Monday Rewind: November 5-11

November 5: Thunder Beat Pelicans 122-116

• The big story in this one was the Russell Westbrook ankle injury:

• By now the slow-mo of the ankle bending 90 degrees is something we’ve all seen too much, but man… Russ slapping the floor really made my stomach drop.
• I kid you not, seeing Russ slap the floor immediately brought back flashbacks of 2013.
• Turns out Russ should be okay. Thunder fans were still understandably upset:

• An underrated aspect of this game: The Thunder didn’t crumble. I don’t think the 2017-2018 Thunder pull this one out.
• Paul George pitched in 23 points. Dennis Schroder stepped up in Russ’ absence with 22 points — 16 of which after the former MVP went down.
• Remember Anthony Davis in this game? Me neither. Huge kudos to Big Kiwi for that.

November 7: Thunder Pick Up Ugly Win in Cleveland, 95-86

• Once again, this feels like a game the 2017-2018 Thunder don’t win.
• This one felt like the classic “Thunder let a bad team hang around, bad team wins” scenario.
• The Cavs had an 82-80 lead with 6:18 to go. The Thunder went on a 15-4 run to close it out and escape with the win.
• Schroder had another big scoring game: 28 points on 11-of-19 shooting.
• The Thunder finish the game with 10 total assists. Schroder contributed zero. Yikes.

November 8: Thunder Smash the Rockets, 98-80

• Oh boy, this one was way more fun than I expected.
• The Thunder had won six in a row. No Westbrook. Melo was back in town. The Rockets needed a win in a bad way. Seems like we were due for a letdown, right?
• NOPE. BLOWOUT. And mannnnnn, that Melo situation has sure turned into something.
• Terrance Ferguson had himself a game: 14 pts (5-10 shooting, 4-9 3PT)

• Every Thunder starter ended up scoring in double figures: George 20, Adams 19, Schroder 14, Ferguson 14, Grant 11.
• The Thunder consistently got help from their non-superstars and it was really fun to watch. We’ve had the Grant Game, the Abrines Game, and this one was pretty close to the Ferg Game. Still waiting for the 2Pat 20-point explosion.
• Okay, so Carmelo.

• Anthony shot 1-for-11, for two total points. His lone-bucket never actually went in… Defensive goaltending was called.
• He was a Houston team-worst -22.
• Such a weird turn of events for Melo, who reportedly may have played his last game as a Rocket in the loss to the Thunder.
• Did Carmelo play his last full NBA season with the Oklahoma City Thunder? (He’s going to end up with the Warriors, isn’t he?)
• Russell Westbrook’s sweater was fun:

November 10: Mavs End the Winning Streak, Thunder Lose 111-96

• The Mavs wore their new “City Edition” jerseys and the Thunder wore their blue road jerseys. It felt really weird. Way too many blues.

• The Thunder set a franchise record for offensive rebounds (26) in this one. So… there’s that.

• George: 20 points, 13 rebounds. Adams: 20 pts, 13 rebounds. Schroder: 19 points, 6 rebounds.
• The Thunder shot an abysmal 9-of-34 from long range. Gross.
• DailyThunder commenter “hamfists” sums this one up best:

• Luka Doncic is going to be a problem: 22 points, 6 rebounds, 8 assists for the rookie.
• There are few things in life I enjoy less than watching JJ Barea play the Thunder. His 21 points off the Dallas bench were a nightmare.

Happy Veterans Day:

• To all of those that have served/are serving: THANK YOU. Your service and sacrifice is the reason we get to enjoy so many freedoms — such as discussing and debating an orange ball going through a hoop.

Looking Ahead: