Thunder beats Celtics to secure playoff spot early
This game was billed as a preview of the NBA Finals, and both the Oklahoma City Thunder and Boston Celtics brought their A-game. The Celtics are the defending champions and are favourites to win the title again this season, while the Thunder are the top team in the Western Conference and have been tipped to challenge for the title. Oklahoma City’s star player, Kevin Durant, is a strong contender for the MVP award, but his team is often underestimated. In the end, the Thunder won 118-112, securing a playoff berth 16 games ahead of schedule and completing a season sweep of the Celtics. This victory shows that Oklahoma’s young team has the ability to stand out in high-level confrontations.
The Thunder’s defensive advantage
Although the Thunder are leading the competitive Western Conference, it is no accident that they need to constantly prove their strength. Warriors’ Draymond Green once said that a true powerhouse would make opponents feel afraid, but he wasn’t sure if the Thunder could do that. ESPN reporter Tim McMahon interviewed some coaches of Western Conference teams, and they generally believed that the Thunder were good, but not yet intimidating. However, the statistics show that the Thunder have averaged 12.5 net points per game this season, which, if maintained until the end of the season, will break the NBA record set by the Los Angeles Lakers in the 1971-72 season.
1 defensive efficiency in the league
The Thunder’s defensive efficiency this season is ranked first in the league, with only 106.2 points given up per 100 possessions, almost suppressing the opponent’s offensive level to the level of the Washington Wizards. In the modern NBA, screen and roll is a basic tactic, and the Thunder are excellent at defending it, allowing only 0.91 points per possession, which is one of the best defensive performances in the past five years.
An example of breaking the screen and roll
In this game, we can see how the Thunder break the Celtics’ pick-and-roll. When Tatum has the ball, Hauser provides cover to block Durrant, and the Thunder use a switch-off strategy. Isaiah Thomas successfully blocks Tatum’s path, while Hardenstein stands in a help position. The Celtics once again provide cover for Tatum, but the Thunder quickly switch off and form a double team, which is eventually completed by Kenrich Williams. It is worth mentioning that the Thunder have averaged 10.6 steals per game this season, and they are the only team in the league to average double-digit steals.
Offensive performance
The Thunder have a very solid defensive foundation, with Kenrich Williams, Isaiah Joe, D’Angelo Russell and Carson Wallace on the perimeter and Hardenstein and Holmgren in the paint. The presence of Holmgren allows the Thunder to switch defenses like the Celtics and deal with the space challenges of a five-out lineup. Although switching defenses is not foolproof, the logic of the Thunder’s defense is to wait for the opponent’s hand to slip. In the game, the Celtics made 15 of 36 three-pointers in the first half, but only 5 of 27 in the second half.
Alexander’s key role
The Thunder offense revolves around Alexander, who showed excellent one-on-one ability in the face of the Celtics’ endless switching and double teams. The Celtics clamped down on Alexander in this game, even going so far as to double-team him. Even when there was no double team, the Celtics limited Alexander’s drives through pick-and-roll and help defense. Alexander successfully cracked the Celtics’ defense through precise decision-making and teamwork with his teammates.
How Alexander scores
Alexander plays in a more traditional style, with his points spread evenly across the court. He scores 31% from the mid-range, 25% at the rim, 24% from the free-throw line and 20% from three-point range. He is an elite-level breakaway player, ranking first in the league in the number of breakaways per game for five consecutive seasons, and this season he was the only player to average more than 20 breakaways per game. Alexander’s scoring rate in the break is very high. This season, he scored 1.2 points per break when shooting on his own or passing to his teammates, ranking second among the 72 players who have made at least 400 breaks.
Key moments of the game
In this game, the Thunder led the Celtics by 20 points with 30-10 in the paint, which was the main reason why they were still able to lead despite losing to their opponents in the first half. Alexander dismantled the Celtics’ defense in a variety of ways, including back-to-back jump shots and sharp stops for mid-range layups. In the end, he dribbled past White’s defense at a critical moment in the game, stopped sharply at the free-throw line to shake off Horry, and made a mid-range shot to seal the win.
Looking to the future
34 points and 7 assists are the norm for Alexander, who is the scoring leader this season and has averaged 30+ points per game for three consecutive years. Although his style of play may not be flashy, there is no doubt about his offensive prowess. This game proved that the Thunder’s star players’ ability to break down defenses and the team’s overall offensive and defensive strength are on the same level as the Celtics. What is even more exciting is that the Thunder have 33 draft picks over the next seven years, and the 2025 draft has the potential to get three top 20 picks, which undoubtedly provides huge potential for their future development.
