2012 NBA Playoffs: Full Grades and Analysis for Thunder vs. Mavericks Game 1

Possibly the most interesting first round matchup is underway as the Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the Dallas Mavericks 99-98. Durant nailed the gamewinner and put away a Dallas team that controlled most of the game.

The Mavericks slowed the Thunder down and their slow pace forced the Thunder into attempting some bad shots early in the clock. The Thunder used their ridiculous edge in athleticism to stay in the game and closed out the Mavs who were sloppy down the stretch.

Let's get into the grades.

Oklahoma City Thunder:

Kevin Durant:

His jumper was a little off and he missed most of his catch-and-shoot opportunities. He was much more successful posting up, but that did not happen nearly often enough and his shooting percentage reflected that. However, there is the elephant in the room; he nailed the game winning jumper right in Shawn Marion's face. He gets a big boost for that.

Grade: A-

Serge Ibaka:

Ibaka's athleticism and blocking ability were on full display. He was a force in the paint and threw down an amazing dunk after a dish from Westbrook. He even made a three to beat the buzzer in the second quarter. Ibaka was a big force in this game.

Grade: B+

Kendrick Perkins:

Played some minutes and did what he had to do. That is to say, he did nothing on offense, but did pull down boards and played very physical. Perkins played his role beautifully.

Grade: B+

Thabo Sefolosha:

Did not play many minutes courtesy of James Harden, but played good defense and did nothing to disrupt the offensive flow. Overall, he did exactly what he needed to do.

Grade: A

Russell Westbrook:

Westbrook had a great game, but he simply did not get Durant involved enough. Durant needs the ability to post up and work some isolation and Westbrook refused to give him that. He played a well rounded game, but he needs to accept the fact that he is not Batman and embrace the role of Robin.

Grade: A-

James Harden:

Harden did exactly what he is known to do: come off the bench and play some great basketball. He did have some turnover problems, but he made up for it on both ends of the floor. Harden is yet again proving why he is possibly the best weapon the Thunder possess and he would start on nearly every NBA team.

Grade: A

Rest of the Bench:

Did nothing. They collected six fouls and had no points. Collison was hustling, but it was really not paying off.

Grade: D

Coaching:

Scott Brooks is one of the best coaches in the league, but he again failed to control Westbrook and stick to his gameplan. OKC could run all over Dallas, and they did early in the game, but they could not stick with it and Dallas asserted their own pace. Brooks needs to figure out how to put Dallas out of its comfort zone and not play into their plan. In the end, he was lucky that the Mavericks played so sloppy and that Durant was able to hit a ridiculous shot.

Grade: B-

Dallas Mavericks:

Shawn Marion:

Very efficient game by Marion. On offense he produced very well and was hustling on defense as well.

Grade: A

Dirk Nowitzki:

Disappointing game by Dirk. He did not shoot well and had turnover problems. He is the player that can improve the most in the next game.

Grade: C+

Brendan Haywood:

Played few minutes, but was a force on the offensive glass and had a block. Much like the Thunder with Perkins, not too much more can be expected of Haywood.

Grade: B+

Delonte West:

He played very good minutes, but was really not a factor on either end of the floor. He is not a big part of their offense, so it's not like this is very surprising.

Grade: B-

Jason Kidd:

Great performance by Kidd in this game. He was a huge presence in every single aspect of the game. On offense he nailed shots and passed the ball around and had an impressive seven steals. Really a terrific performance here.

Grade: A

Jason Terry:

He had 20 points on 80% shooting. That is really all you need to know. he did exactly what he has done for years in Dallas.

Grade: A

Bench:

Vince Carter was forcing shots and missed a few dunks that he has no business attempting anymore. Mahinmi was hustling, but the bench underperformed overall.

Grade: C

Coaching:

Rick Carlisle controlled the tempo, but did not seem to have a solid gameplan to end the game and this is why the Mavericks fell to the Thunder. He coached a good game and his team executed, but he could not draw up a plan to close out OKC.

Grade: B-

This was a great game to watch and it is a heartbreaking loss for the Mavericks. It will be interesting to see how they come back and while Durant did shoot pretty badly, so did Dirk; both look to come back strong.

Thank you for reading and comment with your thoughts!