Thunder News
12-5-14: The Oklahoma City Thunder have been one of the worst teams in the Western Conference this season as the team has only been able to post a 4-12 record in the first five weeks of the new NBA season. The Thunder started this week by traveling back home to Oklahoma City to play host to the New York Knicks at home. During the contest the Knicks were once again without their star player in Carmelo Anthony for the game as the Knicks forward continues to battle an injury. In his absence Amar’e Stoudemire had to pick up the bulk of the shooting opportunities and the scoring as he scored 20 points and grabbed 9 rebounds to lead his team in both categories. Tim Hardaway Jr. was the only other member of the Knicks to even score in double figures in the contest as the Thunder went on to easily handle the Knicks by the score of 105-78. The Thunder welcomed back their star player in Kevin Durant for their next contest when the team traveled to New Orleans to take on the New Orleans Pelicans in a Western Conference road matchup. During the contest the Pelicans overcame a huge discrepancy on the free throw line in the Thunder’s favor by scoring 40 points in the second quarter alone. The Pelicans committed 32 fouls in the contest to just 21 for the Thunder which led to seven more opportunities at the line in Kevin Durant’s return to the court. Durant’s return was foiled though by the hot hand of the Pelican’s Tyreke Evans in a 112-104 victory for New Orleans. When the week was all said and done the team finished with an overall record of 5-13. Get your Thunder tickets for next week as the team travels out on the road to face off with the Philadelphia 76ers and the Detroit Pistons before coming back home to play host to the Milwaukee Bucks and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
11-28-14: The Oklahoma City Thunder have been missing Kevin Durant this season as the team has only been able to muster a 3-10 record to start their 2014/2015 campaign. The Thunder started this week by traveling back to Oklahoma City to host the Brooklyn Nets at home. The Thunder were led by Reggie Jackson’s 21 points and 8 assists but Oklahoma City shot just 20% from three point land and 63% from the free throw line. Meanwhile the Nets had a great night shooting as the team finished 27-30 shooting from the charity stripe in a 94-92 victory for the Nets. Brooklyn was led by 23 points from Jarrett Jack while Deron Williams added 17 points in the victory. During the next contest for the Thunder the team traveled back home to Oklahoma City to host the Golden State Warriors. The Thunder were led by 22 points and 11 rebounds from Reggie Jackson while Anthony Morrow added a double-double of his own. Meanwhile Marreese Speights led the Warriors and all scorers with 28 points while Golden State survived another cold night of shooting from Stephen Curry as the pulled out a 91-86 victory. The Thunder finished their schedule this week by playing host to the Utah Jazz the night before the Thanksgiving holiday. Gordon Hayward led the Jazz both in point and rebounds in this contest with 24 points and 8 rebounds but none of his teammates were able to score more than 16 points during the game. Three members of the Jazz did not score in the contest in a tough night shooting for the team from Utah. The Thunder on the other hand enjoyed watching Reggie Jackson post 22 points while Jeremy Lamb kicked in 21 points in a 97-82 victory for Oklahoma City. When the week was all said and done the team finished with an overall record of 4-12. Get your Thunder tickets for next week as the team travels back home to Oklahoma City to host the New York Knicks before setting back out on the road to face off with the New Orleans Pelicans in a short week for the team.
11-21-14: The Oklahoma City Thunder have had a rough go of things at the beginning of their 2014/2015 season as
the team has posted a 3-6 record in the first two weeks of the campaign. The Thunder started this week
by playing host to the Detroit Pistons at home as the team looked to turn their season around. In the
contest Brandon Jennings led all scorers with 29 points while Andre Drummond pulled down 15
rebounds in an easy 96-89 victory for the Pistons. In the loss the Thunder were led by 24 points from
Jeremy Lamb while Reggie Jackson added 20 points and 12 assists as one of three Thunder players to
have double-doubles in the contest. In the Thunder’s next contest the team hosted the red hot Houston
Rockets at home in Oklahoma City. In what was one of the lowest scoring games in the history of the
NBA the Thunder and Rockets only combined for 134 points on the night. The Thunder were led by 18
points each from Lance Thomas and Reggie Jackson while Jackson also added 11 rebounds on the night.
Four different Rockets players scored in double digits in the game led by 19 points from James Harden in
a 69-65 victory for Houston. The Thunder stayed home for their next contest as the team played host to
the Utah Jazz in Oklahoma City. In the game the Jazz were led by 20 points and 14 rebounds from Alec
Burks while four other Utah players scored in double figures on the night. Oklahoma City managed to
get just three players in double digits during the game while being led by 19 points from Jeremy Lamb.
The Jazz outshot the Thunder is this game and out-rebounded them as well in a 98-81 Utah victory over
Oklahoma City. The Thunder finished their week off by traveling back out on the road to Denver to take
on the Denver Nuggets in a Western Conference showdown. In the contest the Thunder were led by 22
points and 13 rebounds from Serge Ibaka while Sebastian Telfair added 18 points for Oklahoma City. The
Nuggets were that much better on the night though as Wilson Chandler’s 21 point night and Ty Lawson’s
15 point and 15 rebound double-double propelled the Nuggets to a 107-100 victory over the Thunder.
When the week was all said and done the team finished with an overall record of 3-10. Get your
Thunder tickets for next week as the team travels back home to host the Brooklyn Nets, the Golden
State Warriors and the Utah Jazz.
11-14-14: The Oklahoma City Thunder did not start out their 2014/2015 season the way they had hoped as Kevin Durant went down early and the team started with a 1-4 record on the season. The Thunder started this week by hosting the red hot Memphis Grizzlies at home. In the game the Thunder played the Grizzlies close for much of the contest behind 22 points from Reggie Jackson. Oklahoma City’s defense could not stop Mike Conley in the contest as the Grizzlies guard led all scorers with 20 points as the Grizzlies went on to narrowly beat the Thunder by the score of 91-89. Two nights later the Thunder were back at home but this time hosting the Sacramento Kings. In the game Reggie Jackson scored 22 points while Jeremy Lamb added 17 points in a Thunder 101-93 victory. The Kings forward Rudy Gay scored 23 points while both DeMarcus Cousins and Ben McLemore added 16 points each in the loss. The Thunder looked to make it two in a row in their next game as the team traveled to Milwaukee to take on the Bucks. In the game OJ Mayo and Brandon Knight combined for 35 points for Milwaukee to lead the offensive attack in a relatively low scoring game for both teams. Reggie Jackson broke out for the Thunder in the contest to lead all scorers with 29 points but it was not enough as the guard lacked support from his team. The Milwaukee Bucks beat the Oklahoma City Thunder by the score of 85-78 in the contest. Oklahoma City finished their week off when they hosted the Boston Celtics at home. In the game Boston was led by 20 points from Rajon Rondo but the team as a whole shot just 27% from beyond the arc. Reggie Jackson and Anthony Morrow each scored 28 points in the contest as the Thunder went on to beat the Celtics by the score of 109-94. When the week was all said and done the team finished with an overall record of 3-6. Get your Thunder tickets for next week as the team hosts the Detroit Pistons and the Houston Rockets before heading out on the road to play the Utah Jazz and the Denver Nuggets.
11-7-14: The Oklahoma City Thunder started their 2014/2015 season off last week by losing Kevin Durant to a
foot fracture and losing their first two contests on the road to the Portland Trail Blazers and the Los
Angeles Clippers to start the season 0-2. With the 2014/2015 season entering its first full week the
Thunder hosted the Denver Nuggets in their home opener looking for their first victory of the young
season. In the game Perry Jones and Serge Ibaka each scored 23 points while Kendrick Perkins added 17
points in a 102-91 victory for the Thunder. In the game Denver’s Ty Lawson scored 25 points but had
little support from Arron Afflalo and others as the Nuggets handed Oklahoma City their first victory of
the season. Oklahoma looked to make it two in a row as the team headed out on the road to play a road
game against the Brooklyn Nets. In the contest Brook Lopez and Alan Anderson took over with 18 points
each as six Nets scored in double figures in the contest. Reggie Jackson chipped in 23 points for the
Thunder as four Oklahoma City players scored in double figures in a 116-85 Nets victory. The next night
the Thunder were in Toronto to take on the Raptors looking to win their second game of the season.
