Thunder >> Jazz ??

In a battle of ridiculous team names, the OKC Thunder routed the Utah Jazz last night with Mrs. Angus and I in attendance. There was a lot of good news. First, Chris Wilcox and Damien Wilkens both got DNP-CD'd! Second, Thunder scoring was very balanced with the big 3 (Durant, Green & Westbrook) each getting 20+ and 3 additional players also in double figures. Third, after an initial brain freeze by coach Scottie Brooks, Nenad Krstic spaced the floor, hit the open jumper and pounded the boards in the best performance by a Thunder 7 footer this year (low bar, I know).

When Krstic first entered the game, Brooks called plays to get him isolated in the low post. Those were painful. Two TOs and a blocked shot. I wondered aloud if Brooks had ever seen Nenad play before, but after that they used him in pick and pops and drive and dishes to great effect.

The other extremely encouraging thing about the game was the Thunder only took 6 threes while shooting 38 free throws. The big 3 all took the ball to the rim aggresively. This is a lot easier to do when Wilcox and Wilkens are not on the floor clogging the lanes and calling for the ball all the time.

So now the Thunder are 7-33 and have recorded their first win against an opponent with a winning record. They are 4-4 in their last 8. They are actually in danger of not having the most ping pong balls this spring.