t have to stress about a Paul George shooting slump. Or worry about Carmelo Anthony aging exponentially before our eyes. Or any other plethora of things I’ve worried about this season.

All season long we’ve heard this would be a work in progress. That this process would take time. And with how this team was pieced together over the summer, that request for patience was not a far-fetched one. Many fans view NBA transactions like they view transactions on NBA 2K. If you put Good Player A together with Good Player B, then both players will be good on the same team. But in reality, that’s not always how it works. The process of putting three alpha dogs together and telling them to play as a team is not something that happens instantly. There’s a chemistry that needs to naturally develop, especially when you think of the other variables on the roster.  Continue reading First Round Preview vs. the Utah Jazz →

NTTB Rumblings – Friday the 13th (of April 2018)

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img_4063Brian Davis’ bag of quotables finally got him in trouble (although I don’t think he had racial intentions while saying it): “We think, obviously, the use of that term was offensive and inappropriate, and I expressed that to Brian last night,” Dan Mahoney, the team’s vice president of broadcasting, told The Norman Transcript on Thursday. “Brian assures me that it was not meant in any derogatory way, and he apologizes. But again, we feel strongly that it’s inappropriate and offensive.”

And now he’s been suspended for Game 1.  Continue reading NTTB Rumblings – Friday the 13th (of April 2018) →

NTTB Rumblings – 11 April 2018

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img_4063Jon Hamm (Bleacher Report) on the Thunder’s wild ride this season: “In true Thunder fashion, clinching the franchise’s eighth playoff berth since 2008 on Monday night came with requisite drama. Sewing up a playoff spot required OKC to battle back from an 18-point first-quarter deficit against the Miami Heat. It was par for the course for a Thunder squad that stumbled to an 8-12 start then spent the rest of the season playing catch up.”

Ben Mertens and Chris Grenham (WTLC) with a detailed breakdown of the Thunder’s playoff scenarios: “I said in previewing the final stretch of the season that OKC doesn’t deserve to be a playoff team if they can’t even beat a mediocre Grizzlies team with nothing to play for. That’s still true, even though OKC has locked up a spot. Beyond improving their seed, OKC needs to win this game just go into the playoffs with momentum, following the nice wins over Houston and Miami. A deep playoff run starts with taking care of this putrid Memphis team.” Continue reading NTTB Rumblings – 11 April 2018 →

Thunder @ Heat preview (Game 81 of 82)

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  • When: Monday, 09 April 2018 at 6:30 pm CST
  • Where: American Airlines Arena, Miami, FL
  • TV: FSOK
  • Radio: WWLS The Sports Animal (98.1 FM, 640 AM, 930 AM (Spanish))
  • Line: OKC -3.5 | O/U – 212

There was a moment on Saturday in which it almost seemed like the future of the Oklahoma City Thunder teetered in the balance. With about 33 seconds left in the third quarter of the Thunder vs. Rockets game, Paul George turned the ball over. On the other end of the court, Chris Paul shot and made a three-pointer. At the same time, George did that thing where you try to over-correct a mistake made on one end of the floor only compound the situation. In his zealousness to make-up the mistake of the turnover, George was overly aggressive on the close out of Paul and fouled him as he made the three-pointer. Four-point play completed and the Thunder found themselves down by 6 in what had been a back and forth affair in the 3rd quarter. Continue reading Thunder @ Heat preview (Game 81 of 82) →

NTTB Rumblings – 02 April 2018

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Nick Gallo (OKCThunder.com) recaps the Thunder’s win over the New Orleans Pelicans: “The Thunder had three previous cracks at this type of game – a scrap-and-claw battle between two Western Conference foes in practically must-win situations to secure playoff berths and positioning. Head Coach Billy Donovan and his squad made sure not to let this fourth one slip away, getting high quality shots on most possessions and making enough defensive stops to seal it. “At this point we gotta start shaping up and playing better towards this final stretch, and I thought we did that to close the game out,” said forward Paul George.”

Fred Katz (Norman Transcript) on Billy Donovan changing up the minutes rotations for some players: “George has routinely played the entire first and third quarters of games this season. It’s a preference of his, and he’s consistently talked both privately and publicly about how staying in for the first 12 minutes of halves helps him catch a rhythm. Lately, his rotations have bled into the beginning minutes of second and fourth quarters, as well. That’s 14 or 15 minutes to start an NBA game without taking a breather. Donovan, however, wanted to change it for Sunday’s eventual 109-104 win in New Orleans.” Continue reading NTTB Rumblings – 02 April 2018 →

NTTB Podcast (Episode 30) – Letting It All Out

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IMG_4109On Episode 30 of the NTTB podcast, we discuss the following topics:

  • Weekly Recap: @San Antonio, vs. Denver, @New Orleans
  • Thunder Frustrations
  • Melo and Paul George inconsistencies
  • Steven Adams 2nd half disappearing acts
  • More minutes for Grant and Abrines
  • Who did Huestis piss off?
  • Honeymoon Corey Brewer was fun
  • Westbrook taking over in the 4th quarters
  • Billy Donovan
  • Terrance Ferguson
  • NBA News
  • Western Conference Standings
  • Preview of next week

Intro/Outro music provided by OSC Productions

Thank you for listening. We will be doing a podcast once a week. If you have any Thunder or NBA related questions, make sure you hit us up on Twitter (@alexroig_NTTB or @Montero_A13).