Serge Ibaka led the Thunder in the contest with 25 points as six New Orleans players scored in double
figures in the game. The problem for New Orleans is the team was still only able to muster 88 points in
the contest. Toronto was led by 16 points from DeMar DeRozan and the Raptors went on to easily win
the game by the score of 100-88. When the week was all said and done the team finished with an
overall record of 1-4. Get your Thunder tickets for next week as the team hosts the Memphis Grizzlies
and the Sacramento Kings at home before heading out on the road to face off with the Milwaukee Bucks
and the Boston Celtics.
10-31-14: The Oklahoma City Thunder tipped off the 2014-2015 season by facing off with the Portland Trail Blazers on the road in Portland after posting a 2-5 record in the postseason. Oklahoma City lost four straight games to end the preseason as the team looks like it consistently struggled to score points and stop opposing teams. The team did not get any better news on the offensive side after losing Russell Westbrook two games into the season to a broken bone in his hand. Westbrook led all scorers with 38 points in the first game with the Portland Trail Blazers as the Thunder fell by the score of 106-89. The Thunder then traveled to Los Angeles to take on the Clippers in the Opening Week of the NBA but the team could not rally around the loss off Westbrook in another loss by the score of 93-90. The Thunder’s Perry Jones did all he could offensively scoring 32 points on 10-17 shooting but Blake Griffin and Chris Paul were too much for the Thunder to stop in their second loss of the early season. Get your Thunder tickets for next week as the hosts the Denver Nuggets at home before traveling out on the road to take on the Brooklyn Nets and the Toronto Raptors.
10-29-14: Oklahoma City will be missing reigning NBA MVP Kevin Durant for the start of the season, which has temporarily put a damper on excitement for the Thunder. On the secondary market, Thunder tickets currently have a season average of $186.41, which is less than half a percent below the season average last year. That price will likely go up if point guard Russell Westbrook can keep the team afloat in Durant’s absence.
10-24-14: Kevin Durant will be sidelined for the first several months of the season, but the Oklahoma City Thunder have plenty of talent to rely on after the reigning MVP went down with a fractured right foot. The Thunder won 59 games last season and advanced to the Western Conference Finals, ultimately losing to the Spurs in six games. They are just 2-5 in the preseason, however.
10-15-14: The Oklahoma City Thunder opened their preseason with a 114-101 loss to the Denver Nuggets and have since won two straight including a 117-107 win over the Memphis Grizzlies in their last outing. The OKC Thunder will next get ready to face the New Orleans Pelicans this Thursday at the Smoothie King Center, followed by three remaining preseason games with Toronto, Minnesota, and Utah before the OKC Thunder kick off their regular season on Oct 29 on the road against the Portland Trailblazers.
10-8-14: The OKC Thunder kick off their preseason tonight as they go on the road to take on the Denver Nuggets at the Pepsi Center. OKC will then travel to the American Airlines Arena to play the Dallas Mavericks this Friday, followed by remaining preseason games with the Grizzlies, Pelicans, Raptors, Timberwolves, and Jazz to finish off their preseason schedule. It’s truly Championship or bust for the OKC Thunder as anything less will be a major disappointment.
9-22-14: Ever since the loss of James Harden in 2012 the Oklahoma City Thunder have not been able to get back to the finals. Missing Harden’s bench production the Thunder look to see a help from veteran signings Anthony Morrow and Sebastian Telfair. Rookie Mitch McGary and breakout Sophomore Steven Adams are waiting in the wings to take over for Kendrick Perkins and Nick Collison, both of whom are on expiring deals. Perry Jones and Jeremy Lamb both made improvements last season but unless they make a big jump expect the Thunder bench to still be a problem.
8-13-14: The Oklahoma City Thunder didn’t hit any homeruns in this year’s offseason as the window to win an NBA title in OKC could be closing now that Durant is up for free agency in 2016 with rumors swirling of a possible homecoming to Washington. However, the OKC Thunder did add some tools to their roster signing three draft picks and signing one of the best shooters in the game in Anthony Morrow. However, they missed out on the Pau Gasol sweepstakes and are these offseason acquisitions enough for the Thunder that has to compete in a very strong and improving Western Conference.
