Ranking the Top 10 Plays and Moments from Oklahoma City Thunder's 2014-15 Season

The 2014-15 season has been a colossal disappointment for the Oklahoma City Thunder. There’s no way around it. Most OKC fans will just want to fast-forward to the start of next year—I don’t blame them—but there were a few bright spots in the “season from hell.”

As decimated as the OKC roster was for much of the season, a team with Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant is still a sure bet to produce some jaw-dropping plays. Each is an unparalleled athletic marvel, and both were constant fixtures in league highlight reels when they weren’t on the sideline in street clothes.

It’s no different in this slideshow of the Thunder’s top plays, as the dynamic duo dominate the list. I tried to find worthy highlights created by other players, but none could eclipse the top 10 moments presented here (although they make the cut as honorable mentions).

I’m sure to have missed some plays, so please use the comments section to chime in with your own nominees. Until then, sit back and enjoy the show.

Honorable Mention: Mitch McGary Busts out the Dream Shake

Mitch McGary has been, without a doubt, one of the biggest positives of the year. He was a surprise selection so early in the 2014 NBA draft, but he showed he was worth the gamble with a stellar rookie campaign.

He dropped some impressive stat lines, but the most memorable thing about McGary’s debut season was the enthusiasm with which he played. He was a joy to watch, whether it was his comical running motion or his demonstrative celebrations.

His teammates seemed to feed off his energy, and they showed their affection for him with the raucous reaction to this play. McGary went old-school and dusted off Hakeem Olajuwon’s “Dream Shake” to bamboozle Chris Kaman. It may not be as pretty as when Olajuwon unleashed it, but it’s effective and earns the Michigan product a spot on the list.

Honorable Mention: Steven Adams Delivers a Christmas Present to Tim Duncan

Just to prove I did look for highlights by players outside of Durant and Westbrook, this Steven Adams slam is the second honorable mention on the list. This Christmas Day game against the San Antonio Spurs was arguably OKC’s best outing of the season, and Adams was a major factor (16 points, 15 rebounds, three blocks and two steals).

He controlled the paint, but he also generated this terrific highlight. With the game still hanging in the balance, Westbrook zipped a pass to the cutting Adams. The big New Zealander knew exactly what to do with it. The great Tim Duncan recovered quickly, but he turned to get a face full of dunk.

Adams has delivered a few highlight slams in his short career, but this may be the most impressive. The best part about the play is his trademarked celebration (i.e. none at all). He doesn’t seem to care about the spectacular poster jam. He just runs back down the court with a completely neutral facial expression.

10. An All-Time All-Star Performance, on and off the Court

Among the league’s best players, Russell Westbrook was the unquestioned star. Defense was nowhere to be found, but that doesn’t take away from Westbrook’s spectacular performance in the game’s most hallowed arena.

He joined Wilt Chamberlain and Michael Jordan as the only players to score 40-plus points in the NBA All-Star Game. That’s some pretty good company. He also fell just one point shy of tying Chamberlain’s All-Star scoring record, but he did it in 11 fewer minutes.

The intensity of these exhibitions is rarely high, but even a coasting Westbrook was going harder than everyone else. He ran the floor, knocked down threes, threw down monstrous dunks and even hit his head on the backboard for good measure.

It was completely deserving of the game’s MVP trophy and the car that went with it. And when it was all said and done, Westbrook gave that car to a single mother of two in the OKC area.

On a stage to showcase the league to the entire globe, Westbrook was one of the NBA’s best ambassadors on and off the court.

9. Russ Beats the Buzzer in Portland

Westbrook’s game is all speed, energy and momentum. He combines all three on this buzzer-beating jam against the Portland Trail Blazers. After dominating the first half to the tune of 26 points, Westbrook closed it out as only Westbrook could.

Scrambling to beat the clock, Nicolas Batum pushed the ball down the floor and found a wide-open Wesley Matthews for the dunk. The Blazers paused for a split second to celebrate the play, but there were still 2.2 seconds on the clock.

That’s an eternity for Westbrook.

Major credit needs to go to Nick Collison here for recognizing the situation and immediately releasing a beautiful outlet pass. Westbrook catches it near half court, takes two dribbles and throws down a vicious dunk to beat the buzzer.

Let that be a lesson to the rest of the league: Never relax when Westbrook is on the court.

8. Durant Shakes Birdman and Skies for the Jam

“Uh oh.”

Sometimes, you can read a player’s mind as if it were a comic book and there were thought bubbles coming out of his brain. Sometimes, just before a breathtaking offensive move, you can actually see a defender thinking “uh oh.”

Chris Andersen had such a moment in this clip.

He’s in the unenviable position of guarding Kevin Durant at the top of the key. Durant is sizing up his adversary, and Andersen is staring into Durant’s eyes—which is probably not unlike staring down the barrel of a loaded shotgun.

Durant takes a step back, and Andersen thinks about cutting off his space and hopefully forcing a pass. Andersen lurches forward.

“Uh oh.”

Durant unleashes a nasty crossover and hesitation dribble, and then he’s gone.

7. Westbrook Slices Through 5 Wizards for the Game-Winner

The game is tied, there are 3.6 seconds on the clock and OKC is inbounding.

