The Thunder have the highest team TS% in NBA history

[TwentyOne920]

I've always wondered how OKC would do if they dumped Perkins and turned Collison into a ~28 minutes guy.

[mysticbb]

I've always wondered how OKC would do if they dumped Perkins and turned Collison into a ~28 minutes guy.

Not a good idea, because one of the reasons Collison can play the way he does is that he does not have to worry about possible foul problems. Having him playing 20 minutes while using someone else at starting C is a very reasonable way, because in that way you can maximize Collison's strength.
If anything, the Thunder might find a 25 min per game center similar strong as Perkins, but for a lower price.

[slick_watts]

OKC is dominating teams at the line to an extent that hasn't been done before. FT/FGA of .302 compared to opponent FT/FGA of .198. As far as I can tell that would be the largest gap between own and opponent FT/FGA since at least 1979. They've also shot well from three point range.

[mysticbb]

OKC is dominating teams at the line to an extent that hasn't been done before. FT/FGA of .302 compared to opponent FT/FGA of .198. As far as I can tell that would be the largest gap between own and opponent FT/FGA since at least 1979.

But I would argue that this is something which is sustainable. They have good free throw shooters and players who are able to generate those fta. Per game that is +6.2 for them. Last season they had +3.6, 2011 +5.1. They are able to defend without sending the other team often to the line. And it is not like the opponents are making their ft shots well below the league average, but in fact above league average. So, even if the other team will shot more ft in the future, they should still be able to keep a +5 difference here. It is one of the strength of the Thunder, and a strength seen now in all years with Scott Brooks as the coach.

They've also shot well from three point range.

Not just well, right now they are shooting historical great. No team ever converted the 3pt shot that well with a normal 3pt distance (the Hornets 1997 had the benifit of the shortened 3pt line). That is something rather not sustainable for a full season.

[slick_watts]

But I would argue that this is something which is sustainable. They have good free throw shooters and players who are able to generate those fta. Per game that is +6.2 for them. Last season they had +3.6, 2011 +5.1. They are able to defend without sending the other team often to the line. And it is not like the opponents are making their ft shots well below the league average, but in fact above league average. So, even if the other team will shot more ft in the future, they should still be able to keep a +5 difference here. It is one of the strength of the Thunder, and a strength seen now in all years with Scott Brooks as the coach.

The extent seems a bit extreme but I agree this should remain a major advantage for the Thunder.

Not just well, right now they are shooting historical great. No team ever converted the 3pt shot that well with a normal 3pt distance (the Hornets 1997 had the benifit of the shortened 3pt line). That is something rather not sustainable for a full season.

Oh definitely. I've cautioned some Thunder fans about this. Durant, Westbrook, Martin, and Sefolosha all well above their career three point percentages. Martin and Sefolosha both above 45%. I don't even know what to make of Sefolosha at this point, he was over 40% last year, came down to 33% in the playoffs, now well over 40% again. I just like to call him an improved shooter.

The good news for the Thunder is that they are still 30th in TOV% and their offensive rebounding has been lower than years past. So there are areas to work on when the shots stop falling with such frequency. I don't believe this team is an all time great offensive team but they were #2 last year, #1 in the playoffs last year, so even if the extent is flukey, being the best offense in the league probably isn't.

[boogie-reke]

If OKC can keep this up in the playoffs, while cutting down their TOs like they magically did last year - it would be incredible if anyone can take the title away from them.

Huge 'if' though, naturally.

[jjgp111292]

We're only a quarter of the way through the season. Expecting them to sustain this is ludicrous. Every great team goes through dominant runs, this just looks more dominant because they're hot at the beginning of the season, so stats get skewed more.

[TwentyOne920]

OKC is dominating teams at the line to an extent that hasn't been done before. FT/FGA of .302 compared to opponent FT/FGA of .198. As far as I can tell that would be the largest gap between own and opponent FT/FGA since at least 1979.

But I would argue that this is something which is sustainable. They have good free throw shooters and players who are able to generate those fta. Per game that is +6.2 for them. Last season they had +3.6, 2011 +5.1. They are able to defend without sending the other team often to the line. And it is not like the opponents are making their ft shots well below the league average, but in fact above league average. So, even if the other team will shot more ft in the future, they should still be able to keep a +5 difference here. It is one of the strength of the Thunder, and a strength seen now in all years with Scott Brooks as the coach.

They've also shot well from three point range.

Not just well, right now they are shooting historical great. No team ever converted the 3pt shot that well with a normal 3pt distance (the Hornets 1997 had the benifit of the shortened 3pt line). That is something rather not sustainable for a full season.

While I do think the superstar calls help OKC become an elite FT shooting team the fact that they're making those FTs helps. But a trade-off is that they're dead last in turnover percentage.

[kodo]

But Bill Simmons said Presti "destroyed" the OKC team by trading Harden.

It's interesting that now that OKC is playing as well as they ever have, every sportswriter who hated on Presti refuses to talk about the Harden trade anymore.

[bledredwine]

I wonder why?


oh yeah,

cause Westbrook ROCKS!!!!! with him and KD, team gets plenty of easy buckets.

[mysticbb]

I just like to call him an improved shooter.

It is not unlikely, indeed. And maybe some of the increase for the others is also "improvement", but to make a judgement on this, we should likely wait for another 20 or 30 games.

The good news for the Thunder is that they are still 30th in TOV% and their offensive rebounding has been lower than years past. So there are areas to work on when the shots stop falling with such frequency. I don't believe this team is an all time great offensive team but they were #2 last year, #1 in the playoffs last year, so even if the extent is flukey, being the best offense in the league probably isn't.

As TwentyOne920 pointed out, there seems to be a trade-off between TOV% and higher FTA/FGA. Also, it seems as if forfeiting some offensive rebounds in order to get back defensively more quickly is a good strategy to force the opponents into worse shots. Restricting the amount of fastbreak opportunities is a part of a good defense. But there is always room for improvement. Imho, the defensive rebounding would be a good starting point for the Thunder. Defensive rebounding is about effort and is usually more sustainable. Being below league average is not a good thing and I see the potential to get that at least to league average level. But well, the Thunder last season were also a below average defensive rebounding team and made the finals ...

[huskerdu]

second best team in the west