What We Learned from the NBA Last Weekend

• Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook are the greatest scoring duo in the league. 91 combined points! Are you kidding me? That many points could win a third of OKC's games if they put those numbers up on a consistent basis. Every time the Thunder step on the court they show why they are the best team in the Western Conference. They have two All-Star caliber players along with some very good role players. Serge Ibaka didn't get much attention Saturday night against the Denver Nuggets because of the barrage of scoring from his teammates, but he quietly had a triple-double. James Harden would be a borderline All-Star on half of the teams in the league.

Courtesy of http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2012/writers/ian_thomsen/02/23/lin.vs.heat/index.html

• Jeremy Lin is the second best point guard in greater New York. On February 4th, Linsanity started with the New York Knicks beating the New Jersey Nets 99-92. Deron Williams put up 21 points, 11 assists, and 6 rebounds for the near triple-double, yet the highlight of the game was Jeremy Lin--the young point guard who broke out for 25 points off the bench. Last Monday, Deron Williams made it his goal to shut down Lin and show the country who really was the premier point guard on the court. Williams went off for 38 points, including eight threes, and stole the show. Through three quarters, with the score 82-64 in favor of New Jersey, Williams had outscored Lin 34 to 11. Half of Jeremy Lin's points came in garbage time when the Nets had sealed the victory. Yes, Jeremy Lin is a great fit for the Knicks but I doubt that he could put up the twenty points and nine assists that he's been averaging in February for any other team. Excluding marketing and advertising Jeremy Lin, the Knicks would take Deron Williams over Lin any day. Deron Williams is often overshadowed and forgotten about because he plays for a 10-25 team with no star teammates and in a market that has to compete with the rising Knicks. Put Williams on the Lakers, Knicks, or Mavericks and they are all legitimate title contenders.

Courtesy of  sbnation.com

NBA Athlete to Watch for in 2012

            Whether you want to call this my MVP prediction, burning LeBron James' jersey metaphorically through my writing, or simply premature hype, here is my NBA player to keep an eye on in the New Year.

NBA-Kevin Durant

            KD 4 MVP. If Durant were to hold a contest for the most conceited license plate suggestion for him, I think this would be a strong contender. Nothing against Derrick Rose or LBJ/King James, and no I'm not referring to the 36th President of the United States or the British king who has translation of the Bible named after him, but 2012 is Durantula's year. The Bulls are my favorite team, but it will be much harder for D-Rose to stand out in a very competitive Eastern Conference with a three-way race between Chicago, the Miami Heat, and the New York Knicks. The 2010-11 MVP will have to compete with Melo, Amare Stoudemire, LeBron, and D-Wade to make the headlines. And this year, LeBron and the Heat aren't taking no for an answer. D-Wade will take credit and even a few MVP votes away from his teammate and the Miami Heat will be the premier team in the East, making it difficult for Rose to get the recognition he deserves.

Courtesy of http://sportstalkbyzach.com/no-love-for-kevin-durant-this-year/

            Watching Durant play his first four games of the season, it was obvious he had made serious improvements in the offseason and is ready to dethrone the Dallas Mavericks and Los Angeles Lakers as the kings of the West. He tied the record of most consecutive games of scoring 30+ points to start a season with four such performances. KD was shooting lights out from the field, with a .573 shooting percentage from the field in that span and while he won't be a league leader in three-pointers, he is shooting 50% on the season. Between his physical prowess and basketball skills, it's actually unfair to play against him. He stands on the court at 6'9" 235 lbs. as the NBA's second leading scorer behind LeBron. Similarly to LeBron James, he's the perfect storm of athleticism, size, and basketball talent that the only defenders who have a chance to shut him down are ones with that "Big Three" combination. Watching the Orlando Magic try to play defense against him in the season opener was laughable.
            Yeah, like Hedo Turkoglu, a below-average player in league when he's doing anything besides taking spot up threes, has any chance of stopping a player with nine fewer years of wear and tear on his body and led the NCAA scoring and rebounding five years ago. Give me a break. Durant scored thirty as he led the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 97-89 victory, but he could have easily scored forty. One quick move was all it took for Turk to question if Durant slipped on an invisibility cloak in front of him or was posterizing one of his teammates behind him. KD could drive past Hedo at will, make his way into the paint to either score an easy bucket or draw a foul on Dwight Howard. Howard has won three Defensive Player of the Year awards but that still doesn't make a difference against Durant. While a center like Superman, may have the height to contest most of his shots, that leaves a gaping hole big enough for Charles Barkley and Shaq to cartwheel through in the lane, not to mention the mismatch that creates on the perimeter.
            Not only has KD's scoring improved, but his assists per game is above his career average and he has shown flashes of his college self, where he can pull in close to ten boards per game. In a shortened season where teams are forced to play 66 games in 120 days, young players and teams have the advantage. They can play on back-to-back-to-back nights and remain healthy while the same cannot be said confidently about teams like the Lakers and San Antonio Spurs. The average age of an OKC player is 25.4 years old, making them one of the youngest teams in the league. Compared to the Lakers' 28.2, the Thunder's players are practically on the verge of needing car seats and binkies. With guys like Russell Westbrook, James Harden, Serge Ibaka, and Daequan Cook, Durant is surrounded by very talented, young players. Oklahoma City will not grow as weary as other teams in this fast-paced season and the best part for Durant is that even though Harden and Westbrook could be All-Stars and "the guy" on other teams, KD is respected as the go-to man and the Thunder's best player.
            This season's MVP Race will be a photo finish between Durant, LeBron, D-Rose, Melo, and a case could be made for Dwight Howard, but I think the KD is the current favorite. The Thunder have the advantage with a young team in a shortened season, making them favorites for the Western Conference Finals, which will only help Durant's case.

