Thunder !!

[centexorange]

Come back with a vengeance. Do they have enough to get it done?

 

[Sangre Naranjada]

This one could easily go 7 games, with the home team winning all of them. That's my guess.

 

[hornpharmd]

Thunder are not going to run out of energy in any game or at any point in a 7 game series. I can see SA running out of gas a bit late in games as this series goes on. It helps SA to have many fouls called to slow down the pace of the game. Game 3 saw 1/2 as many fouls called as game 2 and that kept the pace up which helps the Thunder.

 

[CottonEyedHorn]

Dunno, but it was nice to hear Royal Ivey's name last night.

 

[HornsForever'93]

I wouldn't expect Sefolosha to play that good for 3 more games or for Tiago Splitter to pick up 3 touch fouls in five minutes

 

[hornpharmd]

sef lineup change was key. we'll see what Spurs do for adjustment

 

[hornpharmd]

Westbrook and Harden had off nights in game 4. But Ibaka stepped up big time going 11-11 and scoring 26 points. Durant put his team on his back and carried them to a win.

Spurs starters played bigger minutes in this game and showed great fight in coming back i the 3rd and then not goin away late as Durant was on fire. They continue to spread it around and their 3 point shooting % is unbelievable. I have to wonder if they will cool from outside at some point.

Refs didn't call as many fouls again (only 37 FT combined in game 4) and that again helped the Thunder play their style of basketball. And what a fun style it is too. Hopefully the NBA is watching and learning.

 

[arieshorn]

Man Durant was on a tear last night! I can't believe Greg Oden was selected over him. What a draft day blunder that was. lol

 

[Hu_Fan]

I did not think the Thunder played that good a game in game 5, had a 13-pt lead late in the 4th that evaporated, and still held on. It was an erratic game played in spurts by both teams and a very slow uneven start by the Thunder. I'm surprised OKC actually won that game as bad as they played, but Spurs did not look at all like the team on that same court for games 1 and 2. But then, neither do the Thunder anymore.

I noticed in games 3 & 4, that the Spurs had their main guys on the bench late in the game, resting them when the game was no longer in doubt. But they did not rest them in game 5. And now must go to OKC for a must-win game 6. I look for the Thunder to put fierce pace into the game and try and wear on them. Last night, very late in the game, Tony Parker did not look good on the floor. His legs completely, literally, gave out on him a couple of times.

By the way, Spurs have been accused of flopping. I did notice players have a technique of crowding a ball handler with belly in, chest arched back a bit to entice the ball handler to swing with ball in arms to get some room, which ends up fouling the defender. Parker did that last night on Westbrook and kept trying to do it again.

In Game 6, the Thunder will need to get Sephalusa and Ibaka (spell on both?) involved early, tell Westbrook not to jack up early and let himself warm up a bit, try to get to the basket early and often -- only be careful of the attempts by Spurs to draw charges and flop.

I like how Durant gets other players involved early and then heats up his shooting late 3rd and into 4th.

One other thing.... guard Ginobili !!! beyond the arch.

 

[Statalyzer]

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[Hu_Fan]

Among many things I like about the Thunder.... their many roll players are capable of hitting must-shots late in the game. Examples: Fisher and Harden. Because of that, the two top guns, Durant and Westbrook, are not reluctant to dish off when they don't have the best shot.

In Game 6, Fisher nailed a 3 that kept the gap around 6 points, then hit that short jumper off the glass, then Harden nailed that 3-pointer that I loved because it careened off the inside of the rim and made the net look like his beard when the net swished to the side.

But knowing those two can nail must-make shots to kill rallies of the other team.... and that Durant, and Westbook, know they can rely on that... man, that's great basketball.

A fright for me at the end of Game 6... Perkins missed two must-make shots, but fortunately the gap of did not close because of those missed opportunities. Then he took that bounce pass from Durant and slammed the nail on that late dunk.

 

[hornpharmd]

What is funny is how one key shot late in a game can decide the outcome of that game and the series. We have seen this in past playoff series with guys from LA (fisher, Kobe, Horry) hitting clutch shots and swinging the series their way. Sometimes the 2 teams are just that close competitively on the court for a series that it just comes down to a shot or 2 at the end of a game. And then after that team goes on to win a title we talk about them being champs and perhaps a dynasty later on but we forget about how close they were to perhaps losing that series.

OKC guys made the shots when it counts and I think that was b/c their legs weren't as tired as the Spurs were. And that made all the difference down the stretch of games late.

 

[Hu_Fan]

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