OKC will NEVER win a title as long as…

 I have been talking about this with my friends all night.  I just don’t like Westbrook and Durant together.  In the overtime period he was just jacking up 3’s with a guy in his face as well.  I think the Thunder would be better served by trying to get a king’s ransom for Westbrook and putting a complimentary scorer or two around Durant.  Heck, if the Lakers luck out and get a Top 3 pick they could swap Russ for it.  The Lakers would be maybe willing to surround Mamba with an All-Star versus a developmental star for his last couple seasons and I think Westbrook would love to be wearing the Purple and Gold anyway.  He’s a very good player but he takes a lot of terrible shots and worse yet, he takes them AWAY from the MVP.  It drives me nuts when I watch OKC games.

 I have been talking about this with my friends all night.  I just don’t like Westbrook and Durant together.  In the overtime period he was just jacking up 3’s with a guy in his face as well.  I think the Thunder would be better served by trying to get a king’s ransom for Westbrook and putting a complimentary scorer or two around Durant.  Heck, if the Lakers luck out and get a Top 3 pick they could swap Russ for it.  The Lakers would be maybe willing to surround Mamba with an All-Star versus a developmental star for his last couple seasons and I think Westbrook would love to be wearing the Purple and Gold anyway.  He’s a very good player but he takes a lot of terrible shots and worse yet, he takes them AWAY from the MVP.  It drives me nuts when I watch OKC games.

Lets Get Rondo and Sullinger! haha 

Lets Get Rondo and Sullinger! haha 

To be fair he hit the 4 point play to put them into OT in the first place.
Yeah he makes bonehead plays sometimes, but he’s an supremely talented PG who plays with tons of passion and I’m always going to be a huge fan.

To be fair he hit the 4 point play to put them into OT in the first place.
Yeah he makes bonehead plays sometimes, but he’s an supremely talented PG who plays with tons of passion and I’m always going to be a huge fan.

To add.. when Westbrook does get out of control, it’s not like Scott Brooks really does anything about it.

To add.. when Westbrook does get out of control, it’s not like Scott Brooks really does anything about it.

 I wouldn’t go as far to say they’ll never win with him, but I think it’s clear he isn’t the best fit next to Durant.

 I wouldn’t go as far to say they’ll never win with him, but I think it’s clear he isn’t the best fit next to Durant.

They need a smart player alongside Durant. Westbrook has very low bball IQ. 

Vets with high basketball IQ’s are so valuable in the playoffs. Just look at the teams who sit on top of each division. 

Sometimes I think they look better with Derek Fisher on the floor!

They need a smart player alongside Durant. Westbrook has very low bball IQ. 

Vets with high basketball IQ’s are so valuable in the playoffs. Just look at the teams who sit on top of each division. 

Sometimes I think they look better with Derek Fisher on the floor!

 I’m not so sure this is an entirely fair assessment. Think back to last year’s playoffs when Westbrook went down. OKC struggled to close out the Houston series and then were defeated by the Grizzlies in the next round. Westbrook gives them another legit 20 point guy who, although erratic, is a matchup nightmare for any PG in the league. 

Another thing, let’s not take any credit from this Memphis team. This is a team that is very talented, tough to play against with two very good bigs, and made the West finals last year. Had Gasol not been injured, it’s very likely they would be higher than a 7 seed.

 I’m not so sure this is an entirely fair assessment. Think back to last year’s playoffs when Westbrook went down. OKC struggled to close out the Houston series and then were defeated by the Grizzlies in the next round. Westbrook gives them another legit 20 point guy who, although erratic, is a matchup nightmare for any PG in the league. 

Another thing, let’s not take any credit from this Memphis team. This is a team that is very talented, tough to play against with two very good bigs, and made the West finals last year. Had Gasol not been injured, it’s very likely they would be higher than a 7 seed.

 I would say its more the cheap owners fault for refusing to be a tax team all the while laughing to the bank because these two guys sell out his arena every night.  

When was the last time a non tax paying team win a championship? They may not be the best tandem but I can’t wait until they both leave and Clay Bennet is left with his dick in his hand as he squandered prime years of two top ten players.

The Thunder organization acts as if it will always have a chance to compete.  They need to surround these guys and Ibaka with better talent.

 I would say its more the cheap owners fault for refusing to be a tax team all the while laughing to the bank because these two guys sell out his arena every night.  

When was the last time a non tax paying team win a championship? They may not be the best tandem but I can’t wait until they both leave and Clay Bennet is left with his dick in his hand as he squandered prime years of two top ten players.

The Thunder organization acts as if it will always have a chance to compete.  They need to surround these guys and Ibaka with better talent.

