Yes, it’s that time of year again. Pre-empted by the possibility of Game 6 of the NLCS (as I write this, the Cards lead 3-2 in the 6th), European Qualifiers Matchweek and WWE Smackdown, your Toronto Raptors will face the Oklahoma City Thunder in an exciting preseason matchup… and you won’t be able to watch (legally).
Blake’s already ranted about this a bit earlier in the pre-season, and I do understand that this is, after all, preseason, but you’d hope that there’d be a place on the Friday broadcast schedule for Westbrook, Ibaka and the gang. The Raptors aren’t exactly playing the Sixers here, and these scheduling decisions were made long before Kevin Durant’s recent injury.
Alas, though, here we are. Might as well take solace in the fact that this will be the last game of the season you have to pirate the home team’s feed for, enjoy the night off from Matt and Jack, pop your favourite brew, and sit down to that sweet, sweet, low-quality stream from whatever your favourite streaming site of choice is. Friday night basketball, everybody!
*Note: It’s been pointed out in the comments section that the game will indeed be broadcast on NBA TV Canada. If you’ve got the channel, you’re good to go.*
The Game Itself
Durant’s injury is the A story here, obviously. Zach Lowe did a great job breaking down what it means for the Thunder earlier this week, and he’s far better at this than me, so take a read there if you want to know what to expect from Oklahoma City’s top guys.
This is the preseason, though, and we’ll have plenty of time to digest the Thunder sans KD. The preseason is about taking a look at some of those rookies and deep bench guys you don’t get a chance to watch once the games start to count. For the impartial fan, the carrot for the Thunder was probably first-round pick Mitch McGary, but he’s out too with a foot fracture after impressing in his first appearance, which made me sad. Dude has moves.
Instead, take a look at which Thunder players emerge as a viable secondary scoring threat to Russell Westbrook and Serge Ibaka. Assuming those two play (and they didn’t the game before), Scott Brooks will likely be trotting out a few different lineups as he looks to replace some semblance of floor-spacing, scoring balance, and all-around amazingness that is the Slim Reaper.
The favourite in the clubhouse is probably inconsistent wing Jeremy Lamb, and he’ll get plenty of touches to try and give the coaches ANY excuse to up his minutes this season. However, look for Anthony Morrow to get his, too – the Raptors were interested in signing him during the summer, and he’s a deadly corner shooter who can help space the floor out for Westbrook.
REALLY deep bench more your thing? How about Talib Zanna, the 24 year old, 6’9″ centre from Pittsburgh fighting for a roster spot? Longtime-Euro-league-guard Michael Jenkins? No? Not at all?
Fine. Read Lowe’s article, then look at Steven Adams’ moustache.
You are now ready for Oklahoma City Thunder preseason basketball.
The Raptors
With only three games left on the preseason docket, expect Casey and the coaching staff to start to work some rotational kinks, moving slowly but surely toward the games and decisions that matter. Both DeRozan and Lowry received ample rest against the Celtics Wednesday and I’d imagine they’ll end up playing closer to 20 odd minutes or so tonight, but the Raptors may decide to sit them out until their last two games before the regular season, both in Toronto. Who knows? It’s the preseason.
The most important on-court battle here, save for “will Bruno block more threes than Tyler Hansbrough attempts?” is obviously the fight for the fifteenth roster spot. Expect all three contenders to see significant playing time, though consensus seems to be that the battle is largely between Greg Stiemsma and Jordan Hamilton. I prefer Stiemsma if we can only have one, but I’m quite partial to the idea of potentially waiving Landry Fields and giving Hamilton his roster spot.
Also, typing that made me sad. Sorry, Landry.
Honestly, though, it’s the preseason. The games are meaningless, there’s very little to take from them, save the occasional fun highlight and the joy of watching good basketball again on a Friday night (ROGERS!!!!!!!). Enjoy the game, however you manage to watch it, pray for no injuries and a 60-point night from Bruno, and check in here for full post-game coverage afterward.
