- Record: 38-24 (3-7)
- Eastern (4)
- Atlantic (1)
Ranks
- 110.8 ORTG (4)
- 107.1 DRTG (23)
- 93.3 Pace (20)
- 73.3 DRB% (24)
- 0.551 TS% (5)
Latest Results
Leaders
- DeMar DeRozan 18.7 ppg
- Jonas Valanciunas 8.7 rpg
- Kyle Lowry 7 apg
- James Johnson 1.2 bpg
- Kyle Lowry 1.5 spg
- Record: 34-28 (7-3)
- Western (8)
- Northwest (2)
Ranks
- 106.2 ORTG (14)
- 103.5 DRTG (11)
- 95.2 Pace (7)
- 75.4 DRB% (10)
- 0.528 TS% (20)
Latest Results
Leaders
- Russell Westbrook 27.4 ppg
- Enes Kanter 8.9 rpg
- Russell Westbrook 8.1 apg
- Serge Ibaka 2.4 bpg
- Russell Westbrook 2.1 spg
Russell Westbrook’s Historic Month:
When your name is getting included with the likes of greats like Oscar Robertson and Michael Jordan you know you are playing with the big boys. What Westbrook has been doing is other worldly, but closer examination of his numbers showcases the team is better when he doesn’t shoulder too much of the load:
Thunder provide perfect template for Raptors:
As I touched on in my past article the Thunder are the perfect model for the Raptors as they look to grow their core and build into a long term successful competitive franchise. OKC made their playoff foray 2009-10 losing in the first round, returned the next year to lose in the second round to eventual champs Dallas and in their third season made it to the finals. Injuries played a factor the past two seasons, but this being the sixth season since their uprising began it appears ownership and GM Sam Presti have decided to go all in filling all the potential gaps in the roster at the deadline.
Because the Raptors got out of the gate so strong it’s hard to want to remain patient, but with cap space, draft picks and a developing big in Valanciunas plus our core pieces it might be wise to use the Thunder as the model for future success.
Positional Breakdown:
Guards: Kyle Lowry, DeMar DeRozan – Russell Westbrook, Andre Roberson
I think the adage out of the frying pan into the fire may have been created precisely for situations like what Kyle Lowry faces today. Let’s hope the cobwebs and rust were cleared in Charlotte following his 3-game sojourn and provided him with the the extra mojo required to face undeniably the hottest player in the Association. As per above, Russell Westbrook has been on a journey of epic proportions and shows no signs of slowing down. For the Raptors sakes they better pray he does attempt over 30 shots since the numbers point to losses for the Thunder when he does. And history is on the Raptors side as Westbrook hasn’t had his best performances against Toronto who he’s had his third lowest scoring average against (17.7ppg). If nothing else this match-up provides ample incentive to clear your Sunday evening so you don’t miss a second of this game.
In Andre Roberson the Thunder have replaced Thabo Sefolosha with a younger version of the defensive specialist. He won’t be lighting up the Raptors from the field, but his 6’7″ stature will cause no end of problems for DeMar DeRozan. For his part one would hope DeRozan has spent some time in the film room regarding his lack of ball distribution of late. Upon his return from injury he appeared to have increased his vision on the court and subsequently was doling out assists at a higher level, but recently his dimes have seemingly disappeared from his repertoire. Part of this can be explained during Lowry’s absence and the insertion of James Johnson as a starter was partially responsible since opposing defenses were slacking off Johnson to apply extra pressure on the Raptor guards. Assuming Casey sticks with keeping Ross in the starting line-up it should allow the Raptors to spread the court again and subsequently allow DeRozan and Lowry with the capacity to move the ball with more freedom.
Edge: Thunder Westbrook Who are we kidding, if you can put your name beside Oscar Robertson, Michael Jordan, Wilt Chamberlain, Magic Johnson and Pete “the pistol” Maravich it’s a veritable certainty you have arrived at the pantheon of greatness.
Front Court:Terrence Ross, Amir Johnson, Jonas Valanciunas – Kyle Singler, Serge Ibaka, Enes Kanter
As noted during the time James Johnson was a starter the Raptors defense improved, but the offense sputtered. Much of this was due to the lack of floor spacing since opposing defenses chose to utilize Johnson’s man as an extra help defender on the Raptor guards. The result was the guards were shut down in isolation, but their passing lanes were also clogged. With Ross putting forth a middling improvement it did seem to make sense to return him to the starting line because he at least offers the possibility of another 3-point shooter. For many, Ross’ regression this year has been head scratching, specifically in terms of his defensive effort, but the past 3 games he’s posted slight improvements including a career high 7-assists versus Charlotte and he’s averaging 10 points per game in his last 5 games.
Our other third year stud Valanciunas has definitely shown improvements with consistency arguably being the one area we’d all like to see improved. Today however he’ll get to face one of his favorite European opponents in Kanter, so odds are he’ll be amped for the challenge.
