OKC: Lottery Bound - or Worse

Before the season started, I stated that there was a very real possibility that the Oklahoma City Thunder would not only lose home court advantage in the playoffs, but fall out of the playoff picture all together.

Certainly the injury to the league MVP Kevin Durant made you think they were going to be hard pressed to pick up wins.

Then, Anthony Morrow – the man who had been tapped to fill in for Durant went down with an MCL injury (expected to miss 6-8 weeks). 

Then the little bit of depth the Thunder had was instantly depleted as Jeremy Lamb (lower back sprain) and soon-to-be-RFA  Reggie Jackson (ankle sprain) were also placed on the IR.

Things took a dramatic turn for the worse on Thursday night however.  9 minutes into his game against the LA Clippers (a game they eventually lost 93-90), the Thunder’s co-star Russell Westbrook left with an apparent fracture in his hand.

At present, there is no time table for Westbrook’s return, but based on phone calls The Bench placed this morning, 8 weeks seems to be the best case scenario.

With a total lack of a big man commanding double times, and nothing for defenses to key in on – teams had two ways they could scheme for the Thunder;  Shutdown everyone else, and let Westbrook get whatever he wants because he’s not going to score 100 and win by himself or, zone up, and throw doubles and Westbrook on perimeter shots and doubles / triples when he penetrates.

At this point, it’s a non factor because Russ is out of the picture.  I thought the strength of the Thunder’s schedule between now and Christmas would have them several games under  .500 WITH Westbrook – without him, they are sure to dig a hole so deep that even a returning pair of stars won’t be able to dig them out.

Combine all of this with the story that came out this week that it sounds like the Thunder are prepared to let Jackson walk at the end of the season, and this franchise is quickly falling apart; from perennial contender / hipster pick to lottery bound and in danger of losing their premier player. 

I mean seriously, if you were KD and saw all of this going on around you – would you be dying to sign on long term. 

Think of the talent Durant has seen around him since the team moved from Seattle, and that management has allowed to leave for little-to-no return.

Chris Wilcox, Jeff Green, James Harden, Thabo Sefolosha, Nenad Krstic, Nazr Mohammed, Nate Robinson and others. 

All were replaced with cheaper, younger, less productive pieces – which has left the Thunder with a painfully thin roster that completely depended on 3 people; the MVP, an all star point guard, and a defensive big man who can score when someone else is setting him up or commanding doubles.

The Thunder look to be in for a long, long season.