Going on 23. I have a strong feeling this team will win 70 games if Westbrook and Durant are healthy for 85% of the season, and possibly break MJ's record for W's in the seasons to come. Durant is a lock for MVP if he stays healthy (voters are bored of LBJ), Westbrook is shooting terribly but is so damn aggressive and fast he does what he wants anyways, and the decision to stick with Ibaka over Harden did not hurt them. What are their weaknesses?
Carmelo has been getting all the hype. If the Knicks keep winning then I'm pretty sure Carmelo will snatch.
Thunder are looking real good now even without Harden (I guess they just needed a scorer off the bench), I'd like to see how they go in the finals though, for top tier teams like the thunder, I sort of take regular season games with a grain of salt. KD is a much more rounded player this season, his defence has improved and so has his playmaking, so they're filling in the gaps the Harden left. "Durant is a lock for MVP if he stays healthy (voters are bored of LBJ)" This is probably true, but it pisses me off. LBJ is the clear MVP so far imo, this guy is so far ahead of the competition it's not funny. In terms of the Thunder's weaknesses, I'm not entirely sure, but I think it'll be made very clear during the playoffs.
"Biggest" weakness? Does LeBron count? My biggest complaint is backup point guard. Maynor on occasion has shown flashes of his old self, but more often than not he has been terrible this year and Jackson hasn't been given much burn.
If Maynor doesn't get it going by the trade deadline, Presti will make a move. Reggie Jackson can't be counted on yet. To the OP, now way OKC wins 70 games. Their early schedule was extremely easy and the numbers will catch up to them, but it wouldn't surprise me if they finished with the best record in the NBA. K-Mart has found his ideal role and team. I'm actually beginning to think there is a chance he re-signs there. Don't forget about the Clippers and Grizzlies. Either of those two could make the Finals from the WC in place of OKC.
Ya sure? LeBron is dropping 25, 8.5, 6.9 1.3, .9 on 54%, 42% and 68%. PER of 29. And he's a better defender than Durant. Less turnovers than Durant as well even though he handles the ball more.
Well, Durants PER isn't far off at 27.8 and his team is winning more. Durant is hte more efficient scorer. It's pretty insane how much Durant is scoring at that efficiency from all over the court.
It's because Westbrook has realized this season that they are unstoppable when he dishes out assists rather then shoot.
Like I said before the season started, OKC is still the best team in the West. And it seems like they are better with Martin b/c it has allowed Ibaka to get more opportunities offensively.
Guys, what about Rudy Gay? Isn't this THE year? Martin has been on a tear this year. I don't think we had to give them that Dallas pick and we probably could have kept the lottery pick if Martin didn't suck before we traded him. It's still a good trade for both teams, but how much will Martin demand in free agency? I'm sure they want to keep him. http://www.nba.com/playerfile/kevin_martin/ What's up with his EFF rating? Martin is the definition of efficiency and just look at the numbers he is putting up. Usually players that take as many threes as Martin have low FG percentages, but he doesn't.
At this point LeBron and Durant are neck and neck for MVP in their performances, although I agree the voters are tired of LeBron. OKC looks really good. I knew Martin would be a good fit with them, and said so at the time. Houston won the trade in that we got more value, but I still think OKC accomplished their goals as well as they could have, so it wasn't a bad trade for them. They would have been better off trading Westbrick though, haha. They key for them becoming a title team moving forward is gonna be Ibaka. He's having a breakout season, and if he keeps it up and keeps improving, they're going to be a force to be reckoned with for many years to come. I'm looking forward to a future in a few years where we contend with the Thunder for the West year in and year out. It's coming, guys.