The same, but not the same
I figure interim coach Scott Brooks gave the following instructions to the Thunder today:
- Don’t take so many shots if you’re not going to make them;
- We’re not going to throw bodies onto the roster just to see if someone can play this game.
And while the Hornets won this one at home, 109-97, the Thunder didn’t embarrass themselves the way they’ve done too many times this season; it’s just that New Orleans was clicking on all cylinders tonight.
I mean, really. Chris Paul got a triple-double: 29 points, 10 rebounds, 16 assists. Sharpshooter David West scored 33. The Bees won the battle of the boards, 35-29, and they only missed one foul shot all night.
But Oklahoma City, despite a second-quarter dry spell, did several things right. Brooks shook up the starting lineup: Nick Collison was shifted to center, Jeff Green to power forward, Kevin Durant to small forward (where he belongs, if you ask me), and Damien Wilkins got the start at shooting guard. Wilkins responded with 11 points; Chris Wilcox, spelling Collison, got a double-double (14 points, 10 boards); Durant, under less pressure to hit the jump shots, dropped in 30 points. And Jeff Green was decently effective at the four, turning in 17 points and five rebounds. A lot of DNP-CDs tonight: Brooks played only eight men. (New Orleans coach Byron Scott played nine, though Devin Brown was injured early and did not return.)
And that bit about taking fewer and better shots — well, if Brooks didn’t say it, the team still did it. The Thunder hit 38 of 72 for 52.8 percent; the only problem was, the Hornets were even better than that, knocking down 54.1.
If there’s one thing you hate about this game, it’s a back-to-back with a plane trip in between, and there are two such coming up. The Phoenix Suns will be at the Ford Tuesday, and then it’s off to Cleveland to play the Cavs on Wednesday; the Minnesota Timberwolves, the one team the Thunder has actually beaten, will arrive Friday, followed by a trip to Memphis on Saturday.
