OKC Thunder Blog – Page 76 – NBA Blog

Thunder rock Nuggets 106-89, take 2-0 lead

The AP reports:

Kevin Durant scored 23 points, Russell Westbrook added 21 and the Oklahoma City Thunder built a huge first-half lead on their way to a 106-89 victory over the Denver Nuggets in Game 2 on Wednesday night…

The Thunder relied heavily on their All-Star duo in Game 1, getting a combined 72 points from Durant and Westbrook. But they got contributions from everyone to build a 26-point lead early in the second quarter of a dominant victory.

Ty Lawson scored 20 points to lead Denver, which got as close as 10 in the fourth quarter before Oklahoma City put the game away.

Nene and Raymond Felton added 16 points apiece for the Nuggets…

Oklahoma City got a balanced performance, with James Harden providing 18 points and Serge Ibaka adding 12 points and 12 rebounds. Kendrick Perkins had 11 rebounds as the Thunder piled up a 41-19 edge on the boards by late in the third quarter.

The Sports Network reports:

James Harden scored 14 of his 18 points in a first half controlled by the Thunder, who went up by as many as 26 points early in the second quarter and led by double digits the rest of the way.

Ty Lawson scored 20 points, while Nene and Raymond Felton both had 16 for the Nuggets, who shot just 39 percent from the field and head back to Denver for Saturday’s Game 3 trailing the series, 2-0.

Fan discussion of this game took place as it happened in this forum topic.

Thunder recall Robert Vaden from D-League

Oklahoma City Thunder Executive Vice President and General Manager Sam Presti announced today that the team has recalled guard/forward Robert Vaden from the Tulsa 66ers of the NBA Development League.

Vaden, who helped lead the 66ers to the D-League semifinals, averaged 16.8 points, 4.3 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 32.3 minutes in four postseason games for the 66ers. During the regular season, he averaged 10.4 points, 2.4 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 28.0 minutes in 45 games (17 starts).

He will join the Thunder for tonight’s first round playoff game against the Denver Nuggets. Game two will be played tonight at 7 P.M. inside the Oklahoma City Arena.

Danny Ainge defends trade of Kendrick Perkins

The Boston Celtics gained versatility but lost toughness in their trade of center Kendrick Perkins to the Oklahoma City Thunder. Pieces they received in return — center Nenad Krstic and small forward Jeff Green — have not helped as much as a healthy Perkins did in the past. But Celtics general manager Danny Ainge still feels good about the trade. Publicly, at least.

CSNNE reports:

Danny Ainge tells Comcast SportsNet New England’s Greg Dickerson that he has no second thoughts — at the moment — about the trade that sent Kendrick Perkins to Oklahoma City.

But ask him again in a few months, and he might have a different answer.

“I would do the trade over again in a heartbeat, as of today,” said Ainge. “But at the end of the season, I’ll look at all the things and I’ll be the first one to say . . . some things that we could have done or that we didn’t, or things that we did do that we shouldn’t [have].”

The Celtics are definitely missing something without a dominant defensive center manning the middle. But, we must remember, the team feared losing Perkins to free agency, and that’s why the trade happened in the first place.

Read fan reaction and discuss your own opinion in this forum topic.

Durant scores 41, Thunder beat Nuggets 107-103 in Game 1

The AP reports:

Kevin Durant scored 41 points, Russell Westbrook added 31 and Perkins provided the go-ahead basket on a controversial tip-in as the Thunder pulled out a 107-103 win against the Denver Nuggets on Sunday night in Game 1 of their first-round playoff series.

Westbrook’s jumper from the right side caromed off the rim and Perkins was credited for the tip-in with 1:06 remaining to put Oklahoma City up 102-101. Several Nuggets looked for it to be waved off as basket interference, and coach George Karl insisted after the game: “Obviously it was goaltending.” …

Nene had 22 points and eight rebounds to lead Denver, which used a well-rounded effort after dealing away its only All-Star, Carmelo Anthony, at the trade deadline…

Gallinari scored 18 points, Felton had 12 and Denver had eight players score at least eight points.

Eric Maynor chipped in 12 points for Oklahoma City, which had no one else score more than five with Durant and Westbrook leading the way.

2011 NBA Playoffs first round schedule

The 2010-11 NBA regular season is in the books, with all 30 teams in action Wednesday night. The NBA playoffs begin Saturday.

