[44-8] | .:Thunder Up:. | DISCONTINUED

[Durant35]

November Transactions

Trades:

1. Utah trades Alec Burks, and their future second round pick for a future first rounder.

Grade: C+
Alec Burks is a rising force, I don't see why you can give up on the kid so easily.

2. Suns ship P.J. Tucker in exchange for the Bucks' Drew Gooden and Expe Udoh.

Grade: B+
When trading away a non-existent player for two role players, certainly, it would create some impact. Another plus is Udoh's expiring contract. BUT! Drew Gooden, is still owed 13M for two years, so that's a huge minus.

Signings/Extensions:

- Mavericks extend O.J. Mayo to a 4 year deal.
- Rockets extend Aaron Brooks for 3 years.
- Bucks ridiculously sign Monta Ellis to a near-max deal.
- Bobcats extend Ben Gordon for 4 years.
- Spurs sign Doug McDermott for a 1 year unguaranteed contract deal.
- Cavs management extend C.J. Miles to a 3yr/$8.50M deal.
- Nets sign C.J. Watson to a 3yr/$4.46M deal.
- Pacers won't let go of Lance Stephenson, 5 yr/$22.00M deal.
- Bulls extend All-Star Luol Deng for four years and $31.00M.
- Warriors extend Carl Landry, Richard Jefferson and Brandon Rush with different contracts.
- Kings lock Isaiah Thomas for 5yr/$31.60M deal.
- Dirk takes huge paycut from Mavs, takes $6.39M next season.
- Jazz extend Marvin Williams to a 5yr/$9.00M deal.
- Hawks sign Mike Scott to a 3 year deal.
- Grizzlies extend Sixth Man Jerryd Bayless to a 3yr/$16.60M deal.
- Hawks sign FA Carlos Delfino for a year.

Staff Firing/Hiring:

[hova-]

Holy cow, 67? Thats nice. Keep it up, hope to see you playing SEA soon.

[Durant35]

Thunder falls to red-hot Rockets

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GAME RECAP | GAME SUMMARY | TEAM STATS

Player of the Game: Jeremy Lin (26 PTS, 4 REB and 5 AST)

Well, you can't win all of them. With a minute left in the clock, Kevin Durant hoisted up a three-pointer which clanged off the rim and fell into the hands of Dwight Howard, who threw the ball to the running Parsons and scores with the layup. The score was 106-102. But the Thunder wanted to win. With every possesion, the Thunder tried to put the dagger into the hearts of Houston fans, but eventually, it backfired.

Here's how it went. Kevin Durant 3-pointer, miss. Chandler Parsons layup. Westbrook dunk. Jeremy Lin three. Chandler Parsons three. What did you notice? It was 1-3. Three successful possessions for the Rockets. And they confidently closed the Thunder out. Rookie C.J. Leslie did a great job of defending the three-time scoring champion, who shot a season low 39.3%, 11 of 28. The Thunder star scored 31 points along with 7 rebounds and 3 assists.

Westbrook had 33, 4, 5 and 2 steals. Reggie Jackson scored 12 points, 5 rebounds and 5 steals. Ibaka had 11, 13, 3 and his average 2 blocks. The Rockets got 96 shot attempts, highest against the Thunder this season. Dwight Howard had 17 points on 6-of-9. He also grabbed 10 rebounds. And that's the Rockets' performance WITHOUT former Thunder Sixth Man James Harden.

Photos:

Simulated Game:

OKC vs CLE - W

[Mark.]

Yeah I wouldn't mind seeing boxscores (if it isn't too much work though)

[hova-]

Nifty move by Jackson.

[Durant35]

Thunder get W despite Durant's struggles

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GAME RECAP | GAME SUMMARY | TEAM STATS

BOX SCORE

Player of the Game: Russell Westbrook (22 PTS, 3 REB, 7 AST, 2 STL and 1 BLK)

OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA - As the OKlahoma's three-time Scoring Champion Kevin Durant struggled to get any rhythm from the field, the sidekick, Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant's Robin, stepped up his play and scored his final 6 points with 3 minutes left in the game. The Thunder then went on a 10-2 comeback that gave them a two-point lead with 3 seconds left.

The Knicks inbounded the ball to Carmelo immediately, prompting the scoring machine to shoot a three-pointer, which was blocked by Batman, Kevin Durant. The Thunder Forward went on to finish the night with 28 points, 7 rebounds, two blocks and 2 assists in thirty-three minutes of action while shooting low from the field (40.7%) and 1-of-7 from beyond the arc.

Photos:

[Durant35]

Simulated Games:

OKC @ CHA: W - 85-84
OKC @ HOU: L - 94-98
OKC @ UTA: W - 108-71
OKC @ POR: W - 68-66

[Phil89]

That Blazers game looks like it was really exciting 3 wins out of 4 on the road is a good result though.

