Last year, the Thunder shocked the NBA by becoming the youngest one-seed in its history. However, in the playoffs, things didn’t go their way, and they lost in the second round to the Dallas Mavericks. The Thunder made some changes this offseason, trading for Alex Caruso and signing Isaiah Hartenstein to improve their team. This season, they have been even better than last year, posting a 35-7 record, and are on pace to win just under 70 games. They have been able to do this with more of an expectation on them this year and not being as healthy as they were last year. However, there is still one thing the Thunder must change and fix in this year’s playoff run.
The needed change is to not be as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander oriented in the playoffs. Last year in the playoffs the Thunder had little to no experience. It showed up the most in the Mavericks series when Shai seemed like the only player who was ready for the spotlight. He didn’t receive much up as his two co-stars Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren struggled. In addition, the Thunder led the league in three-point percentage last year but in the Mavericks series shot 33.5% which was the worst out of eight teams. Let’s dive into how the Thunder can change and avoid being too Shai-centric in the playoffs this year.
1 Crucial Change That Will Help the Thunder in the Playoffs
Shooters Need to Shoot With More Confidence
Last year the Thunder led the league in three-point percentage shooting 38.5%. However, in the playoffs, they struggled to get the three-point shot going. It’s unclear if that was the player’s lack of playoff experience getting the best of them or if the team was just in a shooting slump at the wrong time. Regardless this has to change in this year’s playoff run. Currently, the Thunder aren’t shooting as well as last year; shooting just 35.4% which is the 18th-best in the NBA. Nonetheless, recently they have been shooting better and are hopeful that this can continue throughout the rest of the season.
Furthermore, when it comes to the playoffs there is more pressure on the game, and shooting windows become smaller. In the playoffs, teams normally shoot a little worse than they do in the regular season because of that. However, guys on the Thunder like Isaiah Joe, Cason Wallace, Aaron Wiggins, and others need to shoot with more confidence in the playoffs. They have the experience now and know what the playoffs are all about. The Thunder are hopeful they can get a better playoff performance out of them.
Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren Need to Help More
Last year, Jalen Williams was just a second-year player and Chet was a rookie; it was their first time in the playoffs and it showed up. However, this year before Chet went down with an injury had shown a lot more improvements. He was getting to the rim more, taking advantage of smaller defenders, and getting to the line more frequently. Williams has also taken that next step as he is showing more consistency as the second go-to scorer next to Shai. In addition, Williams could make his first-ever All-Star game.
The Thunder are hopeful that when Chet returns he and Williams can keep these improvements going into the playoffs. Shai is going to be able to do his thing in the playoffs scoring at will and playing solid defense. However, he is just one person and needs help. Last year Chet and Jalen weren’t able to offer much help. If the same thing happens where they don’t help Shai as much as they need to it could be another disappointing exit in the playoffs. Ultimately, this year in the playoffs the Thunder are hopeful these two co-stars can give Shai more support.
The Thunder Need to Rely on Defense if Things Get Tough
Last year, when things got tough for the offense, and they couldn’t get anything going for stretches OKC relied on their defense to keep them in the game. This year, their defense is even better and they have the number one defense in the NBA. When the Thunder are hopefully fully healthy in the playoffs their defense can be even better. If things get tough on the offensive side of the ball like they did last year. Where players struggle to shoot the ball, or Shai doesn’t get enough help and their team looks Shai-centric. The Thunder are going to have to rely on their stifling defense to keep them in games and force turnovers to get easy baskets.
The Last Word
The Thunder are having an impressive year and excitement is growing within the fanbase for what this year can entail. However, the Thunder will need to change and not be as Shai-centric as they were last year. Shai will need more help from his two co-stars and the Thunder will need to shoot better. If these things don’t happen, and they are relying too much on Shai doing everything like last year it could be another disappointing exit in the playoffs for this Thunder team.
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