Golden State Warriors vs. Oklahoma City Thunder: Postgame Grades and Analysis
Kevin Durant scored 36 points, Russell Westbrook posted a triple-double with 17 points, 17 assists and 15 rebounds and the Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the Golden State Warriors, 127-115, at Chesapeake Energy Arena Friday night, snapping the Warriors' eight-game winning streak.
Westbrook's stat line hadn't been achieved since Rajon Rondo did it nearly three years ago, per Anthony Slater of The Oklahoman:
Thunder coach Scott Brooks was glowing about Westbrook after the game, per Oklahoma City's official Twitter page:
Klay Thompson scored 32 points for Golden State, which was without Andrew Bogut (rest) and Andre Iguodala (rest).
| Stephen Curry | C+ |
| Klay Thompson | A |
| Harrison Barnes | B |
| Draymond Green | B |
| Marreese Speights | A- |
| Rest of Team | B- |
| Kevin Durant | A+ |
| Russell Westbrook | A |
| Serge Ibaka | A |
| Reggie Jackson | D |
| Dion Waiters | A- |
| Rest of Team | B |
Golden State Warriors
Stephen Curry: C+
Stephen Curry did not look comfortable for any sustained period during this loss.
He scored 19 points off a decent 6-of-13 clip, but he went only 2-of-6 from three-point range and turned the ball over six times.
Credit certainly goes to Westbrook for playing good-enough defense to limit Curry, but we have seen the Warriors guard get his no matter who was guarding him. On this night, Curry just seemed a bit disengaged.
Steph got some decent looks, too, but he was unable to drop them at the rate he normally does.
Klay Thompson: A
Thompson was easily the best Warriors player Friday night.
The top-flight shooting guard put up 32 points, draining 12 of his 22 shots. Thompson exhibited the strides he has made this season throughout the night, demonstrating the ability to put the ball on the floor and score at the rim, something he was not particularly adept at in previous years.
He made some incredibly difficult shots and also hit three triples.
Thompson chipped in four rebounds and four assists to go along with his scoring output.
Harrison Barnes: B
Harrison Barnes quietly had a solid performance.
Barnes tallied 16 points, shooting 6-of-13 from the floor and making four of his seven three-point attempts.
He also had six rebounds.
That being said, it would have been nice to see Barnes make some more basket cuts during the game. It seemed like he spent most of the time floating around the perimeter.
Draymond Green: B
Draymond Green is one of those players who can impact a game in far more ways than scoring, and that was evident Friday night.
While Green only scored five points off a 2-of-6 clip, he grabbed nine rebounds, collected four steals and played solid, physical defense throughout the evening.
What's most impressive about Green is his ability to defend virtually any position, and that was also on display against the Thunder.
Marreese Speights: A-
With Bogut sitting this one out to rest, Marreese Speights got the start, and he obliged.
The big man scored 20 points off 9-of-16 shooting, doing an outstanding job of spacing the floor by stroking 18-footers all night.
Speights gave Steven Adams fits, as the OKC center was forced to scramble out to the perimeter to try to contest Speights' jumpers. Either that, or the Thunder missed a rotation and Speights was left all alone.
He also hauled in seven boards and handed out four assists in 28 minutes.
Rest of Team: B-
The trio of David Lee, Shaun Livingston and Leandro Barbosa combined to score 21 points off the bench in this one.
Lee, in particular, was solid. Although he shot only 3-of-7 to get his nine points, he did a nice job on the boards, pulling down six rebounds in 22 minutes.
Livingston was a perfect 3-of-3 from the floor and dished out four dimes.
Barbosa did most of his damage at the free-throw line, scoring four of his six points from the stripe. He shot only 1-of-7 from the field.
Oklahoma City Thunder
Kevin Durant: A+
Durant continued his magnificent season against the Warriors.
The reigning MVP poured in 36 points off 14-of-18 shooting, weaving through Golden State's defense throughout the night. He finished at the rim, he hit fallaway jumpers in the lane and he drained three treys. To put it plainly, Durant brought out the entire arsenal.
Durant also collected nine rebounds and four assists.
As an added bonus, he took good care of the basketball in his 38 minutes, turning it over only twice.
Russell Westbrook: A
Westbrook did not shoot the rock well at all (7-of-19), but based on everything else he did Friday night, it's kind of hard to care about that.
The explosive guard recorded a triple-double with 17 points, 17 assists and 15 rebounds, with the assist and rebound totals marking career highs.
Also, the field goals that Westbrook did make were huge, including a dunk over Draymond Green that bounced off the back end of the rim, went several feet into the air and then somehow dropped into the net. Check it out:
He also had a tip-in off a missed free throw to end the first half (seen in the first video).
Westbrook tallied four steals and played some fine defense on Curry as well.
Serge Ibaka: A
Serge Ibaka was a huge fourth-quarter catalyst in OKC's victory.
Ibaka scored 13 of his 27 points (which tied a career high) in the final period and also kept several possessions alive by getting his hands on loose rebounds.
Ibaka hit 12 of his 18 shots and knocked down a pivotal triple to put the Thunder up by 11 late in the game.
The defensive stalwart added eight rebounds to his impressive stat line.
Reggie Jackson: D
Reggie Jackson was not too impressive in the win.
He went only 3-of-11, rushing some shots and requiring defensive breakdowns to score two of his buckets.
Jackson recorded nine points.
Dion Waiters: A-
Dion Waiters looked very engaged throughout the night, posting 21 points off 8-of-16 shooting and, for the most part, taking good shots.
You could tell someone must have talked to Waiters before the game, as he was intelligently aggressive. He didn't force anything. Instead, he was able to impose his will and look smart while doing it.
Perhaps his performance had something to do with what ESPN.com's Royce Young reported prior to the contest:
Waiters knocked down both of his three-point attempts and also pulled down four rebounds.
Oh, and he was a plus-18.
Rest of Team: B
You really had to like what Anthony Morrow brought to the table.
He contributed 12 points off the bench, going 5-of-7 from the field and burying a pair of triples. Morrow also hit what was one of the biggest shots of the game, a three-pointer at the buzzer to end the third period and put OKC up by seven heading into the fourth quarter.
Everyone else was pretty quiet.
Steven Adams posted three points and seven boards, and Andre Roberson had two points.
What's Next?
The Warriors will continue on the road to take on the Houston Rockets at 8 p.m. ET Saturday night. Meanwhile, the Thunder will head to Florida to battle the Orlando Magic at 6 p.m. ET Sunday evening.
