RealGM

Darnell Mayberry says Brooks gonna name a starter at center soon, possibly today. And it very well could be Perk.

http://newsok.com/oklahoma-city-thunder-br-steven-adams-or-kendrick-perkins-who-will-start-at-center/article/5360582

Me, I don't care either way. I can see the rationale for either player.

But if Perk is the starter, the fan base, that is not armed with an iota of all the info that the coaching staff has, will throw a hissy fit. Fact is, fans mostly look at a players offensive game, and they really pay little attention to anything else. And in that regard, Perk fails badly.

Anybody , who has watched a tiny bit of basketball, can readily see that Perk is beyond terrible offensively. But evidently, they must think the coaching staff doesn't see that also. There's ample mitigating data that impact who starts, or who finishes a game.

And there's some dramatical theories floated out there, spurred on by Darnell the Drama Queen, that Perk will start due to team " politics " , or it might upset team chemistry. Well, I ain't buyin that one either, Brooks and this coaching staff knows they better win games, or they will be looking for jobs. I can't think of a more tenuous position, than being an NBA head coach. They come and go like the wind.

If the coaching staff thinks Adams will help them win more games, I promise ya that Perk will deal with it. And Darnell has even quoted Nick Collison as saying that locker room drama will not be an issue.

There is no excuse for Perkins starting.

If he does and plays more than 15 MPG he needs to be fired the first month.

KD35Brah wrote:There is no excuse for Perkins starting.

If he does and plays more than 15 MPG he needs to be fired the first month.

Better watch out, when ya gnash ya teeth, ya might break a crown and have to go to the dentist.

I've been expecting him to start (unfortunately), so I won't be surprised if that does end up happening.

go ahead and start Perkins, who cares? As long as Adam's gets starter minutes im fine.

Bravenewworld wrote:go ahead and start Perkins, who cares? As long as Adam's gets starter minutes im fine.

Eggssactly !!

I say start Perk, go about 6 minutes into the first and then depending upon who the opposing center is, how the game has started, whether the opposing coach wants to play small ball or not ......... or just some intuitive decision ... I either bring Adams in , or let Perk play on.

And from that point on, the rest of the game its strictly organic.

Adams is gonna get more minutes this year, I'm almost sure of that, and it will be interesting to watch Thunder's team def rebounding numbers. Last year , they were fifth in the league, which is pretty amazing considering Perk can no longer elevate.

However, one would think, that the Thunders def rebounding will improve with more Adams, but that's not a sure thing. So what if, Adams adds more rebounds, but Ibaka's numbers go down ? And the team rebounding declines ?

Sadly, we probably won't get a clear picture here, cause Thunder have always been good at team rebounding, with KD and Russ getting a lot of them, and obviously , KD is gonna miss a few games. But Roberson is a much better rebounder than Thabo, so the comparison from last year becomes even more murky.

IMO, rebounding is more about positioning and blocking out, than leaping ability. And I have a theory that Perk does a lot of the former, because he can't do the latter.

Thunder's off reb last year , was mediocre, they were 18th. But there's much behind the off reb number, I think a lot of teams don't make much of an effort to OR, I think they are more concerned bout getting back into their half court defense. Whatever extra possessions can be gained by OR, can be lost in allowing easy points in transition.

Brooks says today, that Adams starts.

Good.

The wailing and gnashing of teeth can be avoided.

And also, Reggie and Lamb don't trip to Portland/ LA ......... and without KD, Reggie, Morrow ... they need all the offense they can find, which is why Adams should start.

Is going to be an interesting road trip thats for sure! Hope russ kills it!

Sent from my GT-I9300 using RealGM Forums mobile app

I'm glad Adams is starting because, well, Adams needs to play with the starters. He needs to take the challenge of guarding the other teams' best big. Adams is the present and future. I understand the rationale for starting Perkins in the short term, but it's not a long term strategy. Good on Brooks.

This road trip is going to be rough with only 9 healthy "NBA' players. I'd be very happy with a 3-3 start, but I think 2-4 or 1-5 is more likely. The next 15 games after that are much easier.

Grolgar wrote:This road trip is going to be rough with only 9 healthy "NBA' players. I'd be very happy with a 3-3 start, but I think 2-4 or 1-5 is more likely. The next 15 games after that are much easier.

That is using the term NBA player very loosely. Ibaka, Adams, Collison and Perkins will make for a solid big man rotation. Westbrook is a stud no one will argue that. PJ3 is solid. There is a reason Telfair was overseas last year. Roberson can't make a jump shot. Lance Moore is more of a D-Leagueplayer than an NBA player at this point. It's going to be rough until Reggie and Lamb get back.

Kizz Fastfists wrote:

Grolgar wrote:This road trip is going to be rough with only 9 healthy "NBA' players. I'd be very happy with a 3-3 start, but I think 2-4 or 1-5 is more likely. The next 15 games after that are much easier.

That is using the term NBA player very loosely. Ibaka, Adams, Collison and Perkins will make for a solid big man rotation. Westbrook is a stud no one will argue that. PJ3 is solid. There is a reason Telfair was overseas last year. Roberson can't make a jump shot. Lance Moore is more of a D-Leagueplayer than an NBA player at this point. It's going to be rough until Reggie and Lamb get back.

IMO, its gonna be rough till KD gets back.

Once Reggie and Lamb get back things will be alright. Then after KD gets back the team will really get rolling. I'm not worried about a slow start. They don't need to be the top seed in the west as long as they make the playoffs healthy and playing well.

Wait, did Lance Thomas really barely make the team and then play 30 minutes? I know the bench was thin, but...

Chuck Texas wrote:Wait, did Lance Thomas really barely make the team and then play 30 minutes? I know the bench was thin, but...

He was likely the 3rd best player on the court for the Thunder....

Well that sucks. Hope you guys have been right about all your kids.....

Chuck Texas wrote:Well that sucks. Hope you guys have been right about all your kids.....

I'm sure Brooks was saving minutes, for a back to back.

And four of his nine players are bigs.

And he's not going to over play Russ, even though its ( or was ) tempting, he could wear Russ down quickly.

So think it out, he has Jones, Roberson, and Thomas to play the wing, Telfair and Russ at the guards.

He can either increase Thomas minutes and decrease Telfair, or vice versa. His options are limited, specially on the front of a back to back.

Thunderhead wrote:

Chuck Texas wrote:Well that sucks. Hope you guys have been right about all your kids.....

I'm sure Brooks was saving minutes, for a back to back.

And four of his nine players are bigs.

And he's not going to over play Russ, even though its ( or was ) tempting, he could wear Russ down quickly.

So think it out, he has Jones, Roberson, and Thomas to play the wing, Telfair and Russ at the guards.

He can either increase Thomas minutes and decrease Telfair, or vice versa.

Sorry--I meant Westbrook breaking his hand sucks--not Lance getting a lot of run.