This Year

[wiff]

This coming year for the Thunder should be one filled with a lot more wins then the past two years.

This team is young, but loaded with talent. They will have at least one All-Star on this team with Kevin Durant.


Plus they drafted a kid that should be in the running for Rookie of the Year award considering his game so well rounded.


They might not have the ideal front court to win a championship but they should have enough talent up front that they should be able to compete.


They have even started to build a solid bench with guys like Collison, Thabo, Livvy and Weaver.





But they have one critical key to success this season. And that is Russell Westbrook.








Russell Westbrook is a physical specimen, he can get into the lane at will. He has physical traits that every NBA PG are envious of. His quickness, speed and leaping ability are amongst the very elite, in a league stacked with players who are physically gifted.

If the game of basketball was played solely based off of physical ability Russell Westbrook would be a Hall of Famer. Of course at this level PG's need to use their minds and good decision making in order to be successful in the league.

That is the scarlet question mark that is stitched on the back of Westbrook's jersey. Can Westbrook harness his raw ability and the desire to make the highlight play into simply making the smart play that leads to two points and not a turnover? If Summer league is any indication of Russell's progression things do not look good this up coming season for the Thunder. Optimists such as myself say "oh it's Summer league, it's glorified YMCA ball". Let's hope it is glorified YMCA ball, because although Westbrook handed out a ton of assists he also turned the ball over at a quick pace.

But that's where the season rest for the Thunder and their fans. Can someone please tell me when was the last time a team with a starting PG leading the league in turnovers actually made the playoffs? I ask because I truly don't know, I guess if it has happened a bunch I might be a little more optimistic about this coming season. But I can't recall it happening.

So in essence this season rests on Westbrook's shoulders. If he can limit his turnovers the Thunder have a very nice shot at making the playoffs. Of course they need to avoid any major injuries but that goes for any team.

So Russell I along with the rest of your fans hope to see you develop into your wildest dreams. We'd all love to see you develop into a smart play making PG who can get into the lane when he wants, can hit the open jumper and loves to get his nose dirty on the defensive end.

But mostly I'd love to see you limit your turnovers this coming year. You do that the rest will follow.

[TheOGJabroni]

Great post.

What I like about this team is the fact that James Harden is the absolute best fit for KD and especially, Westbrook.

Let's say Russell doesn't improve his game whatsoever from last year (highly unlikely). The fact is, he was already improving, for the most part, as the season progressed last year.

He shot a woeful .345% from the field in November when adjusting to the NBA and coming off the bench. Most importantly, when coming off the bench and struggling, the team won 2 games that month. 2! From then on, the team's winning percentage really improved as Russell Westbrook improved (so I agree with your theory). His shooting percentages were much higher from than on and no one on the team was even nearly the playmaker James Harden will be for the Thunder, so expect his percentages to rise significantly next year IMO, regardless if he has truly improved his game.

The day of the NBA having standard positions is gone. It is getting more and more common to see SG and SF taking over PG's duties. I see no problem with Russell Westbrook being a "scoring PG" while James Harden is a "passive SG". Why force these two players to play conventionally when they were drafted because of their potential to become incredily special talents. Let them do what they are best at.

The great thing is, Kevin Durant is already one of the best pure scorers in the NBA at such a young age. What makes it even more impressive is the fact that he doesn't even need the ball in his hands the whole time to score like some superstars do (Kobe, LeBron, etc.) He allows his teammates to play a vital part of their offense which is terrific. I truly believe you have a very special roster. OKC will be very competitive in the future with smart business decisions while signing key players to help your squad grow.

[slick_watts]

the problem with westbrook wasn't just the turnovers, it's the fact that he also shot the ball inefficiently and didn't get his teammates involved enough. he can certainly have success being the player he is, look at devin harris who turns the ball over a bit less, scores a bit more efficiently, and gets his teammates involved a bit more.. and he's an all-star now.

you can deal with the turnovers if he wasn't wasting more possessions missing bad shots or if he was facilitating more offense for others.

[TheOGJabroni]

the problem with westbrook wasn't just the turnovers, it's the fact that he also shot the ball inefficiently and didn't get his teammates involved enough. he can certainly have success being the player he is, look at devin harris who turns the ball over a bit less, scores a bit more efficiently, and gets his teammates involved a bit more.. and he's an all-star now.

you can deal with the turnovers if he wasn't wasting more possessions missing bad shots or if he was facilitating more offense for others.

Which is what I was saying I believe James Harden's presence will really help him with.

[Dick Tate]

LMAO @ Wiffler.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p3-eavMSBnk

[slick_watts]

LMAO @ Wiffler.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p3-eavMSBnk

wow excellent point..

[Dick Tate]

LMAO @ Wiffler.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p3-eavMSBnk

wow excellent point..

What gave you the impression that I was trying to make one?