Oklahoma City Thunder 2014 Draft Overview
Round 1, Pick 21, Mitch McGary, PF, Michigan
Round 1, Pick 29, Josh Huestis, SF, Stanford
6-9-14: The Thunder could not force a Game 7 against the San Antonio Spurs. Oklahoma City fought hard, but was unable to take advantage of Tony Parker’s absence. Although the Thunder battled back in the fourth quarter to force overtime, the Spurs put Oklahoma City away, 112-107. Russell Westbrook’s game-high 34 points and Kevin Durant’s 31 points were not enough as Oklahoma City went back-to-back seasons without making it to the Finals. While there has been criticism that Scott Brooks might not have much of a future with the Thunder, he said that he is not worried about his job status.
6-2-14: Thunder fans could not believe what they were seeing in Games 3 and 4. Serge Ibaka, who was thought to be out for the entire postseason, came back to play a combined 65 minutes in Oklahoma City’s home games this past week. Although he struggled in his 27 minutes played in San Antonio in Game 5, he is still making a very important impact on the Western Conference Finals. He has blocked nine shots in his three games played and helped the Thunder tie the series. In Games 3 and 4, Russell Westbrook was the game-high scorer. He scored 26 points in Game 3 and 40 points in Game 4.
5-27-14: Kevin Durant scored a game-high 28 points in Game 1, but that performance was not enough as the Thunder fell by 17 points at the hands of the San Antonio Spurs. In that contest, Nick Collison started in place of Serge Ibaka, who suffered a calf injury during the previous series. After having a frustrating fourth quarter in Game 1, Oklahoma City struggled during most of Game 2. Although the Thunder led after the first quarter, Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook only scored 15 points apiece in the game. The Thunder lost, 112-77, and shot terribly from 3-point land that evening. The team combined for 2-of-20 shooting from downtown while Danny Green shot 70 percent on his double-digit 3-point attempts.
5-19-14: Oklahoma City split its first two games with the Los Angeles Clippers, but then played very well at the Staples Center. In Game 3, Kevin Durant led the way with 36 points as the Thunder defeated the Clippers, 118-112. Russell Westbrook also chipped in with a near triple-double. Although Los Angeles took Game 4, Durant and Westbrook kept up their strong performances. Then, Westbrook’s game-high 38 points in Game 5 helped Oklahoma City come back from the 13-point fourth-quarter deficit and win the game. Scott Brooks’ squad was down at the half in Game 6 in Los Angeles, but the Thunder rallied to close out the series.
5-12-14: Oklahoma City was pushed to a Game 7 by the Memphis Grizzlies, but emerged victorious to move on to the second round. The Thunder defeated the Grizzlies, 120-109, behind a game-high 33 points by Kevin Durant. In addition, Russell Westbrook became just the second player in NBA history with multiple Game 7 triple-doubles. Thabo Sefolosha moved back into the starting lineup for Game 1 of the second-round series, but Oklahoma City lost that contest. However, Kevin Durant’s NBA Most Valuable Player speech and his game-high 32 points helped the Thunder win Game 2 by 11 points. The series then shifted to Los Angeles.
5-5-14: It was not looking good for the Thunder this series, but Scott Brook’s squad was able to take two of the three games this past week to even the series and force a home Game 7. Reggie Jackson was the game-high scorer in Game 4 with 32 points, as Oklahoma City defeated the Memphis Grizzlies, 92-89, in overtime. Then, on Tuesday, Russell Westbrook put up 30 points, but it was not enough. The Grizzlies took Game 5 in the series’ fourth consecutive overtime game. However, the Thunder bounced back in Game 6 behind a game-high 36 points from Kevin Durant. He led Oklahoma City to the 104-84 victory in Memphis.
4-28-14: The Thunder may not want to see any more overtime games against this battle-tested Memphis Grizzlies team. Although Kevin Durant is the only player in 2013 and 2014 to put up at least 30 points in three consecutive playoffs games, his Oklahoma City team has dropped two of its first three contests in this series. However, the Thunder began the first round with a victory. Durant’s game-high 33 points led his team to the 100-86 win on Saturday. Then on Monday, Durant scored 36 points in the Game 2 overtime loss. In Game 3, the Thunder rallied from a 17-point fourth-quarter deficit, but fell in overtime again.
