The Thunder have been a scrappy group of guys this season. Everyone has counted them out and that has been the motivation this season. A lot of teams like Portland come into the game not knowing what to expect from this new-look team. One thing that they find out is that this squad has a lot of heart and they have amazing ball movement. The Thunder played against Portland and they were able to execute throughout the game as both teams struggled with scoring. It wasn’t until the second unit when Dennis Schröder was able to give the Thunder spark to help them stay afloat in this game. The way Dennis played was exactly what the Thunder wanted when he came from Atlanta and it seems like he’s able to be free and play his game. Dennis was able to affect the game in all phases as he was able to score, defend, and show energy with hustle plays. The way that he’s played the last two games has been a huge boost to this team as it seems like NBA teams are finally trying to gameplan for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander a lot more. Dennis was able to create his own shot and was able to attack while having the hot hand for the Thunder.
CP3 struggled in the first half and Dennis was able to fill that void on the team. The second half is when CP3 was able to get more aggressive as he was getting to the basket and drawing a lot of fouls. CP3 was able to get to the line but he also handed out a lot of nice passes that led to the Thunder scoring. Chris Paul can’t be passive on this team and when he doesn’t attack it doesn’t help the others. When Chris can attack it makes the other team focus on him and forces them to stay put defensively. When Chris plays at that All-Star level that we know he has anything is possible. CP3 is the leader of this team and this team will go as far as he can help them go on the season. CP3 finished with 21 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists against Portland. Nerlens Noel has come up big time in his chances with Steven Adams being hurt and that continued tonight as had a monster game with 15 points and 14 rebounds. Nerlens has shown his quickness and his willingness to defend at an elite level. Noel made it tough on the Trail Blazers tonight and was able to dominate in the paint when he had chances too with and without Whiteside in the game.
The Thunder played well but this Portland team has been through the trenches together and it showed tonight. Portland had CJ McCollum and Damian Lillard who are two players the Thunder fans know very well after the playoffs. When both of them have their game going it’s tough to actually try to stop them. Tonight it was CJ who went off in the first half as the Thunder tried to put multiple players on him. Even with the improvements defensively of Hamidou and Terrance, he was able to make some tough shots. It’s almost like they take turns in the game especially since it was Dame Time in the second half. This time “Dame Time” was all about his shooting and facilitating with his teammates. Lillard finished with 23 points and 13 assists on the night and was able to create any time he wanted too. The Thunder have been in every single game this season but it’s clear they haven’t found who will be their closer in close games. Lillard was able to execute down the stretch and postgame even admitted that the Thunder have a lot more ball movement.
The Thunder will face the Pelicans on Saturday without Zion as that’s a game that they need badly to get back into the winning column.
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