Remember that lesson I mentioned while discussing No. 9 on this list? “Never relax when Westbrook is on the court.”

The Washington Wizards weren’t paying attention.

As the defense in this situation, all eyes are on Durant and Westbrook. If they catch the inbound pass, you want them to be as far away from the basket as possible. Initially, Washington succeeds in this regard. Westbrook is in the backcourt, while Durant has to flash toward half court to create a clean passing lane.

Then, things get Russdiculous.

Like the play against Portland, all Westbrook needs is two dribbles and he’s at the rim. He reacts faster than all five Wizards, knifing through the entire team for an uncontested layup. He finishes the sequence by skipping past the Washington bench—a jab at opposing point guard John Wall.

Game, set, Westbrook.

6. The Sixers Can’t Keep Up with Westbrook

It doesn’t stop. This is the most impressive of Westbrook’s “blow by everyone” plays because he literally traverses the entire court. And it came after a made basket, no less.

The Sixers try a full-court press, and Westbrook is forced to catch the inbound pass right on his own baseline. Somehow, the end result is this play.

Five seconds. Ninety-four feet. Five dribbles. Thunderous dunk that rocks the Chesapeake Energy Arena to its foundation.

Perhaps the most impressive aspect of this moment is its context. This was Westbrook’s first game as a masked man. He had his face dented just six days earlier, yet there is absolutely no trepidation. In fact, it’s the Sixers who are scared of him.

They should be.

5. Durant Elevates and Detonates on Marcin Gortat

Not long before Westbrook’s aforementioned game-winning layup against the Wizards, Durant did this unspeakable thing to Marcin Gortat. That he threw down this dunk at all is bad enough. That he had the audacity to unleash it with 2:46 left in overtime of a close game is reprehensible.

Gortat closes out too aggressively, but he recovers well. He almost gets his body in front of Durant, but he’s a tiny bit late, and he pays for it.

Durant rises so high that he barely registers Gortat’s attempt to protect the rim. The bench reaction tells you all you need to know about how filthy this is.

4. A Little Luck Never Hurt Anyone

Judging by Westbrook’s head of steam and his windup, this would probably have landed around here on the list if the dunk were converted. Nevertheless, the unique blooper aspect of the play is so memorable and earns it a spot in the top five.

You can hear the collective intake of breath from the OKC crowd as it sees Westbrook prepared for takeoff. The backboard support system shivers, almost as if it’s breathing a sigh of relief that Westbrook didn’t finish. The rim is so grateful that it gives him the ultimate friendly bounce.

In a season where so much went wrong for the Thunder, this was a rare occasion where dumb luck/fate/the basketball gods/Lil B’s curse relented and went OKC’s way.

3. Durant Scorches the Warriors En Route to 30 Points in a Half

This game is a perfect microcosm for the Thunder's season. OKC fans had been waiting for Durant to reach peak form. He had played eight games before this one, including three where he dropped more than 25 points.

But he hadn’t looked like the MVP-level version of Durant until this first half. Facing the league’s best team on their home floor—where they’ve only lost two games to date—Durant exploded for 30 points in just 19 minutes.

The Golden State Warriors boast the league’s best defense, but they were powerless against this scoring machine. He hit 10 of his 13 shots (including 5-of-6 from downtown) for a spectacular scoring binge.

Most importantly, the Thunder were neck-and-neck with the Warriors, reassuring the fans that OKC was a legitimate title contender. And then, in one play, it all evaporated. Durant stepped on Marreese Speights’ foot and rolled his ankle, and the Thunder lost.

The performance alone is worthy of this top-three spot, but the cruel fact that it’s a perfect synopsis of OKC’s season adds an extra layer to the clip.

2. Westbrook Annihilates the Rim in Detroit

The audio makes this play spectacular. It starts quietly with Westbrook bringing the ball up. Then he finds a lane to the rim, and it sounds like an explosion. The noise emanating from this dunk sounds like a sonic boom.

Even the Detroit crowd can’t help but “ooh” at the ferocious power of this Westbrook tomahawk jam.

We’ve already seen how a facial fracture doesn’t seem to bother Westbrook, and here we receive confirmation that he doesn’t care about hand fractures either. You can see the wrap on his dunking hand, and this is only his fourth game back after the injury. The injured hand doesn’t seem to even enter his thought process as he demolishes the rim.

1. Westbrook’s Triple-Double Binge

Though the MVP trophy will likely go to Stephen Curry or James Harden, the 2014-15 season could very well be remembered as the year of Russell “Mr. Triple-Double” Westbrook.

He racked up 11 triple-doubles on the season, including a monster stretch of six in eight games. Westbrook became the first player since 1989 Michael Jordan (and the sixth player in league history) to record four straight.

The efficiency wasn’t always great, but the numbers speak for themselves. Westbrook was carrying the Thunder on his shoulders and doing everything he could to get them victories. He was a basketball supernova, single-handedly destroying other teams.

His exploits were the most memorable aspect of this Thunder season, and that’s why his triple-double binge lands at No. 1 on the list even though it’s not a specific play or moment.