The Oklahoma City Thunder finally finished their long road trip, playing their eighth road game in their last nine contests. They have now finished their torrid road stretch with a 6-3 record, falling slightly behind the Chicago Bulls for the NBA's best record with a 21-6 (.778) mark.
Now, the Thunder get six of their next seven games at home, within the confines of the Chesapeake Arena, where they currently sit at 9-1 on the season. However, things don't get easier for the Thunder. Over those seven games, they play five teams with winning records including division rival Denver Nuggets, the always tough Houston Rockets on the road and their first game of the season with the Los Angeles Lakers.
Along the way, the Thunder continue to improve, even without defensive star Thabo Sefolosha in the lineup. Towards the end of the road trip, fatigue began to set in and Oklahoma City uncharacteristically lost two of their last four games. However, now they get a three day break to rest before returning the Oklahoma City to take on the Utah Jazz, who the Thunder beat 101-87 on Feb. 10.
Kevin Durant continues to be a star, leading the team with both 27.3 points and 8.3 rebounds a game. While Durant is proving to be a multi-dimensional talent, Serge Ibaka is also beginning to surge. It is Ibaka, the teams small forward, that ranks second on the team with 7.1 rebounds a game and leads the NBA with 3.0 blocked shots a game as well. He has raised his points per game total to a respectable 7.5 and it is growing by the day.
Russell Westbrook and sixth man James Harden are still lights out as well, with Westbrook scoring 22.7 points and Harden hitting 16.8 points a game on the season. Westbrook is adding 5.8 assists a game while Harden is slowly improving in that area with 3.5. Harden is also improving by leaps and bounds with only 1.8 turnovers a game. Westbrook also is contributing 2.0 steals and 4.8 rebounds a game.
Kendrick Perkins is providing the muscle in the paint and is working on many stats you don't read in the box scores, limiting the opposing teams shots in the paint. However, his offensive numbers are down, only scoring 4.6 points per game with average defensive numbers, blocking 1.1 shots and pulling down 5.4 boards a game.
Hopefully, Sefolosha will rejoin the lineup for their upcoming home stand and Daequan Cook can return to the reserve role as a 3-point mercenary. Things are continuing to roll along nicely for the Thunder, especially with them surviving the long road trip in one piece.
Author Shawn S. Lealos has a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Oklahoma (2000) and is an avid sports fan that has lived in Oklahoma for over 40 years. He used to religiously follow the Dallas Mavericks until Oklahoma City found a team to call their own.
Source: NBA.COM
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