Oklahoma City Dominant in Christmas Day Matchup Against Orlando Magic

            Coming off of his second straight scoring title, Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder hosted Dwight Howard and the Orlando Magic on Christmas Day. Dwight Howard won the tip over Serge Ibaka and Jameer Nelson found Ryan Anderson for the first bucket of the game. The Thunder went down the court on their first possession and Kevin Durant made fader despite tight defense from Hedo Turkoglu. The Magic started the game with an 18-11 run thanks to six points from Anderson. Russel Westbrook was a good orchestrator on offense for Oklahoma City, varying the pace of their offense, and involving his teammates after being criticized last season in the postseason for taking too many shots. Orlando came out shooting strong, starting the game 8-9, but then went cold for most of the rest of the game. In that stretch, the Thunder were too passive on offense against the older and much slower Magic. Oklahoma City is a young, fast team with Westbrook, Durant, James Harden, Eric Maynor, and Daequan Cook. The Magic have guys like Howard, Turkoglu, and Glen "Big Baby" Davis, who are not known for running the floor. As the game progressed, OKC became much better at pushing the floor on fast breaks and taking advantage of easy points. Many of Orlando's offensive possessions were led by Hedo Turkoglu, which seemed like a misuse of two players on the Magic. Turkoglu is a thirty-two-year-old small forward whose ideal role is being a spot-up shooter. Orlando has a quality point guard in Jameer Nelson, who has seven years of experience running the Magic's offense as a pass-first player. Oklahoma City showed great ball movement, keeping the Magic on their heels, and finding great looks for different players. The biggest play of the first quarter was when Howard was stripped by Harden, the Thunder went on a four-man fast break, and Harden found Nazr Mohammed for the bucket.

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            It was prommising for Oklahoma City at the end of the first quarter and start of the second, when the Thunder were able to play well with Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook on the bench. OKC's bench played very well against the Magic, led by Harden, who might have the coolest facial hair in the league and enough to make up for the lack of hair on Durant, Westbrook, Cook, and Maynor. Harden finished the game with 19 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists. Oklahoma City won the battle of the boards early and extended its lead with back-to-back three-pointers from Eric Maynor and Daequan Cook. For the Magic, Ryan Anderson and Jameer Nelson were the only players with good shooting nights. Anderson led Orlando with 25 points on 9-17 shooting (6-12 on his three-point attempts). Orlando's shooting woes were the worst for Howard and Jason Richardson, who were a combined 5-22 for 13 points. Big Baby struggled in the first half on both ends of the floor, with three personal fouls and hitting only a third of his shots. Durant hit a three to make the score 44-29 in favor of OKC as the arena erupted as the home team started to pull away. Kevin Durant had a mismatch all night against the Magic, being defended by the much slower Turkoglu for most of the game. Durant could drive to the basket at will and Orlando would have to make the choice between surrendering a basket or fouling him. Westbrook found Harden for an alley-oop at the end of the second quarter to give the Thunder a 55-41 lead going into halftime.

Courtesy of http://www.barbershopblog.com/tag/james-harden/

            Westbrook started off the third quarter with a turn-around fading jump shot, drew a foul, and made the free throw for an old-fashioned three-point play. Durant then had his own three point play after dribbling past Hedo Turkoglu and being fouled by Howard. Jameer Nelson was a good motor for Orlando and kept them from getting blown out by the Thunder. Nelson dropped 18 points on a night where the Magic were uncharacteristically bad from behind the arc. Serge Ibaka, who led the NBA in blocked shots last season, was a strong defensive presence throughout the game for Oklahoma City with six rebounds and two blocks, one of which drew fans to their feet after he had a monster rejection against Nelson on a lay-up attempt. Thabo Sefolosha, a future Hedo Turkoglu, his both of his spot up threes and had eight points in the game. While Dwight Howard had an off night shooting the ball, he made his presence known through his rebounds, finishing with fifteen.

Courtesy of http://probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/06/18/report-warriors-offered-monta-ellis-for-dwight-howard/

            At the start of the fourth quarter, OKC was winning 81-63 and Harden was even more impressive as the game progressed. He drained shots from all over the court and was a pesky defender. I'll make the prediction that unless Harden makes his way into the Thunder's starting lineup, he will win 6th Man of the Year. It is Oklahoma City's Western Conference to lose and Harden has developed into a player who could start and average eighteen to twenty points per game for any team in the NBA. I was very impressed by the Thunder's team chemistry. All of their players were unselfish with the ball and the sky is the limit with as much youth and energy Oklahoma City has on their team. Daequan Cook made a jumper from behind the arc to give OKC its biggest lead of the game, 85-63. The Magic continued to shoot poorly from the field and they lacked an identity with Howard on the bench. Orlando made the game closer at the end but still lost 97-89. Oklahoma City was very impressive in their first game of the season and deserve to be the favorite in the Western Conference. Kevin Durant finished with 30 points, 5 rebounds, and 6 assists. Westbrook, who was on the All-NBA 2nd Team last season, scored 14 points along with 7 rebounds and 6 assists.