4-21-14: Although Oklahoma City went just 5-4 in April, Kevin Durant and Serge Ibaka played very well. In that month, Durant led all players in points en route to his fourth scoring title in the last five years. “Iblocka” led all players in blocks in April by a large margin and finished second in that category for the season. Scott Brooks was more focused on rest than winning, so Russell Westbrook sat out three games in April, and the Thunder just missed back-to-back 60-win seasons. Westbrook is ready for a full postseason this time around after having his 2013 playoffs cut short due to a torn meniscus in his right knee.
4-16-14: Oklahoma City Thunder playoff tickets average $197 on the secondary market, which is 5th in the western conference and 10th overall. The regular season average was $202, meaning there is a 2% discount for playoff tickets. The Thunder are the 2nd seed in the conference and are set to face the Mavs in the opening round.
4-7-14: Western Conference Player of the Month Kevin Durant surprisingly averaged fewer than 30 points per game this past week, but he was still the game-high scorer in all three games. Oklahoma City started its perfect 3-0 week on Friday against the Sacramento Kings. Durant’s 29 points and six assists led all players at Chesapeake Energy Arena that night as the Thunder won, 94-81. Then on Sunday, Durant put up 31 points and nine assists in the 116-96 win against the Utah Jazz. Thursday night was the highlight of the week as the Thunder snapped the San Antonio Spurs’ 19-game winning streak.
4-1-14: Before Friday’s game at Toronto, the Thunder had played just two overtime games this season. Then, Oklahoma City doubled that total this past week. Kevin Durant ended the road trip on a great note as he put up 51 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists in the Thunder’s 119-118 overtime win over the Raptors. The NBA then named Durant the Western Conference Player of the Week for his strong performances recently. Russell Westbrook missed Monday’s game, but Durant’s game-high 27 points led the team to a 117-96 victory. Then on Tuesday, Westbrook returned and Durant put up another game-high in points, but they were not enough to beat the Dallas Mavericks in overtime.
3-24-14: As we get closer to the end of the regular season, Scott Brooks is not taking any chances. Russell Westbrook will be resting in some of the upcoming back-to-back games. He missed two of the team’s three contests this past week. Without Westbrook on Sunday, Oklahoma City was blown out by the Dallas Mavericks, 109-86. Kevin Durant helped the Thunder bounce back. He put up a game-high 35 points on both Monday and Thursday. Westbrook almost triple-doubled in the Thunder’s 97-85 victory over the Chicago Bulls. Then on Thursday, Westbrook sat out and Oklahoma City beat the Cleveland Cavaliers, 102-95.
3-17-14: The Thunder had been playing better basketball to start the month of March, but the Los Angeles Lakers shocked Oklahoma City at the Staples Center on Sunday to move the Thunder’s losing streak to two games. Although the Thunder fell in that contest, Kevin Durant put up his third triple-double of the season. Then, Durant had an even stronger scoring effort on Tuesday in Oklahoma City’s 106-98 win over the Houston Rockets. On Thursday, Durant made it a career-best 30 consecutive games with at least 25 points as Oklahoma City avenged its loss earlier in the week; they defeated the Lakers, 131-102, at the Chesapeake Energy Arena.
3-10-14: The free-agent veterans have flocked to the Western Conference this season. The Milwaukee Bucks waived Caron Butler on Thursday, and he signed with the Thunder the next day. The Thunder had a strong week at home after struggling during the beginning of the homestand. Oklahoma City went on to beat the Memphis Grizzlies, Charlotte Bobcats and Philadelphia 76ers this past week at the Chesapeake Energy Arena. The Thunder could have made it four wins in a row, but Russell Westbrook’s 36 points and Kevin Durant’s 34 points were not enough. Oklahoma City owned a 16-point lead in the third quarter, but the Phoenix Suns made a big comeback to steal the victory.
3-3-14: The Thunder played just two games this past week and neither of them produced good results for fans of the Oklahoma City franchise. Interestingly, in Russell Westbrook’s first three games back from his injury, the Thunder did not get a victory. The oddest part is that this Oklahoma City team, which started the season so well at home, lost the first three games of its six-game homestand. On Sunday, Kevin Durant’s game-high 42 points were not enough as the Clippers beat the Thunder, 125-117. On Tuesday, Kendrick Perkins had surgery on his groin, forcing him out for six weeks. Then, the news on the court got worse. Kyrie Irving and the Cleveland Cavaliers beat Oklahoma City by 10 points on Wednesday.
