Oklahoma City Thunder: Report Cards for Kevin Durant and the Gang
Game 2 of the Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Denver Nuggets series was not nearly as close as Game 1.
The Thunder came out firing right away and led at one point by a score of 42-17. The Nuggets hung around and kept themselves from being blown out entirely but at no point was the outcome of this game in question.
The Thunder had a lot more production out of the players not named Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, which led to a more balanced, better overall performance for the Thunder.
Here's the report card for each Thunder player who got in the game.
Kevin Durant: A-
1 of 10
The Game 1 performance by Kevin Durant earned him an A.
In Game 2, Durant didn't score nearly as many points, but he played solid basketball scoring 23 points, grabbing five rebounds and dishing out five assists.
I like how Durant got his teammates involved in Game 2. He only shot the ball 15 times, made seven and put forth a consistent effort to keep the offense moving rather than launching up contested threes.
In later rounds, this 20- to 30-point scoring Durant who gets his teammates involved, will be able to win more games than the 40-plus Durant who accounts for nearly half of the offensive output.
Russell Westbrook: B-
2 of 10
Russell Westbrook had 21 points and seven assists in Game 2. However, Westbrook also turned the ball over an unacceptable seven times.
The speed in which Westbrook plays with will usually result in two or three turnovers a night. That is fine; you take those as a coach, because of everything else Westbrook brings to the team. The problem becomes when the turnover number is approaching double digits and is the same as the amount of assists.
Seven assists is where Westbrook needs to be to earn an A or A-, but he needs to get to that point with only two or three turnovers.
Thabo Sefolosha: B+
3 of 10
The shooting guard position is a combination deal for the Thunder. They ask Thabo Sefolosha to play tight defense and James Harden to do the scoring.
Sefolosha shined on defense in Game 2. Wilson Chandler only scored four points, and Danilo Gallinari was held to seven. Al Harrington, who scored most of his points in a second quarter outburst, was doing most of his work on James Harden and not on Sefolosha.
Sefolosha also added three steals for the Thunder.
Serge Ibaka: A
4 of 10
Serge Ibaka's role on this team is to provide explosive defense along with rebounding.
In Game 2, Ibaka gave the Thunder 12 points of offense along with 12 rebounds. He blocked two shots and didn't take any bad shots. Ibaka hit five out of the eight shots he took and made both of his free throws.
Although he was whistled for goaltending, his effort to run down the court and block a layup early in the game is the type of plays Ibaka can provide that fire up his teammates.
On a team like the Thunder, who are struggling to find a consistent third and fourth scorer, Ibaka could make a huge difference. If Ibaka can find ways to log 10 or 12 points every night to go along with everything else he always provides for this team, the Thunder will become a much more serious threat to get to the NBA Finals.
Kendrick Perkins: B
5 of 10
Let me get the negatives out of the way first, Kendrick Perkins didn't exactly shutdown Nene Hilario, and he fouled out of the game.
Now, here's the positives in Perkins' Game 2 performance. Perkins was aggressive on the glass ripping down 11 rebounds, but most importantly, six of those were offensive.
The Thunder did not have a guy who could go up and grab offensive rebounds in last year's playoffs. In Game 2, Perkins kept possessions alive giving his team more chances to score.
As for fouling out, that comes with the territory of physical basketball. Preferably, Perkins ends the game with four or five, but any fewer than that, and the Thunder are not getting enough physical play out of the former Boston Celtic.
James Harden: A
6 of 10
This is what the Thunder need out of James Harden.
They don't need great defense, that's Thabo Sefolosha's job, they don't need verbal leadership, that falls under Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and Kendrick Perkins' domain, the Thunder just simply need Harden to be the reliable third scorer.
Harden played that role perfectly tonight. Harden came off the bench and chipped in 18 points for the Thunder on five of nine shooting. He got to the foul line, where he made all six of his attempts and hit two from behind the arc.
The starting five of the Thunder have two incredible scorers, but the other three's roles are more for defense. Harden, as the sixth man, is asked to be the third scorer for this team.
Game 2 is the way he needs to play for the rest of the series for the Thunder to keep rolling.
Nick Collison: A+
7 of 10
Nick Collison is one of the most reliable bench players in all of the NBA. He simply does everything right when he's on the floor.
On offense, Collison runs around setting screens and passing up open shots to get the ball in the hands of more reliable shooters.
On defense, Collison steps up to take charges, plays solid help defense and grabs rebounds.
In Game 2, Collison did everything he always does, but added in a little bit of offense that Kansas Jayhawks fans remember well from his time in Lawrence.
Collison was four of five from the field scoring 10 points, while pulling down eight rebounds. The most memorable sequence for Collison, was when he ripped down two offensive rebounds, kicked it out both times and got the home crowd even more into the game.
Collison is a great glue guy for this team. He is not called upon to score that many points, but when he is able to do all the little things and chip in 10 points, the Thunder are hard to beat.
Daequan Cook: B
8 of 10
Daequan Cook is not asked to do a lot for the Thunder.
Oklahoma City hopes to get a couple threes out of Cook, but they don't rely on him to do much more.
Cook fired up seven threes and made two of them. He also grabbed five rebounds.
This wasn't an outstanding performance, but for a Thunder team who struggles to find other sources of offense, every six points here and there from a non-Durant/Westbrook source certainly helps.
Eric Maynor: B+
9 of 10
Eric Maynor had a tough shooting night, but what he provided was efficient point guard play that sparked the second unit.
Maynor had five assists, but unlike Westbrook, Maynor had zero turnovers.
Maynor will not be in a game long enough to establish a solid rhythm running the point, but what he provided in Game 2 was an effective 15 minutes off the bench that kept the Thunder ahead of the Nuggets.
Nazr Mohammed: C-
10 of 10
Zero points, zero rebounds and three personal fouls. This was not one of Nazr Mohammed's better games.
However, Mohammed was only in the game for 11 minutes and at least provided the Thunder with size for the time he was out there.
The Thunder would like to get a couple points and rebounds out of Mohammed, but at least, he was not a liability for them in Game 2.
