Tuesday Bolts – 12.22.15
Anthony Slater: “As the ball bounced away and time expired, Durant let out a yell and huge fist-
pump, untucking his jersey and staring down the courtside row that featured Drake and Floyd Mayweather.”
Kevin Arnovitz of ESPN.com breaks down Westbrook’s big 3: “From here, Durant has a number of options, which includes engaging his defender — Clippers’ defensive stalwart Luc Mbah a Moute — in one-on-one combat. Isolation basketball might not capture the sports’ aesthetic flourish, but Durant has a case. Among players with more than 50 isolation sets this season, Durant leads the league by producing 1.138 points per possession. As a reference point, the Golden State Warriors score 1.133 points per possession.”
Durant gave Arnovitz this great quote too: “When you have iso players and guys who can score as many points as Russ and me, you’ve got to live playing some iso ball. What do you want? Just pass the ball around and around and not be aggressive? If they’re looking at me and Russ is open, he gets the ball. But if I’ve got it, I’m going to work. Iso. It’s pick your poison.”
Berry Tramel: “Durant seemed to confirm a long-held belief that winning a title makes it more likely that he would stay with the Thunder. That belief is not chiseled-in-granite commandment. I could make the argument that some guys might be more likely to leave a market after winning a title. The job is done, they might think. I’ve helped bring a title. Time to try something different.”
Chad Ford on if Brandon Ingram is the next KD: “Comps are always especially difficult when you talk about players at the top of the Big Board. At the top end of Ingram’s potential, I’ve heard scouts compare him to a young Kevin Durant and Paul George. Both were skinny, long, athletic forwards with jump shots. I see the similarities in style and skill, but it might be a bit optimistic to compare an 18-year-old to a pair of NBA MVP candidates. But in terms of his traits as an 18-year-old, the George comp isn’t a bad one.”
Russell Westbrook got stopped by the bouncer last night. Wanted to know his name.
Zach Harper of CBSSports.com on KD’s Hack-a line: “Durant, a career 88 percent free throw shooter, isn’t having any of that. He wants the struggling players to become good free throw shooters. I think this misses the point of the discussion. If those players like Drummond and Howard get the ball and get fouled, then they still have to shoot free throws in this situation. But when they’re getting tapped on the shoulder 80 feet away from the hoop to have the foul called, how is that basketball?”
Jordan Greer of Sporting News: “TNT analyst Chris Webber has pointed out on multiple game broadcasts that it’s the responsibility of the big men to improve their shooting. Webber would know. In his first six NBA seasons, he only shot 54.1 percent from the charity stripe. In his next five seasons with the Kings, he made 70.4 percent of his free throws. Those on the side of Durant and Webber aren’t wrong. It’s part of the job. Step up to the line and put the round orange thing in the basket. But they should make that trip to the line after being fouled on a legitimate basketball play, not after Chris Paul jumps on your back because of some arbitrary rule.”
