If you don’t live under a rock, there’s a good chance that you saw Stephen Curry’s game winner in overtime against the Oklahoma City Thunder from Saturday night. He capped off a miraculous comeback with a bomb and sealed yet another win for the Warriors.
What you may not have seen, however, was that the Thunder were in control for most of that game. If not for a meltdown and some late-game heroics from Curry and the Warriors, we’d be talking about how the Thunder emerged victorious and look like a dark horse in the West.
The reality is that the Thunder have been hard to figure out this season. On one day they can get blown out at home by the Cavaliers without Kyrie Irving. On another day they can hang with the Warriors and still be in control for almost 48 minutes despite Curry hitting 12 threes.
OKC needs to become more consistent to be considered a legitimate threat, but the talent level is unquestioned. With Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook in the mix, the Thunder have two of the best players in the league on the floor together. Beyond them, however, this team is unproven and has been underwhelming.
The supporting cast has to be better down the stretch. Dion Waiters looks completely lost and devoid of confidence. Serge Ibaka’s role has been downsized considerably, and the bench gets outplayed on a nightly basis. Durant and Westbrook usually cover that up, but the team suffers from a lack of depth that could derail its hopes of making a deep playoff run.
With all this said, however, the Thunder have now played Golden State tough twice, despite losing both games. They also destroyed the Spurs in their only matchup, winning by 30 at home. There are still games to be played as the season winds down, and the Thunder have a chance later this week to redeem themselves. They also have three more games against the Spurs to prove that they are not to be overlooked in the conference.
A bad stretch does not define a team, nor a season, but Oklahoma City is certainly fighting more than just on the court problems. With the tragedy surrounding Monty Williams and his family, and the injury to Mo Cheeks, the Thunder’s coaching staff has taken a few hits as well.
It’s impossible to ignore things that happen off the court, so the recent struggles can be somewhat explained off the court. The problem is that OKC is in a dogfight in the conference, and needs to retain home court advantage for at least one round in the playoffs.
As the season winds down, we’ll get a closer look at OKC against the best teams in the league. At 42-18, this team is still dominant against most, but in a year that showcases two of the best teams possibly ever, they have their work cut out. If the Thunder can focus down the stretch and get quality play from the role players and the bench, they will be able to compete with anyone, including Golden State and San Antonio.
If they continue to play inconsistent basketball, however, it’ll be difficult to envision them winning a playoff series against anyone. That is their situation, and the only way to tell if they stand a chance is to see if they come together or fall apart when the pressure is on.