NBA
A Thunder Recap
Before the Thunder headed into the All-Star break, they fell to the New Orleans Pelicans 122-131. It was a bad loss; it was the first game Paul George shot poorly, and the defense was pitiful. The only positive was that Russell Westbrook shot the ball very well, scoring 44 points. Oh, and also Anthony Davis left the game early, and that caused more attention than the loss.
It seemed like the Thunder coasted into the All-Star break and didn’t feel like putting in maximum effort. And yet, the Thunder still came away winning with a fantastic first-half of the season.
Their Newest Addition
A team can never have too much depth or wing-players, and that is exactly what the Thunder acquired. After getting bought-out by the Washington Wizards, the Thunder grabbed Markieff Morris. He had been a vital part to that organization’s success. In four seasons with the Wizards, he averaged 12.5 points and 5.9 rebounds on 46% shooting from the field and 35% from deep.
He fits in nicely with the Thunder, who plays with a lot of attitude and heart. More than likely, he would be coming off the bench but would still be seeing quality minutes to replace a guy like Patrick Patterson — or a younger guy who hasn’t shown consistency. Also, he helps them in playoff experience as well, considering he has been on a team like the Wizards who were able to compete.
A bench-mob of Morris, Nerlens Noel, Dennis Schroder, and Hamidou Diallo is lethal. The Thunder have turned into a very well-rounded ball club.
Their High-Flyer
Probably the biggest news for the Thunder is the breakout of Hamidou Diallo. He won the 2019 Dunk Contest, basically running away with it. He is a high-flyer, who is very smooth up in the air and has all the confidence in the world. Just looking at him, anyone could tell Diallo thought he was going to win that contest.
The dunk that made him very well-known was the Superman dunk. Now, everyone has imitated Superman in dunk contests for years. However, this one in particular was insane to watch. Diallo called Shaquille O’ Neal down to be a part of his dunk. He placed him a couple feet away, and when he wasn’t looking, he showed the Superman shirt under his jersey and delivered.
This man jumped over Shaq, a seven-foot center, and had his entire arm in the basket. It was one of the more remarkable dunks of the competition. Unfortunately, the contest itself wasn’t that close or exciting. Dennis Smith Jr missed 100 dunks, Miles Bridges scored a 33 on his first try after not completing a dunk, and John Collins broke a plane. It was a mediocre contest, but Diallo saved it.
Thank you Hamidou for that!
All-Star Game
Both Oklahoma City Thunder All-Stars ended up on the same team, Team Giannis. They had a big lead in the first half, and then ended up losing the game by 14. Not that it really matters because the game isn’t taken seriously, nor should it. However, George ended up scoring 20 points and hitting six three-pointers, and Westbrook…was Westbrook.
The game ended up being extremely fun to watch as always, and Thunder fans got to see their two best players in the All-Star game. Even in a loss, fans can’t help but be proud of their Thunder all-stars.
What the Second Half Awaits
The season isn’t over just yet; the Thunder still have work to do. They have 25 games left in the season, and 16 of those teams have a winning record. This will be their toughest challenge yet; they will have to finish out strong to keep a top-three seed in the Western Conference. It can definitely be done, but it will take a lot of focus on the team’s part.
There are big questions coming into the second half of the season. How quickly can Morris get familiar with the system? Can George keep up his MVP season? Will Westbrook find his way out of his shooting slump? These are all valid questions that will be answered in the toughest part of their season. If they can get through this last stretch on the winning side, then look out Western Conference!
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Photo Credit
@okcthunder via Twitter
Writer Brandan Verrastro