The first round matchups in the East are: Bulls vs Pacers, Heat vs 76ers, Celtics vs Knicks, and Magic vs Hawks.

The West’s first round matchups are: Spurs vs Grizzlies, Lakers vs Hornets, Mavericks vs Blazers, and Thunder vs Nuggets.

The complete first round series-by-series NBA playoffs schedule is here.

Thunder sign Robert Vaden, assign him to D-League

Oklahoma City Thunder Executive Vice President and General Manager Sam Presti announced that the team has signed guard Robert Vaden from the Tulsa 66ers. At the same time the team announced that they have assigned Vaden back to the 66ers.

Vaden, who was originally acquired by the Thunder from Charlotte on draft night 2009, has played the entire 2010-11 season with the Tulsa 66ers. Vaden averaged 10.4 points, 2.4 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 45 regular season games with the 66ers. This past season he shot 39.2% (74/189) from behind that arc for the 66ers this season. Vaden averaged 14.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists in the 66ers two game sweep of the Texas Legends in the first round of the D-League playoffs.

“We are happy to add Robert to our team.” said Presti. “Robert has been a dedicated and consistent worker for our program and has excelled in our system in Tulsa under the direction of Head Coach Nate Tibbetts and Assistant Coach Dale Osbourne. We value the role of the 66ers in the overall development of the Thunder organization and this opportunity for Robert comes as a result of that synergy.”

The 6-5 University of Alabama-Birmingham product, posted averages of 17.6 points 4.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game during his senior year.

Vaden spent the 2009-10 season with Imola in the Italian second division.

Thunder assign Cole Aldrich to D-League

Oklahoma City Thunder Executive Vice President and General Manager Sam Presti announced today that the team has assigned center Cole Aldrich to the Tulsa 66ers of the NBA Development League for a third time this season.

During his two earlier assignments with the 66ers, Aldrich appeared in 19 games (19 starts) and averaged 10.2 points, 8.4 rebounds and 2.4 blocked shots in 29.2 minutes. Aldrich has recorded four double-doubles with Tulsa and the 66ers own a 15-4 mark this season with him in the lineup.

Aldrich will be in uniform Friday night when the 66ers host the Dakota Wizards at the Tulsa Convention Center.

Thunder recall Byron Mullens from D-League

Oklahoma City Thunder Executive Vice President and General Manager Sam Presti announced today that the team has recalled center Byron Mullens from the Tulsa 66ers of the NBA Development League.

Over three stints in Tulsa, Mullens has appeared in 14 games (all starts) averaging 14.9 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.4 blocks and 1.0 assist in 27.7 minutes per game.

He will join the Thunder for tonight’s 7:00 PM game against the Portland Trail Blazers at the Oklahoma City Arena.

Under NBA rules, a player can only be sent to the D-League a maximum of three times during the season. Mullens is no longer eligible to play for Tulsa.

James Harden has stepped up since Jeff Green trade

Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman reports:

No one needed to say anything to James Harden.

When Jeff Green was dealt to Boston three weeks ago in the trade that brought Kendrick Perkins to the Thunder, Harden knew immediately that he needed to be more productive.

“We had to make up for those 15 points that we lost,” Harden said. “Everybody’s level of play had to step up.”

Harden, though, shot up to a level few thought he could reach — at least not this quickly.

In 15 games since the All-Star break, Harden has averaged 17.7 points. That total trails only Dallas’ Jason Terry for points off the bench over that span. Harden’s 50.6 percent shooting over that same span, meanwhile, ranks fifth among shooting guards with at least 10 games played.

By comparison, Harden averaged just 10.3 points on 41.3 percent shooting prior to the All-Star break. The turnaround has transformed the second-year guard into one of the league’s best Sixth Men.

Thunder assign Byron Mullens to D-League

Oklahoma City Thunder Executive Vice President and General Manager Sam Presti announced today that the team has assigned center Byron Mullens to the Tulsa 66ers of the NBA Development League.

During his two previous assignments in Tulsa this season, Mullens appeared in six games (six starts) and averaged 16.7 points, 8.2 rebounds and 1.3 blocks in 31.7 minutes.

Mullens will be in uniform tomorrow night when the 66ers take on the Sioux Falls Skyforce at the Tulsa Convention Center.