Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Portland Trail Blazers: Postgame Grades and Analysis
The Portland Trail Blazers overcame a ridiculous performance from Russell Westbrook and a double-digit deficit to beat the Oklahoma City Thunder, 115-112 on Friday at the Moda Center.
The one-two punch of Damian Lillard and LaMarcus Aldridge provided the offense, as each scored 29 points and dished out five assists.
Westbrook, meanwhile, did everything he could to carry an injury-riddled Thunder squad. In scoring 40 points, grabbing 13 boards and dishing out 11 assists, Westbrook notched his third straight triple-double.
Reserve center Mitch McGary pitched in a career-high 20 points of his own, carrying the Thunder for much of the third quarter.
| LaMarcus Aldridge | A |
| Damian Lillard | A |
| Wesley Matthews | C |
| Nicolas Batum | C |
| Robin Lopez | C |
| Rest of Team | B+ |
| Russell Westbrook | A+ |
| Serge Ibaka | B- |
| Mitch McGary | A+ |
| Dion Waiters | D- |
| Rest of Team | C- |
Portland Trail Blazers
LaMarcus Aldridge: A+
Aldridge had a huge game, as he was able to score both in the mid-range and around the rim. He shot just 10-of-23 from the field, but managed to grab a few of his own misses and go back up. He finished the game with seven offensive rebounds.
Aldridge's ability to score on really anyone made things a lot easier for his teammates. Whenever he had the ball, the Thunder had to throw a ton of attention his way, leading to open looks for his teammates, who he found for those five assists.
Lillard obviously had a nightmare of a time trying to defend Westbrook, but that happens to most players. Offensively, he a pretty solid game himself.
He may have hunted his own shot a bit too aggressively on a few occasions, especially when OKC would switch pick-and-rolls and put a guard on Aldridge. But his aggressiveness put pressure on his counterpart and may have worn him down a bit, leading to several Westbrook jumpers coming up short in the fourth.
Wesley Matthews: C
Wesley Matthews' immense struggles were part of the reason the game was so close. He shot just 2-of-13 from the field on the way to eight points.
Defensively, his talents were wasted on Andre Roberson, so coach Terry Stotts had him defend Westbrook for much of the second half. He obviously didn't stop OKC's dynamo point guard, but he did contribute to a worse efficiency late.
Nicolas Batum: C
With Durant out, Nicolas Batum really should have been a huge plus for the Blazers, but he didn't make a huge impact.
He scored nine points on 2-of-6 shooting, grabbed four rebounds and dished out three assists. Against the likes of Kyle Singler and Anthony Morrow, he should be able to produce more.
Robin Lopez: C
Robin Lopez's box-score stats of eight points and five rebounds in 26 minutes weren't terrible at face value. But they pale in comparison to Mitch McGary, whom he spent much of the night defending.
One battle Lopez typically never loses is the energy
one, but he came up short against the Thunder rookie, who practically ran circles around him at times.
Rest of Team: B+
The X-factor for Portland was undoubtedly Arron Afflalo, who lit up Dion Waiters and the rest of OKC's reserves to the tune of 18 points 5-of-6 shooting.
Afflalo should feast against backup shooting guards for the rest of this season and into the playoffs, giving the Blazers a new edge.
The only other reserve who made much of an impact was Chris Kaman, who battled McGary and Nick Collison inside and scored eight points and grabbed seven boards.
Oklahoma City Thunder
Russell Westbrook: A+
With Kevin Durant and Enes Kanter both out, Westbrook assumed even more responsibility for OKC's offense, and he did not disappoint.
For the first three quarters, he turned in a measured effort. But in the fourth, he looked like the player who went 12-of-38 against the Phoenix Suns on Thursday. Following that game, he felt he took too many shots.
Westbrook seems to have learned his lesson to an extent. He was forcing far fewer shots early in the game, but still wound up 14-of-32 from the field.
When he plays with the kind of balance he showed in the first half, OKC is a tough out for any team in the league, regardless of who else is sharing the floor with Westbrook.
Serge Ibaka: B-
Serge Ibaka did a good job of spacing the floor for Westbrook, scoring 14 points, shooting 7-of-12 from the field and hitting a few mid- to long-range jumpers that forced Portland's bigs to leave the paint.
He didn't do a whole lot besides that, though. He had two blocks, but only managed six rebounds. One of the drawbacks of his jumper-heavy game this season has been that he too is away from the rim, making it harder to crash the boards.
Mitch McGary: A+
McGary has presented the Thunder coaching staff with a dilemma: Do they continue to start Enes Kanter and give him the bulk of injured Steven Adams' minutes, or do they go to McGary?
With Kanter sidelined, McGary played 28 minutes, scored 20 points on 10-of-13 shooting and grabbed nine rebounds. Perhaps most important for his case, he flashed some serious offensive skill which was previously thought to be where Kanter had the edge.
Then you look at defense, where Kanter has been maligned throughout his four-year career. McGary showed great mobility in the pick-and-roll, forcing Portland to often settle for jumpers when he was on the floor.
Dion Waiters: D-
In some not-so-surprising news, Dion Waiters did his best to take on the scoring load vacated by Durant and Kanter. Whether he was open or not, he was going to put that thing up.
He finished the game with seven points on 3-of-12 shooting, and really didn't help on the other end either. He was often matched up with Arron Afflalo who had his way with him.
Rest of Team: C-
Nick Collison, Andre Roberson and Kyle Singler made up the rest of OKC's starting lineup. Each one failed to make much of an impact. Combined, they scored 12 points on 5-of-14 shooting.
Off the bench, Anthony Morrow was solid in his role as a floor spacer, scoring 13 points on 4-of-4 shooting. D.J. Augustin backed up Westbrook with six points and four assists in 20 minutes.
Coming Up Next
The Thunder's next game will be on the road, Sunday against the Los Angeles Lakers at 6:30 p.m. ET. Westbrook could be in line for a fourth straight triple-double, facing the defense of Jeremy Lin and rookie Jordan Clarkson.
The Blazers will also be on the road, taking on the Sacramento Kings on Sunday at 6 p.m. ET. They'll have to be ready to run against the Kings under the tutelage of run-and-gun enthusiast George Karl.
Andy Bailey covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him @AndrewDBailey.