As for Johnson, my hopes are he can put together two solid efforts versus the Thunder and Spurs and then Casey will institute a similar rest period for him like he did for Lowry. Of note while doing my rounds checking out the league leaders I was surprised to find Amir Johnson (58.1%) and Jonas Valanciunas (56.4%) are ranked 3rd and 4th for best field goal percent in the Association.
Oklahoma City has fostered their already impressive front court of Ibaka and Steven Adams with the addition of Kanter who is a youthful upgrade from Kendrick Perkins and the emergence of Mitch McGary. And, that doesn’t even factor in last season’s MVP: Kevin Durant who is likely to return to the line-up this week.
Overnight the Thunder went from having what was considered their greatest weakness to arguably the deepest front court in the Association.
Edge: Thunder Though Valanciunas could have a monster game facing Kanter and Amir could have an “on” day with his ankles the Thunder just have too many options in the front court for the Raptors to realistically counter.
Bench Mob: Greivis Vasquez, Lou Williams, James Johnson, Patrick Patterson, Tyler Hansbrough – D.J. Augustin, Dion Waiters, Nick Collison, Mitch McGary Steven Adams
Lou Williams is posting some heady numbers and on nights when he plays like he did against Cleveland it’s hard not to earmark him as the second most important player on the team behind Lowry. He boasts a PER of 20.1, a career high TS% (true shooting percent) of 56.5%.
James Johnson didn’t resemble the player we’ve become accustom to this season in the last outing whether that was a factor of adjusting to returning to the bench or if he just had an off game. Since twisting his knee in the Houston game Patterson (who missed the New Orleans game) hasn’t been moving well on the court. Hopefully a day of rest will help his mobility as his presence will be essential tonight if the Raptors want to have any chance of taking down the Goliath that is OKC.
As I highlighted above the trade by Sam Presti was a brilliant move to foster their depth and fill all their holes, however the key in my opinion was the addition of D.J. Augustin. He isn’t James Harden, but in essence he provides the same effect given he offers a different style from Westbrook, uses a different pace and compliments Westbrook perfectly. Looking at how poorly Detroit have performed since the trade it makes me wonder if they underestimated the value of Augustin. Currently I’d rank him as the best back up point guard in the Association and when you put him beside Westbrook it’s a pretty daunting back court to contend with.
McGary was considered a bit of a flyer by many given he had undergone back surgery then early this season he fractured his second metatarsal, and when that healed he missed games due to inflammation in his tibia. When he finally got on the court he showcased a deft touch around the basket with a potential high ceiling and his exuberance off the bench is a bonus.
As per hoopsstats.com Toronto has the fifth ranked bench to Oklahoma City’s eleventh rank, however since the trade OKC has been climbing in all bench stats and is actually performing at a higher mark than the Raptors through the past ten games. You can factor in Kyle Lowry missing time, but the reality is Durant and Adams have been out so suffice to say the Thunder are so deep now that even when they are missing two starters they continue to improve with their upgraded depth.
Slight Edge: Thunder … Caveat: if Lou Williams and James Johnson have a great game they could offset the Thunder’s depth especially if the Raptors bring their A1 defense
Walking Wounded:
OKC:
- Kevin Durant: continues to rehab his foot, didn’t practice Saturday so will likely return this week some time as per Rotoworld
- Steven Adams: broken bone in hand, practiced Saturday and is likely to return tonight as per ESPN
- Steve Novak: had an appendectomy – out for 2 weeks
Toronto:
- None listed
TTOTambz Tips:
While everyone is rightfully concerned about the Raptors malaise there are some weaknesses that can be found even in the top teams:
- Atlanta continues to have issues with tall, athletic front courts (case in point Philly Saturday night or Memphis, New Orleans, Raptors or Bucks)
- Though Cleveland have been arguably the hottest Eastern squad (Indy not withstanding) even they have an Achilles heel: looking at the games they played through February until March 6th they went 10-5. Of those games they played 7 teams who were seeded 6th or higher to a 4-3 record. Taking into account the Wizards were getting shredded by everyone I removed them from this equation, so looking at the other 6 games Cleveland was .500 (3-3) however those opponents averaged 104.83 points per game which would rank 27th in opponent scoring!
The Pick:
The odds makers have Oklahoma City favored by 7 points as of posting which makes sense given how well they play at home, Toronto’s current malaise and the depth of their squad. On the other hand Toronto tends to get up for Oklahoma City so it could be a closely contested battle should the Raptors bring a focused defensive effort for a full 48 minutes. The fact which tilts the scale in OKC’s favor is Toronto beat them last year on their home court (an area the Thunder take major pride in), so given how hot Westbrook has been coupled with the projected return of Adams and depth of their squad it’s likely the Thunder will prevail.
