Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Houston Rockets: Postgame Grades and Analysis
James Harden scored 31 points and finished one rebound shy of a triple-double, and the Houston Rockets buried 16 three-pointers in a 112-101 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder Thursday night at the Toyota Center.
Kevin Durant led the Thunder with 24 points.
| Kevin Durant | A |
| Russell Westbrook | B- |
| Serge Ibaka | C- |
| Reggie Jackson | A- |
| Dion Waiters | D |
| Rest of Team | D- |
| James Harden | A+ |
| Dwight Howard | C+ |
| Josh Smith | A- |
| Trevor Ariza | C+ |
| Patrick Beverley | B |
| Rest of Team | B- |
Oklahoma City Thunder
Kevin Durant: A
Lost in the Thunder's struggles is how phenomenal Durant has been this season.
He was great again Thursday night, posting 24 points off 8-of-12 shooting. He made four of his six three-point attempts and also went a perfect 4-of-4 from the free-throw line.
What's more, Durant added 10 rebounds and three blocks and got OKC back into the game after his team trailed by 26 in the early going. Durant put up 13 points in the second quarter alone.
It's a shame Oklahoma City wasted his performance.
This was one of those Jekyll and Hyde-type games from Russell Westbrook.
He shot the ball fairly well, going 6-of-13 for 16 points, and filled up the stat sheet with eight rebounds, eight assists and five steals. That was all nice.
What wasn't nice was the eight turnovers he committed, as Westbrook veered out of control at times.
Westbrook had a couple of explosive buckets, but this wasn't one of his most dominant outings.
Serge Ibaka: C-
Check out this stat: Serge Ibaka went 2-of-4 from downtown in the loss but converted on only two of his seven attempts from inside the arc.
You can do the math. That means Ibaka was a less than desirable 4-of-11 overall, tallying 13 points and seven boards. He also wasn't the rim deterrent we have been accustomed to seeing.
The fact that Houston scored 46 points in the paint is solid evidence of that.
Reggie Jackson: A-
Reggie Jackson was probably the second-best player on the floor for the Thunder.
The combo guard scored 16 points off the bench and added six rebounds and six assists. He was also efficient, going 7-of-12 from the floor and taking good shots in rhythm.
That's solid, and it's something we are not necessarily used to seeing from Jackson in terms of his efficiency.
Dion Waiters: D
This was another ugly performance in what has become a long line of them for Dion Waiters.
Waiters shot a paltry 6-of-16 from the field, scoring 16 points (10 of them came in garbage time). He dished out a couple of assists and made a nice chasedown block (seen below), but he secured only one rebound.
Maybe Waiters will fit in with OKC eventually, but will he ever shake his perpetual inefficiency?
Rest of Team: D-
Nothing doing here.
Kendrick Perkins tallied six points and three rebounds, and Steven Adams added five points and two boards. That was about it.
Anthony Morrow went 0-of-3 (had two points off free throws), and Andre Roberson went 0-of-4.
Houston Rockets
James Harden: A+
Harden was awesome.
The MVP candidate was insanely efficient, scoring 31 points off 9-of-15 shooting and making six of his eight three-point attempts.
Harden also added 10 assists and nine rebounds and finished with a game-high plus-23.
He tortured the defense all night, burning whomever guarded him with stepbacks, hesitations and his spectacular court vision.
The TNT broadcast dubbed Harden the best one-on-one player in the league during the game, and based on the performance he put forth, it's hard to argue with that statement.
Dwight Howard: C+
Dwight Howard was relatively quiet in this one.
He scored 13 points off a so-so 5-of-11 clip and grabbed eight boards in 34 minutes. He took some awkward-looking shots (particularly that left-handed, baseline flip shot he likes that Charles Barkley and Shaquille O'Neal chided at halftime) and was never able to assert himself offensively on the interior.
The big man did have one highlight-reel block on Roberson (seen above), but that was about it.
Josh Smith: A-
It was another terrific night for Josh Smith, who really seems to be finding his way in Houston.
Smith recorded 13 points off 6-of-10 shooting and hauled in seven rebounds (four on the offensive end), all of that in 19 minutes off the bench.
Once again, he didn't take any poor shots (save for one relatively open three-pointer that made the crowd groan) and instead remained patient.
He seems to fit perfectly on this Rockets squad.
Trevor Ariza: C+
Trevor Ariza did not shoot the ball particularly well, going 6-of-15, but he did knock down three triples, with a couple of them serving as backbreaker-type shots.
In total, Ariza accumulated 17 points. He also chipped in four assists and four steals.
His 40 percent shooting clip drops his grade a bit, though.
Patrick Beverley: B
Patrick Beverley has a defined role on this Rockets team, and you saw it in action Thursday night.
The pesky floor general played solid defense on Westbrook and provided a nice outlet for Harden offensively, draining three triples and scoring 13 points off 5-of-11 shooting.
Beverley spaced the floor well, especially when the rock was in Harden's hands.
He also grabbed five rebounds.
Rest of Team: B-
Donatas Motiejunas was the only other player who stood out.
The Lithuanian scored 14 points off 6-of-12 shooting and even drilled a pair of three-pointers, including a rather significant one with the shot clock about to expire late in the third quarter.
Kostas Papanikolaou chipped in five points. Corey Brewer added five more off 2-of-7 shooting.
What's Next?
The Thunder return home to host the Golden State Warriors on Friday night at 8 p.m. ET. Meanwhile, the Rockets' next game is also against the Warriors. It takes place in Houston on Saturday night at 8 p.m. ET.