2-24-14: It was an eventful All-Star weekend for the Thunder as head coach Scott Brooks, assistant coach Rex Kalamian, Steven Adams, Kevin Durant and Reggie Jackson all participated. Kalamian coached Team Webber, which included Adams, several other rookies and two sophomores. Then on Saturday, Team Durant made it to the finals of the Shooting Stars Competition and Jackson took part in the skills challenge with Goran Dragic. Durant started for Brooks’ Western Conference All-Star squad and scored 38 points. After the All-Star game, the Thunder had some time off, but that did not help them against Miami. In Russell Westbrook’s first game since December 25, Oklahoma City lost by its largest margin of the season.
2-18-14: After starting 40-15 in each of the last two seasons, Oklahoma City stepped up its performance to another level this year. Heading into the All-Star break, the top record in the NBA resides with Scott Brook’s squad. Standing at 43-12, Oklahoma City has matched its best 55-game start in franchise history. Although the Thunder fell to the Orlando Magic at the buzzer on Friday, the team bounced back to defeat the New York Knicks by double digits on Sunday. Western Conference Player of the Week Kevin Durant led all players with 41 points in that victory. Then, he continued his strong scoring to get the Thunder wins on the road against the Portland Trail Blazers and Los Angeles Lakers.
2-10-14: The Thunder’s 25-point victory over the Brooklyn Nets was the team’s 10th win in a row, which marked the first time that Oklahoma City had a double-digit winning streak since 2012. In addition, Kevin Durant made at least 10 field goals and shot better than 80 percent on the same night for the first time in his career. However, the Thunder could not handle the Washington Wizards, who beat them by 15 points the following evening. Scott Brooks’ squad did bounce back though. The Thunder returned home to beat the Memphis Grizzlies and the Minnesota Timberwolves to move the team’s record to 40-11.
2-4-14: It is Kevin Durant’s world, and we are just living in it. With four more victories this past week, Oklahoma City extended its current winning streak to a league-best nine games. Although Durant missed Friday’s game, his teammates played very well in his absence as the Thunder defeated the Celtics by 18 points in Boston. Then, the MVP candidate returned on Saturday to do more than just continue his 30-point streak. Durant triple-doubled in Philadelphia to help Oklahoma City get another double-digit win. The Western Conference Player of the Week then kept up his strong performance as he scored a game-high 41 points and hit the game-winning jumper to beat the Atlanta Hawks. Soon after Scott Brooks learned that he would be coaching the Western Conference in the NBA All-Star game, he coached the Thunder to a big victory over the Heat in Miami.
1-27-14: The Thunder had a fantastic four-game week. Kevin Durant and company hosted the Golden State Warriors, Sacramento Kings and Portland Trail Blazers and beat them by a combined 29 points. On Friday, Durant scored a career-high 54 points in the Thunder’s 127-121 victory over the Warriors. Then, he filled the stat sheet two days later in Oklahoma City’s 15-point win over the Kings. Durant became the first player in two years to record multiple games of 30 points, nine assists, six rebounds and four steals in the same season. Unsurprisingly, Durant was named the Western Conference Player of the Week and then continued his dominance. He led the way in wins over the Trail Blazers and Spurs.
1-20-14: Kevin Durant has been turning in some heroic efforts, but the Russell Westbrook-less Thunder lost three consecutive road games recently. Oklahoma City almost lost its fourth in a row on Thursday in Houston, but the Thunder held the Rockets to 19 second-half points en route to the impressive comeback victory. Earlier this month, Durant showed off his scoring ability as he put together consecutive road games of 48 points each, becoming the first player to accomplish that feat in seven years. Durant, who leads the NBA in scoring by a large margin, also became the first player to score at least 30 points in five straight games this season.
1-7-14: The Thunder entered this week with just one home loss this season. However, they now have three. After winning the first two games this past week, Oklahoma City let both the Portland Trail Blazers and Brooklyn Nets make major comebacks en route to their respective victories at the Chesapeake Energy Arena. That was not even the worst news of the week for the Thunder. Russell Westbrook underwent arthroscopic knee surgery, and he is expected to be out until after the All-Star break. On the bright side, with the four-point victory in Charlotte on Friday, the Thunder won each of the team’s last seven road games, the franchise’s longest such streak since 2002.