 I thought it was gonna say "…as long as scott brooks is the head coach"

 I thought it was gonna say "…as long as scott brooks is the head coach"

 I don’t think Westbrook is the problem at all. Durant forces a lot of shots ass well he shot pretty poorly too. Remember last year when Westbrook was down and everyone was saying how they need him so bad because everyone was focusing in on Durant. I think the real problem is the BasedGod curse. KD needs to make emends with BasedGod if he ever wants a shot at an Title 

 I don’t think Westbrook is the problem at all. Durant forces a lot of shots ass well he shot pretty poorly too. Remember last year when Westbrook was down and everyone was saying how they need him so bad because everyone was focusing in on Durant. I think the real problem is the BasedGod curse. KD needs to make emends with BasedGod if he ever wants a shot at an Title 

 It’s tough when those 2 are on the court with nonscorers because the plays take so long to develop that if Durant’s not open Westbrook has to force something. This makes matters worse because Westbrook already takes bad shots. I will say I do believe its time to either get a new coach or trade Westbrook. As a laker and Westbrook fan I would love to see him in LA.

Lets not forget he did play a major role in them coming back from 17 down

 It’s tough when those 2 are on the court with nonscorers because the plays take so long to develop that if Durant’s not open Westbrook has to force something. This makes matters worse because Westbrook already takes bad shots. I will say I do believe its time to either get a new coach or trade Westbrook. As a laker and Westbrook fan I would love to see him in LA.

Lets not forget he did play a major role in them coming back from 17 down

 We all know if that’s Perkins under the goal were not sure if he would even catch the ball with his stone hands

 We all know if that’s Perkins under the goal were not sure if he would even catch the ball with his stone hands

Westbrook does take terrible shots, but they clearly need him to create and shoot. They have 2 guys who can score right now and both are struggling. They are the only 2 guys who can create and shoot and there is no ball movement. OKC is running stupid offense in general. All they do is high pick and roll and iso offense which is easy to defend when 3 of the 5 guys on the court cant score.

What happened to Reggie Jackson and Jeremy Lamb? Both guys were fantastic in the regular season and don’t even play anymore? I thought Westbrook getting hurt was supposed to be a blessing in disguise because it sped up those guys development.

Westbrook does take terrible shots, but they clearly need him to create and shoot. They have 2 guys who can score right now and both are struggling. They are the only 2 guys who can create and shoot and there is no ball movement. OKC is running stupid offense in general. All they do is high pick and roll and iso offense which is easy to defend when 3 of the 5 guys on the court cant score.

What happened to Reggie Jackson and Jeremy Lamb? Both guys were fantastic in the regular season and don’t even play anymore? I thought Westbrook getting hurt was supposed to be a blessing in disguise because it sped up those guys development.

Westbrook should only be traded for a decent PG who can run the pick-and-roll (with Ibaka) and a low-post presence who can score down low. Not saying they should trade for the following players, but Jameer Nelson (PG) and Al Jefferson (PF/C) would be prime examples of players they could desperately need. 

Considering they already have a prime defensive PF they can go for a less defensive-minded C, and regarding their PG-situation they have R. Jackson who can come in from the bench and change the pace (like a mini-Westbrook).

Westbrook should only be traded for a decent PG who can run the pick-and-roll (with Ibaka) and a low-post presence who can score down low. Not saying they should trade for the following players, but Jameer Nelson (PG) and Al Jefferson (PF/C) would be prime examples of players they could desperately need. 

Considering they already have a prime defensive PF they can go for a less defensive-minded C, and regarding their PG-situation they have R. Jackson who can come in from the bench and change the pace (like a mini-Westbrook).

 I like Russell but in stages of the game you expect Durant to shoot more Mr Westbrook shoots more. He is a bad fit there. They would be better off with a distributing PG and a PF or SG that scored more. Its been obvious for years. I think Rondo would make them a championship team. Durant would score easier. I think they would have to give up more though because Rondo fills up the stat box a lot more except in scoring department. But in the playoffs Rondo plays better. Its not a even trade judging all around skills. I do think it would be a great deal for OKC.

 I like Russell but in stages of the game you expect Durant to shoot more Mr Westbrook shoots more. He is a bad fit there. They would be better off with a distributing PG and a PF or SG that scored more. Its been obvious for years. I think Rondo would make them a championship team. Durant would score easier. I think they would have to give up more though because Rondo fills up the stat box a lot more except in scoring department. But in the playoffs Rondo plays better. Its not a even trade judging all around skills. I do think it would be a great deal for OKC.

I’m sure the issue here is Scott Brooks.  He doesn’t believe in line up changes or doing things differently…  Perkins did ok on Randolph this game, but Nick Collinson has done a better job IMO and Scott plays Perkins down the stretch…  Even with Nick being the better offensive player too…   

I understand Westbrook take terrible shots, but so does Durant…  I’m not happy with Westbrook after this game because 1 assist from your PG is terrible, but his coach didn’t do him any favors… You can’t get KD the ball in half court then why not let him bring the ball up?  It force the defense to not be settled and allow KD to attack like that dunk he had on Gasol…   These are minor changes that Scott doesn’t seem to get and it shows…  

I’m sure the issue here is Scott Brooks.  He doesn’t believe in line up changes or doing things differently…  Perkins did ok on Randolph this game, but Nick Collinson has done a better job IMO and Scott plays Perkins down the stretch…  Even with Nick being the better offensive player too…   

I understand Westbrook take terrible shots, but so does Durant…  I’m not happy with Westbrook after this game because 1 assist from your PG is terrible, but his coach didn’t do him any favors… You can’t get KD the ball in half court then why not let him bring the ball up?  It force the defense to not be settled and allow KD to attack like that dunk he had on Gasol…   These are minor changes that Scott doesn’t seem to get and it shows…  

trouble is, they lost all of their flexibility when they cheaped out and didn’t sign Harden.

