KD, Russ best CP3 in wild finish to Thunder-Clippers
Despite reasonably impressive records, the Oklahoma City Thunder and Los Angeles Clippers have both proven somewhat disappointing this season for looking more like collections of excellent players than well constructed, cohesive teams. Monday night’s matchup at Staples Center did nothing to change any such opinion, but it was a fascinating contest in large part because the teams’ stars decided the result in a back-and-forth finish full of terrific individual plays.
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The majority of the final minute belonged to OKC omni-guard Russell Westbrook. The Thunder trailed 95-93 when the mercurial Westbrook nailed a contested three-pointer out of a timeout to give them a narrow advantage. Blake Griffin followed with a thunderous dunk to swing the lead back to the Clippers, but Westbrook answered again with a tough mid-range jumper with 29 seconds remaining for an effective two-for-one possession. Except Russ seemingly rendered that clock management unnecessary after stealing the ball from J.J. Redick on the next Clippers possession, giving the Thunder a chance to push the lead to three points with a successful inbounds pass and a pair of made free throws.
That’s when everything got even more exciting. Dion Waiters threw an errant pass in the direction of Westbrook, and Chris Paul pounced on the loose ball to create this go-ahead bucket (perhaps with an uncalled and-one, as well):
Then the fourth superstar on the court took over. Kevin Durant got the ball for OKC’s final possession and made this jumper over quality defense from Luc Richard Mbah a Moute with five seconds on the clock:
Did CP3 have one more moment of heroics left to give? Maybe, but the opportunity was snuffed out by a game-saving block from KD:
Durant’s final two plays sealed the 100-99 victory for the Thunder, who moved to 19-9 and further solidified their position as the No. 3 team in the West behind the Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs. The 2014 MVP spoke about his contributions after the game (via J.A. Adande of ESPN.com):
“I feel like my defense has grown. Since my first year I never was a liability at that end, I just had to learn the schemes and learn what we wanted as a team…
“Coaches challenged me at the start of the year just to step it up to another level on the defensive end. I’ve just been trying to play as hard as I can.”
Durant’s defense was excellent throughout Monday’s game — he had two blocks and two steals to offset some relatively poor shooting (10-of-24 FG, 1-of-7 3FG) in an otherwise strong performance (24 points, nine rebounds, seven assists). Westbrook did more of the offensive damage, finishing with 33 points on 11-of-25 from the field and 9-of-11 from the line.
Yet this was another game in which the Thunder looked very reliant on their superstars, with only Serge Ibaka joining the duo in double figures. It was perhaps even more concerning that the Thunder came out of several late-game timeouts with rudimentary play-calls. On the other hand, those plays worked, because Westbrook and Durant are good enough to cover for apparent tactical deficiencies. Maybe it’s time to wonder not why Billy Donovan’s Thunder looks so similar to the one coached by Scott Brooks, but if playing another way would rob the team of some of what makes them such a problem for opponents.
The Clippers answered many of those challenges on Monday, but they once again found themselves on the wrong side of a tight game against the best of the West. The 16-13 Clips have lost three in a row (the previosu two came against the Spurs and Rockets) and have gone just 2-8 against conference opponents currently slated to make the postseason.
Despite his unsuccessful attempt on the final play, Paul cannot be blamed for the loss. He excelled with 32 points on efficient shooting (11-of-19 FG, 4-of-6 3FG), 10 assists, and only two turnovers, but his co-star Blake Griffin struggled to 15 points on 7-of-21 shooting. Paul had more help from role players than did his Thunder counterparts, but the Clippers continue to look lacking in key areas. Doc Rivers tried to reshuffle the rotation by giving Cole Aldrich playing time ahead of the DNP-CD’d Josh Smith, which should give you some idea of the extent of the uncertainty surrounding the structure of the bench.
Again, this game did not teach us anything new — the biggest takeaway was the scintillating insight that these teams employ several very good players. But that basic calculus resulted in a compulsively watchable finish that saw two very good teams trade big plays. The Thunder and Clippers have many questions left to answer, but they’re only in crisis if you compare them to the NBA’s elite.
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Eric Freeman is a writer for Ball Don’t Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter!