12-30-13: Led by Russell Westbrook’s game-high 31 points on Saturday, Oklahoma City defeated the San Antonio Spurs at the AT&T Center to extend its winning streak to a season-long nine games. Although Westbrook and Kevin Durant combined for 51 points the next night, it was not enough. The Toronto Raptors shocked the Thunder and the Chesapeake Energy Arena crowd by handing Oklahoma City its first loss of the season at home. However, the Thunder bounced back with Russell Westbrook’s seventh career regular-season triple-double and Kevin Durant’s 29 points to blow out the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on Christmas Day.
12-22-13: It is only December, and the Oklahoma City basketball franchise has already cemented two winning streaks of eight games each this season. In addition, Kevin Durant and the Thunder are the only NBA team that has yet to lose at home this season. With victories over the Los Angeles Lakers, Orlando Magic, Denver Nuggets and Chicago Bulls this past week, the Thunder moved to 21-4. We all know how great Durant and Russell Westbrook are, but Reggie Jackson has impressed the league in only his third professional season. He has experienced an uptick in minutes in 2013-14, and now has scored double-digit points in 10 of his last 11 games as an important sixth man to this team.
12-13-13: What a great week it was for the Thunder: Oklahoma City went 4-0 and is arguably the NBA’s best team over the last few weeks. Kevin Durant led all scorers in the Thunder’s victories over the New Orleans Pelicans, Indiana Pacers and Atlanta Hawks. Then, Russell Westbrook took the reins with a game-high 27 points at Memphis in a 16-point win over the Grizzlies. Now at 17-4 overall and 10-0 at home this season, Oklahoma City is ready for another title run. As a top-10 team in both offensive and defensive efficiency in 2013-14, it is time for the Thunder to strike.
12-6-13: Russell Westbrook returned earlier than expected from knee surgery, and that decision has paid dividends for the Thunder. He and Kevin Durant led Oklahoma City to the team’s eighth consecutive victory on Tuesday in Sacramento. Earlier in the week, Westbrook had a game-high 34 points and the game-winning shot on Friday to beat the Golden State Warriors in overtime, and Durant had his first triple-double of the season in the Thunder’s double-digit victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday. However, the Thunder lost on the second-night of a back-to-back on the road against the Portland Trail Blazers. It will be intriguing to see how the Thunder perform when the Trail Blazers head to Oklahoma for the matchup between these two powerhouses on December 31.
11-28-13: The Thunder picked up a big win on Wednesday night at home against the San Antonio Spurs, to improve their record to 10-3 on the year. It was the fifth straight win for OKC. Kevin Durant had 23 points and 13 rebounds, Serge Ibaka had 17 points, 11 rebounds and five blocks and Reggie Jackson scored 23 off the bench. Despite Russell Westbrook shooting just 2-16 from the floor, Oklahoma City picked up the emphatic win. The Thunder is currently sitting in the 3-seed in the West.
11-22-13: The Oklahoma City Thunder will always be elite as long as they have Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook teamed up together. Each time you think that OKC may be slipping, Durant comes out and wipes the floor with his competition. The Thunder won their third straight game on Thursday night after Durant dropped 28 on the Los Angeles Clippers, to improve Oklahoma City’s overall record to 8-3. KD is averaging his most points per game (29.5) in over four years and is averaging a career high 5.5 assists per game. The evolution of Kevin Durant.
11-15-13: The Oklahoma City Thunder still stand strong at 5-3 through three weeks, but have had some difficult beating the elite teams out west of late. Two straight losses to the Clippers and Warriors may have slightly exposed OKC as a team that can’t finish games on defense. Defense continues to be their achilles heel, overall, as the Thunder have given up 100+ points in four straight contests.
11-8-13: Russell Westbrook returned way earlier than anyone anticipated (knee), propelling the Thunder to two straight wins and a 3-1 overall record through their first four games. OKC still needs a third scorer off the bench they can rely on and may need to swing a trade later in the year to get it, but for the moment they appear to have enough talent to get locked and loaded for another deep post-season run.
