Category: OKC Thunder Blog

The Oklahoma Thunder are a powerhouse, and they’re about to get even stronger. Here’s the Associated Press reporting:

The Miami Heat had plenty of trouble with the Oklahoma City Thunder last time the teams met.

They might have even more to deal with this time around.

Thunder point guard Russell Westbrook made it through a full practice Wednesday for the first time since his most recent surgery, just in time for Thursday’s rematch with the two-time defending NBA champion Heat. The ultra-athletic Westbrook’s presence could be a game changer for a team that already has the NBA’s best record.

His return nearly overshadows the usual hype that goes with matchups between Oklahoma City’s Kevin Durant and Miami’s LeBron James.

As dominant a force as Oklahoma City Thunder star Kevin Durant has already proven to be, he’s still capable of raising the bar even higher. The latest example came today vs the Knicks. Here’s New York Newsday reporting:

The NBA’s two best scorers squared off Sunday. Carmelo Anthony struggled putting the ball in the basket, and Kevin Durant showed he can do that and so much more.

He controlled the game on the offensive end and played smothering defense on Anthony. Durant had 41 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists as he led the Thunder to a 112-100 victory over the Knicks at Chesapeake Energy Arena.

“He makes it look easy,” Anthony said. “When he gets it going like that, he’s hard to stop.”

Durant has emerged as the MVP front-runner and has the Thunder atop the Western Conference with a 41-12 record. He’s always been a dominant scorer, but his playmaking and defense have improved.

“In order for us to be a good team,” Durant said, “I have to be a two-way player, and I’ve realized that these past few years.”

The Oklahoma City Thunder has recalled forward Andre Roberson from the Tulsa 66ers of the NBA Development League, it was announced today by Executive Vice President and General Manager Sam Presti.

During his most recent assignment with the 66ers, Roberson recorded two double-doubles while averaging 14.8 points, 10.5 rebounds, 1.75 steals, 1.75 blocks and 31.3 minutes in four games (all starts). Overall, the forward is averaging 15.6 points, 10.0 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 2.45 steals, 1.45 blocks and 35.2 minutes in 11 games (all starts) over four separate assignments with Tulsa.

Here’s the New York Daily News reporting on the eventual Kevin Durant free agency. Like every other team in the league, the Brooklyn Nets wouldn’t mind landing him:

On Friday, the Nets will chase Kevin Durant around the Barclays Center court, hoping to contain the NBA’s most dynamic scorer. And some two years from now, they likely will be joining the crucial chase for his signature on a contract.

The impending Durant free agency bonanza should start picking up steam next season and will undoubtedly engulf the NBA in the summer of 2016. And make no mistake: the Nets are targeting Durant, the 25-year-old offensive juggernaut, even if it’s too early to predict their odds.

The Nets could be committed to no salary when Durant becomes a free agent, depending on whether Deron Williams picks up his one-year option for the 2016-17 season. Everybody else is off the books.

Durant, who hired former Nets minority owner Jay Z as his agent last year, plays in one of the NBA’s smallest markets, if not the smallest, with a dedicated fan base and an owner who has been intent on avoiding the luxury tax.

Here’s the Oklahoman reporting on Thunder forward Kevin Durant, who is simply going nuts on the court lately:

Want an idea of how unguardable Kevin Durant has been lately? Just take a look at the postgame quotes from Sixers coach Brett Brown. Durant went off for 32 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists, his fifth career triple-double. And an perplexed Brown had no answers postgame.

Brown: “I thought we did a pretty good job on him. We try, we get small guys chasing him around, denying him and fronting him, and we get everybody scared because he’s Kevin Durant, because he’s so long and scores in such a variety of ways. He is the NBA’s hardest player. He’s always been an incredibly difficult guard. I gameplanned back in my Spur days. How do you guard him? Is it Kawhi Leonard, Manu Ginobili, Bruce Bowen, whoever. I thought our guys, I thought James (Anderson) was great and you look down and he’s got a triple double.”

– Durant is now averaging 36.5 points, 6.4 rebounds and 6.2 assists in 13 January games.

– In his last five games, Durant has scored 198 points on 70-of-107 shooting (65 percent).

The Oklahoma City Thunder has recalled forward Andre Roberson from the Tulsa 66ers of the NBA Development League, it was announced today by Executive Vice President and General Manager Sam Presti.

During his most recent stint with the 66ers, Roberson averaged 17.5 points, 10.5 rebounds, 1.0 assist, 3.0 steals, 2.5 blocks and 40.5 minutes while helping the team to a pair of road wins at Bakersfield and Los Angeles. Over three assignments this season, the forward is averaging 16.1 points, 9.7 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 2.9 steals and 1.3 blocks in 37.1 minutes in seven games (all starts).