[Durant35]

Thunder, Ibaka come up big against San Antonio

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GAME RECAP | GAME SUMMARY | TEAM STATS

BOX SCORE

Player of the Game: Serge Ibaka (18 PTS, 11 REB - 3 OFF, 2 AST and 4 BLK)

Well, Ibaka's stats summed the game pretty well. The Congo Forward was spectacular on both ends of the floor, and topped the Duncan-less Spurs. The Oklahoma City Thunder led the game all the way and dismantled the Spurs well. Every quarter, the Thunder led. Thunder stars Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook combined for a 13-of-33 shooting performance, but still scored 31 points.

Kevin Durant, despite shooting 45%, a number well below his season average and his standards, dominated by doing other things. He tallied 21 points, 6 rebounds and dished out five assists in 40 minutes of action. Russell Westbrook had 10, 4 and 8 assists. Thabo Sefolosha stepped up his offensive game, scoring a season-high 17 points, including 4 of 5 from downtown.

Tony Parker would like to forget this night, as he shot a career-low 20% from the field, finishing the night hitting only 3 of his fifteen attempts. "We wanted to swarm Tony as soon as he had the ball." said Scott Brooks.

Photos:

Simulated Games before this match:

OKC @ MEM: L - 89-102
OKC @ DEN: W - 114-89
OKC vs DAL: W - 79-105

[Durant35]

December Transactions

Trades:

- Spurs trade Nando De Colo and Tiago Splitter for the Mavericks' Shawn Marion and Jermaine O'Neal.

Mark Cuban continues to amaze me. First, he talks about amnestying Kobe, now he acquires Tiago. After starting below .500 for the first 30 games, the Spurs are clearly in rebuilding mode, but why would they trade away their valuable asset? Of course, salary cap space.

Spurs' Grade: B-
Mavericks' Grade: A


Signings/Extensions:

- Wizards sign Emeka Okafor to a 3yr/$7.78M deal. Trevor Ariza for 3yrs/$4.74M.
- Pacers extend sharp-shooter Danny Granger for $20.79M and 5 years.
- Paul Pierce planning to finish his career as a Celtic, signs extension for 2yrs/$10.57M.
- Warriors not letting go of Andrew Bogut, 5yr/$25M deal signed.
- Lakers and Gasol won't part ways, Pau with the 3yr/$12.56M extension.

Staff Firing/Hiring:

[hova-]

Nice deal by my man Cube. Gotta love Ibaka's alley. Solid outing with going 3-1 against these WC foes.

[Mark.]

Like the boxscore addition. Nice run of form here, although the scores are shockingly low for some games That Gasol extension is interesting.

[Durant35]

Rockets steal the Thunder from OKC

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GAME RECAP | GAME SUMMARY | TEAM STATS

BOX SCORE

Player of the Game: James Harden (25 PTS, 8 REB, 7 AST and 3 STL)

With 4 matches this season, the Thunder are 0-3 against the second-seeded Houston Rockets. With the acquisition of arguably the best center in the league in Dwight Howard during the off-season, the Rockets transformed from a playoff picture team to a legit title contender. This poses a question to the Thunder Nation, are the Rockets the remaining real threat to the Thunder's chances of repeating what they did last season?

Russell Westbrook was the best performer on the court despite hitting only 9 of his 20 attempts at the hole. He scored 30 points, with 6 rebounds and 9 assists. As a team, the Thunder shot 46% from the field, converting 42 of 90. But what was more eye-popping is how the Rockets, the highest paced team in the league with 96.5 attempts per game, shot 54% from the field.

Kevin Durant scored 29 points, 7 rebounds and had an assist and a steal as well. Serge Ibaka had 15 points and going with it is his usual 13 rebounds. He also dished out a career-high 5 assists. This shows the development that Sam Presti was talking about when he gave Serge Ibaka that $50M extension.

Thomas Robinson, in his second year in the league, had his most efficient game yet, with converting all of his 8 shots and notching 9 rebounds. Only 5 Rockets Players scored while shooting below 50%.

Photos:

Simulated Game:

OKC @ BKN: W - 96-70

[Mark.]

Tough loss. How is Howard going for them?

[Durant35]

Really tough man, I can't seem to cover him up. He and Harden have one of the best PnR.

[hova-]

Wow 73 PIP by HOU. Tough, close loss.

[Durant35]

Tbh, I'm really worried about them. They're 2.0 GMs back, and they swept me.

[Durant35]

Westbrook shuts criticisms with a career-efficient game, 118-98

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GAME RECAP | GAME SUMMARY | TEAM STATS

BOX SCORE

Player of the Game: Russell Westbrook (22 PTS, 4 REB, 17 AST and 3 STL)

AT&T CENTER - Just as Westbrook pulled up for the jumper for his first points and attempt of the game, he knew he was gonna go hot, and hot for the whole game. Westbrook shot a surprisingly 9 attempts, and converted all of them, nabbing 22 points while getting to the line 2 times, and went 3-of-4. He also drained a three-pointer. But what's more impressive is how he got a career-high tying 17 assists, his second time during the season breaking the 15 assists mark.

"I have nothing else to say. They downright destroyed us." said the Four-Time NBA Champion and Future Hall of Famer Tim Duncan, who had 6 points, 10 rebounds, 2 blocks and 2 assists. Kevin Durant was a stat sheet stuffer, as he led a game-high 36 points, and had 4 rebounds. He also had 2 assists, 1 steal and a couple of blocks.

Photos:

[Mark.]

Amazing game from Westbrook

[Durant35]

Ibaka goes off for a career-high, Thunder 120-86

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GAME RECAP | GAME SUMMARY | TEAM STATS

BOX SCORE

Player of the Game: Russell Westbrook (36 PTS, 5 REB, 6 AST and 2 STL)

CHESAPEAKE ENERGY ARENA - A nice Sunday capped off with a win against a respected Eastern Conference is a way to complete the day. The Oklahoma City Thunder clearly won it against an older, veteran Boston Celtics squad. The Thunder scored easily against an exhausted team, who played the Memphis Grizzlies and lost before this game.

It's one of those nights where the Thunder just can't miss. They scored an average of 30 points per quarter, the highest since they came into the league. Kevin Durant was flirting with a triple-double, and ended the game with 17 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists. He also had 2 steals. But what's more surprising is how Serge Ibaka scored on Kevin Garnett, one of the most intense defending players playing the 4-or-5 spot.

The Congo native scored 30 points, missing only 3 shots of his 17 attempts. He also had 11 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 block. One reporter asked him, "Why is your block numbers down?", and he replied "I don't know man, I honestly do everything I can do for this team, and that doesn't just go with the blocks. I'm trying to integrate myself more."

Photos:

Simulated Games before this match:

OKC vs. PHI: W - 86-74
OKC @ CLE: L - 83-87
OKC @ TOR: W - 104-100

[Mark.]

Nice game from Ibaka

[Durant35]

I changed my photomod guys during the last two games, what do you think?

[Durant35]

Marcus Smart, "I don't like it."



When you're in the Thunder as a rookie, you'd probably watch and linger around in a suit during games. During the shootaround, reporters had flocked to the facility in order to discover something more about the team. Marcus Smart was then asked, "What things can you bring this team to the table?" and he replied with an unexpected reply. "I can do a lot. But coach just ain't playing me enough." The Former OSU Cowboy showed how much he hated being on the bench, and not learning on the fly. "I can do a lot better than them. Coach Brooks isn't just trusting us rookies."

He then added, "I already talked to Sam about a trade. I'm here in the NBA to dominate the court, not the bench." There have been rumors circling around that the Thunder are trying to acquire former Thunder Jeff Green. The Thunder are also actively pursuing the Trailblazers' Nicolas Batum. The Former NCAA Superstar averaged 15.4 points, 4.2 assists and 5.8 rebounds in 33.5 minutes of action during the 2012-2013 NCAA Season.

Challenge!

1. Do you think the Thunder would make mid-season changes?
2. If yes, who would they trade for? Batum or Green?
3. If yes, how many Thunder players would be involved in the trade?

[Durant35]

Thunder drops the game to Dallas, 107-111

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GAME RECAP | GAME SUMMARY | TEAM STATS

BOX SCORE

Player of the Game: Darren Collison (21 PTS, 7 REB, 8 AST and 1 STL in 36 MIN)

DALLAS, TEXAS - With a minute remaining, Dirk Nowtizki drained an impossible three-pointer, giving them the lead for the game. The Thunder got back on offense, but sadly, nothing was falling, as they got held to an abysmal 36% shooting during the fourth quarter. "I guess they still got gas in the tank." said Thunder Forward Kevin Durant, who scored 29 points and was 1 rebound away from having a double-double.

Russell Westbrook carried the Thunder load offensively, going 12-of-16 from the field and 3/4 form the three-point land. It was never easy. Nothing is easy even if you have all the talent in the world. The Thunder now drops to 29-8. Road games are ahead.

Photos:

[Durant35]

Thunder destroy Lakers, 111-79

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GAME RECAP | GAME SUMMARY | TEAM STATS

BOX SCORE

Player of the Game: Russell Westbrook (26 PTS, 1 REB, 6 AST, 1 STL and 2 BLK)

With the season already in middle form, the Thunder have emerged as one of the league's top teams, who can seriously take the crown. How do they do that though? With a historical point differential of 12.4 PTS, the Oklahoma City Thunder powered through the old and tired Los Angeles Lakers squad. Kevin Durant torched their defense, dropping 27 points along with 6 rebounds and a couple of assists.

Russell Westbrook was the most efficient player in the court, going 8 of 13 on his shot attempts, with 26 points and 6 assists. The Lakers had no answer for the L.A. Native, as he attacked the rim relentlessly. Serge Ibaka had dropped 15 points and nabbed 13 rebounds, whilst getting a game-high 3 blocks, mostly against the Lakers' opposing Power Forward, Pau Gasol.

Photos:

Games 38 to 41:

OKC vs GSW: W - 93-86
OKC @ NOP: W - 101-83
OKC vs MIN: W - 94-90
OKC vs NOP: W - 104-91

BUMPing the Challenge!