Getting to the bottom of what ails Thunder
It's a lot of things, bust just barely, because the NBA's a difficult league
I’m doing my part.
The Oklahoma City Thunder, once 24-1 this NBA season, are now 30-7.
Once the best team any of us have ever seen, we’re now left to wonder if they’re even better than Detroit, for the Pistons are 27-9 in the Eastern Conference, just 2 1/2 games back if the standings listed one through 30.
And while we’d like to think they’re the West’s best, can we when they’re 0-3 against their nearest pursuer, San Antonio, two games back at 25-11.
So, I’m doing my part.
When the Thunder were 8-0, I penned a column under the headline, “Will they ever lose another game ever again,” and they lost their next one, by a bucket, allowing 40 fourth-quarter points at Portland.
Next, after 16 straight wins to reach 24-1, I figured another column was in order, the headline not a question, but an observation predicated on their dominance: “The Thunder are not of this world, but they might change it.”
Next time up, they fell, beginning their current run of six losses over 12 games.
So I’m the turnaround artist.
So I’m writing again.
Cue the winning streak.
Also, as long as we’re here, we might try figuring out what’s happened to OKC over its last 12 games, the first coming Dec. 13 and the last Monday night.
If you hadn’t noticed, that’s 12 games in 24 days, also 11 in 19, which could be part of it. Beyond that, spoiler, I’ve run the numbers and the lesson may not be OKC-centric so much as NBA-centric.
In fact, the Thunder have lost all kinds of ways, and none point toward any singular failure, with the possible exception of Victor Wembanyama, San Antonio’s 7-foot-4 center, living in their heads.
More on that in a moment.