They might not have the ideal front court to win a championship

That's the understatement of the century. You'd think Wiffler had enough experience over the last decade of watching crappy Sonics teams that he'd understand a team built around perimeter players with a big ol' donut in the middle ain't gonna win squat.

[wiff]

Oh Dick this team may not have a D Howard in the middle but this team is much better constructed 1~8. This team has a true #1 option. And it has more than one player willing to play D. I didn't say they were going to be champs Dick just a chance to make the playoffs.

[Clangus]

Is Dick Take always so offensive?

[wiff]

Is Dick Take always so offensive?

Dick isn't offensive, he's just bitter and he has every right to be.

[BadWolf]

Leaders in TO per game in last few years

Allen Iverson
Gilbert Arenas
Dwyane Wade
Dwyane Wade
Stephan Jackson (Westbrook was 5th)

So having a league leader in TO per game is actually a positive sign for the team.

Last years a/to
79 qualified players
RW is bad at 69 with 1.59, still ahead of fellow rookies that played more offball, but still handled the ball a lot - Ej and OJ, ahead of Ben Gordon and much ahead of KD at 0.91, dead last among qualified players. Anyone worried abou that?

[slick_watts]

Leaders in TO per game in last few years

Allen Iverson
Gilbert Arenas
Dwyane Wade
Dwyane Wade
Stephan Jackson (Westbrook was 5th)

So having a league leader in TO per game is actually a positive sign for the team.

Last years a/to
79 qualified players
RW is bad at 69 with 1.59, still ahead of fellow rookies that played more offball, but still handled the ball a lot - Ej and OJ, ahead of Ben Gordon and much ahead of KD at 0.91, dead last among qualified players. Anyone worried abou that?

westbrook's turnovers are very high for a point guard. most players who lead the league in turnovers are high usage scorers.

i think westbrook had the worst a:to ratio of all starting nba point guards.

i'm not very concerned with kevin durant's turnovers since he's scoring so efficiently.

[BadWolf]

Westbrook is a combo guard put to play the point. Harden should really compliment him well if he pans out. RW is similar type as AI, Wade, Arenas, a scoring combo that makes things happen. We all agree that he should become more efficient and turn the ball less. I'd take 44% shooting over any significant drop in to rate, just cut on the most stupid ones, which should happen this and next year. His A/TO should elevate through higher APG this year with more offensive weapons around.

And Durant's assists and A/TO rates are a case for concern, clearly the area he should improve most. If he's to become a superstar he should make his temmates better, which is iffy so far.

[wizkid27]

I think part of Durant's issue is (especially at the beginning last season), he would dribble the ball off of his foot/leg once per game. Towards the end of the season it seemed like he got more confident in his ball handling ability. After January, he had 3 of his 4 lowest TO/g months of the season, all while scoring more than he had previously. I think he'll probably continue to work on this.

The other aspect of his A:TO is obviously assists. This might be strictly observational, but I don't really remember him ever "finding the open man" or pulling off a great pass to get somebody a bucket. All of his assists came as a product of the number of touches he had every game and eventually having to pass it sometimes. I would love to see him develop as a better passer almost as much as I would like to see Westbrook develop as a better passer.

[slick_watts]

i disagree and feel durant's defense is what he should focus most on improving. durant was efficient enough as a scorer that the turnovers don't really bother me; the difference between 5 assists and 3 turnovers and 3 assists and 3 turnovers is negligible, i'd rather him look for his own shot since he's the most efficient scorer on the team currently. he has to become a better defender.

if westbrook becomes a more efficient scorer then i'd worry less about his a:to ratio, though i'd prefer it be closer to 2:1.

[TheOGJabroni]

Durant wasn't exactly surrounded by shooters either.

Westbrook, Thabo, and Green, are all mediocre at best. Now with Green continuing to improve his shooting, Harden on the team, Krstic being there the whole year, along with improvements in his own game, specifically dribbling, I can see this area of his game improving without much work at all. Durant DOES actually make some pretty decent passes. On his Texas team, he showed quite a bit of potential in that area, regardless of what his numbers said.

[Clangus]

Guys go back and watch some games from last season and pay close attension to passes KD makes where the pass was fumbled or the recipiant didn't finish. His assists would have been AT LEAST 2 per game higher if guys like Collison. Watson etc could finish a layup.

For once I agree with Slick, He needs to improve on the defensive end. Which judging by the comments from the team USA camp he has. Coach K has said that he was impresed with KD's Defense!

Im really expecting massive things from him this year!

[wiff]

Just want to congradulate Westbrook on posting a 3 to 1 Ast/TO ratio for preseason along with tossing out 7.7dimes a game.

I think it is safe to say he is making stride in contoling the ball. He now just needs to bring up his fg%.

Even is Westbrook shoots as poorly as he did from the field last season but is able to keep up his Ast.TO ratio at 3 to 1 I'd say that is a huge improvement. However I crossing my fingers that he finds his stroke too.