2012 NBA Playoffs: 3 Teams in the West That Should Terrify Oklahoma City Thunder
The Oklahoma City Thunder's rise to the top of the Western Conference has been swift and relentless.
After 41 years in Seattle, the inaugural season in Oklahoma City didn't go as planned in 2008. The Thunder finished 23-59 and tied a franchise record with 14 straight losses.
Out with P.J. Carlesimo, and in with Scott Brooks.
In 2009, Kevin Durant brought home the scoring title—the youngest player to do so—and the Thunder finished 50-32. The Thunder more than doubled their win total from the previous year and made the playoffs as an eighth seed. They lost in the first round to the Los Angeles Lakers in an epic six-game series.
After a 55-27 season and a run to the Western Conference Finals last year, the Thunder have solidified themselves as one of the best teams in the NBA.
The Thunder will almost certainly be one of the top two seeds heading into the playoffs this year. They are only half of a game behind the San Antonio Spurs for the top seed overall and lead the third-seeded Los Angeles Lakers by a comfortable 5.5 game margin.
While the Thunder has looked like the team to beat for much of the season, they have recently quieted down. Scott Brooks' team is only 5-5 in their last 10 games and has given up the top seed to San Antonio. Losses to the Clippers, Spurs, and Grizzlies have dotted the schedule over the last month, and the Thunder are no longer the strong NBA Finals favorite they once were.
While there is plenty of talent in Oklahoma City, there are three teams that they should hope to avoid in the playoffs.
If the regular season were to end today, this would be the first-round matchup in the playoffs. Dirk Nowitzki and company sent the Thunder home during last year's playoffs in five games.
This year's Mavericks don't look as though they have the same championship caliber. The Thunder may be capable of getting revenge, but it will come at a cost. Sweeping the Mavericks won't happen, and the series might even be pushed out to six or seven games. That's something Thunder fans don't want to see so early in what they hope is a deep playoff run.
A reasonable Thunder fan would much rather forgo a shot at revenge for a matchup against Houston, Phoenix, Utah, or even Denver. The Mavericks may not look as strong as they did last year, but the core of the team that dispatched the Thunder last year still remains.
The Grizzlies pulled off the unthinkable last year when they entered the playoffs as an eighth seed and knocked off the top seeded San Antonio Spurs in the first round.
The action didn't stop there.
The Grizzlies almost continued their magical run when they pushed the Thunder to game seven. This year, the Grizzlies are once again catching fire at the right time. They are 7-3 in their last 10 games and beat Oklahoma City in the Ford Center back on April 2nd.
While the Thunder likely won't face the Grizzlies in the first round, it is a possibility in the second.
Oklahoma City needed 39 points from Durant and a triple-double to send the Grizzlies home in game seven last year, and it would be just as unnerving for Thunder fans to sit through another series this year.
San Antonio Spurs- Sure the Spurs are old, slow, and unable to compete with athletic teams like Oklahoma City.
Keep telling yourself that.
San Antonio has once again won the Southwest Conference and is in position to nab the No. 1 seed for the second consecutive year. That means the Thunder wouldn't see Tim Duncan and Tony Parker until the Western Conference Finals.
Oklahoma City fans should be thankful.
The Spurs look much different than last year. They aren't carried by the Big Three of Parker, Duncan and Ginobili anymore. It's Danny Green, Gary Neal, Tiago Splitter, Stephen Jackson, Kawhi Leonard and about every other player on the roster that help the Spurs win night in and night out.
You want a definition of team? Look at the Spurs.
San Antonio is on fire heading into the playoffs, winning 32 of their last 39 games, which is the best record in the NBA over that span.
Thunder fans better hope it cools down in San Antonio soon, because it's looking like Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook's road to the NBA Finals just hit a dead end.
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