11-1-13: As in the 2013 playoffs, Oklahoma City is without Russell Westbrook at the beginning of this regular season. With James Harden in Houston, Kevin Durant will have to take the reins early on in 2013-14. The Thunder brought most of last season’s roster into this year, as they hope for better luck with injuries this time around. Reggie Jackson takes Westbrook’s role for now after impressing in the preseason with his shot and propensity to get to the free-throw line. Another man in Oklahoma City that had a strong preseason showing was Serge Ibaka, who needs to step up this season if this team wants to raise the Larry O’Brien Trophy in June.
10-21-13: The Oklahoma City Thunder are 4-1 through five preseason games with the only loss coming at the hands of the New Orleans Pelicans 105-102 in the fourth game. Reggie Jackson has led the team in assists in three of the five games and leads the team in assists per game through the preseason, which will be important for the Thunder during the regular season while Russell Westbrook is out. Jackson also led Oklahoma City in scoring in two of those games, with Kevin Durant as the scoring leader in the other three and through the preseason. The Thunder have two preseason games remaining:
- Oct 22 at Phoenix
- Oct 23 vs Chicago
8-23-13: Expectations for the Oklahoma City Thunder last season were Finals or bust. Missing in that scenario was, “Your all-world point guard has season ending surgery”. With Russell Westbrook expected to be back at full health this season, the expectations for the ultimate success are back. Kevin Martin moved on to Minnesota and his spot in the rotation was filled from within, as Jeremy Lamb will be relied on for production. The Thunder selected the 7-foot Steven Adams with the 10th overall pick, who will get a shot to back up Kendrick Perkins. With the 26th overall pick, the Thunder selected the undersized, yet scrappy forward Andre Roberson.
Oklahoma City will open their home season schedule on Sunday, November 3rd against the Phoenix Suns. The Houston Rockets and James Harden will return to OKC on Sunday, December 29th and again on Tuesday, March 11th. Lob City will visit Oklahoma City on Thursday, November 21st as well as on Sunday, February 23rd. The Miami Heat will make their sole appearance in OKC on Thursday, February 20th.
Key Home Games:
- November 3rd – Phoenix Suns
- November 27th – San Antonio Spurs
- December 13th – Los Angeles Lakers
- December 29th – Houston Rockets
- February 20th – Miami Heat
8-18-13: Following last year's disappointing season, forward Kendrick Perkins has spent the offseason working out in an attempt to turn his career around.
He also underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right knee last month.
Kevin Durant dropped 63 points in the Jamal Crawford Summer Pro-Am game in Seattle last week. This was the first time he played in Seattle since his rookie year and he clearly didn't disappoint.
Thunder 2013 Draft Summary:
Round 1, Pick 12: C Steven Adams, Pittsburgh.
Round 1, Pick 26: SF Andre Roberson, Colorado (from Golden State/Houston). Round 2, Pick 2: SG Alex Abrines, Spain.
6-12-13: The season started out promising for the Thunder but ended rather prematurely. After winning 60 games and locking up the top seed in the west, the Thunder braced for a series against the Houston Rockets. All was well until all-star point guard Russell Westbrook suffered a season ending knee injury during a controversial hustle play with an opponent. Without Westbrook, the Thunder were able to advance to the next round before being ousted by the Memphis Grizzles. In an unusual case, the Thunder will actually select in the draft amongst the lottery teams, in the 12th slot. This should only continue their impressive resume of home grown talent.
2-20-13: The Thunder are 39-14 and losers of two straight, but there is little to worry about in Oklahoma these days. As the team travels to Houston for their first game since the all-star break, they will look to improve on their current first place position by increasing their lead over division rivals. After playing Houston the Thunder will return home for a 3 game mini home stand. League leading scorer and MVP candidate Kevin Durant has been leading the way for the Thunder averaging 29 points per game, despite Russell Westbrook bring the team’s leading shot taker. Many have criticized this fact but the fact5 that remains is that the Thunder are championship contenders.
11-26-12: The Thunder has jumped out to a strong 10-4 start this season as they gear up to make another run at the title. With Kevin Durant putting up MVP-type numbers, OKC prepares for a three game home stand against the Bobcats, Rockets and Jazz. Despite the trade of James Harden, the Thunder still score 103 points per game which is second best in the entire league. With a week of winnable games, expect the Thunder to remain in first place through the all-star break and beyond.