If he was still there and they had 3 guys that could initiate an offense, you could be more picky and trade one of them for a less scoring focussed player- then the Rondo trade ideas would start to make sense. It might even be that Harden’s D would’ve also suffered in OKC and he’d be the one they traded- but at least they’d have the options.

As the guy said on the other thread- there’s only 2 guys on the whole roster that can create their own shot.

trouble is, they lost all of their flexibility when they cheaped out and didn’t sign Harden.

If he was still there and they had 3 guys that could initiate an offense, you could be more picky and trade one of them for a less scoring focussed player- then the Rondo trade ideas would start to make sense. It might even be that Harden’s D would’ve also suffered in OKC and he’d be the one they traded- but at least they’d have the options.

As the guy said on the other thread- there’s only 2 guys on the whole roster that can create their own shot.

Scott Brooks is the problem..

He should have been fired a couple seasons ago. When Russ went down, he caught a break, but truth is he’s not a great coach. He got lucky to even have KD and Russ.

They dont run any plays. It was all Iso down the stretch and who’s fault is that ultimately?

Out of a timeout Russ isos and shoots a forced 3. They play 2-on-5 on offense towards the end.

What happened to Serge and the pick and pop? What happened to plays period.

I would have loved to see the Boston coach run this team. Not even a fan of the Celtic’s but they had a flow and chemistry on offense without the parts. Brad Stevens is a much better coach.

Brooks should go. They are getting by on talent. They wont beat the Spurs like this… and even Memphis is not a sure thing

Scott Brooks is the problem..

He should have been fired a couple seasons ago. When Russ went down, he caught a break, but truth is he’s not a great coach. He got lucky to even have KD and Russ.

They dont run any plays. It was all Iso down the stretch and who’s fault is that ultimately?

Out of a timeout Russ isos and shoots a forced 3. They play 2-on-5 on offense towards the end.

What happened to Serge and the pick and pop? What happened to plays period.

I would have loved to see the Boston coach run this team. Not even a fan of the Celtic’s but they had a flow and chemistry on offense without the parts. Brad Stevens is a much better coach.

Brooks should go. They are getting by on talent. They wont beat the Spurs like this… and even Memphis is not a sure thing

 Westbrook plays out of control at times, but that is part of what makes him so great. Durant was off last night and those games are going to happen from time to time. They need to get rid of Brooks in the offseason unless they win the championship which is still a real possibility. If they can get past Memphis first obviously, but they match up well with everyone in the Western Conference and right now it looks like the HEAT are the only team capable of coming out of the East. Brooks needs to go and they need to bring in one of the Van Gundy or George Karl.

 Westbrook plays out of control at times, but that is part of what makes him so great. Durant was off last night and those games are going to happen from time to time. They need to get rid of Brooks in the offseason unless they win the championship which is still a real possibility. If they can get past Memphis first obviously, but they match up well with everyone in the Western Conference and right now it looks like the HEAT are the only team capable of coming out of the East. Brooks needs to go and they need to bring in one of the Van Gundy or George Karl.

I thought Russell Westbrook was so selfish and totally responsible for the Thunder’s collapse against Dallas in 2011, but I was impressed with how much he matured in 2012, the year they made it to the Finals. He had clearly learned from his mistakes the year before. I think maybe his zeal to recover from his injuries the last two years has caused him to relapse back to his 2011 self.

I thought Russell Westbrook was so selfish and totally responsible for the Thunder’s collapse against Dallas in 2011, but I was impressed with how much he matured in 2012, the year they made it to the Finals. He had clearly learned from his mistakes the year before. I think maybe his zeal to recover from his injuries the last two years has caused him to relapse back to his 2011 self.

Dunno if the salaries match, but how about Westbrook for Rubio + Pekovic (+pick(s)?)

OKC gets a pass-first PG and a inside scorer in Pekovic (also Ibaka hides Peko flaws)

MIN gets a star scorer to pair with Love (and it happens that they played together in UCLA) and already has a substitute for Pekovic in Gorgui Dieng.

Dunno if the salaries match, but how about Westbrook for Rubio + Pekovic (+pick(s)?)

OKC gets a pass-first PG and a inside scorer in Pekovic (also Ibaka hides Peko flaws)

MIN gets a star scorer to pair with Love (and it happens that they played together in UCLA) and already has a substitute for Pekovic in Gorgui Dieng.