We are on ITunes and Google Play under the NTTB Podcast. Make sure you leave us a 5-star review if you can. As always, Thunder Up!

NTTB Rumblings – 20 March 2018

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img_4063Tim Cato (SB Nation) says the Thunder’s recent win streak is answering questions about them: “The schedule is still hard — their next nine games are all against teams in the playoff hunt, only for the final game of the year to come against the Memphis Grizzlies. Some games look easier now than on paper: the Boston Celtics are injury ravaged, and that’s Oklahoma City’s next opponent; Kawhi Leonard still might not be back for the San Antonio Spurs on March 29; who knows how hard the Golden State Warriors (April 3) and Houston Rockets (April 7) will be trying.”

Russell Westbrook was named Western Conference Player of the Week.

 

 

Mark Gilbert (WTLC) does not think he can count on Paul George: “Remember when the almighty Golden State Warriors played the Thunder on February 24th? I do. It was supposed to be a good night. I had wings. Lemon Pepper to be precise. I also had a celebratory margarita, because I was of the sentient that the Thunder were about to have a 3-0 season lead over the Warriors, and it was a night worth celebrating. And then came Paul George.” Continue reading NTTB Rumblings – 20 March 2018 →

NTTB Rumblings – 19 March 2018

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img_4063Nick Gallo (OKCThunder.com) recaps the Thunder’s epic win in Toronto: “In a game like that, it’s always good to have the NBA’s most competitive, most relentless closer. Russell Westbrook took over down the stretch for the Thunder by scoring 17 of the team’s 19 points to close out the win, including a banked in jump shot from the left wing over Serge Ibaka with 11.7 seconds to go that made it a 4-point game. Prior to that, Westbrook continually attacked and got to his left hand, finishing with three layups going that direction in the final 3:18 of play after Toronto’s Kyle Lowry fouled out.”

Chris Thompson (Deadspin) on the impact Corey Brewer has had on the Thunder: “But this is as good a time as any to note that the Thunder are a truly fucking ridiculous 6-0 since they made Corey Brewer a starter. Corey Brewer. This was cute and funny when it was four straight, and three of the wins had come over Sacramento, Atlanta, and Phoenix, but it is no longer a laughing matter. Their last two wins have come over a desperate Clippers team and the NBA’s best home team. Again I want to stress that this was done while Corey Effing Brewerwas starting in their backcourt. He’s played more than 30 minutes in each of their last five games.” Continue reading NTTB Rumblings – 19 March 2018 →

NTTB Rumblings – 27 February 2018

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img_4063Royce Young (ESPN) on Paul George saying the Thunder’s Big 3 are officiated differently: “George was demonstrative talking with the officials a number of times after driving at the basket with contact and no call. Westbrook, George and Anthony combined for nine free throws, with Westbrook taking two and Anthony taking none.”

Nick Gallo (OKCThunder.com) with a recap of the Magic game, where the bench came up big: “During pregame warmups, Russell Westbrook called over reserve forward Patrick Patterson and gave him a very straight forward message: “Shoot the ball”. It was as much an instillation of confidence as it was a directive. Turns out it was an effective message not just for the Thunder stretch forward, but the entire reserve unit.” Continue reading NTTB Rumblings – 27 February 2018 →

Thunder vs. Kings Preview (Game 60 of 82)

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okc logo atkings

  • When: Thursday, 22 February at 9:00 pm CST
  • Where: Golden 1 Center, Sacramento, CA
  • TV: FSOK
  • Radio: WWLS The Sports Animal (98.1 FM, 640 AM, 930 AM (Spanish))
  • Line: OKC -7.5 | O/U – 214

The Set-Up: Rest. Relaxation. Reset. When you look at the Oklahoma City Thunder roster, names like Russell Westbrook, Paul George, Carmelo Anthony, and Raymond Felton jump out at you. These names are known because those guys are all veterans. They’ve been through past wars and know what it takes to get through a grueling 82-game season.  Continue reading Thunder vs. Kings Preview (Game 60 of 82) →