OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA - FEBRUARY 13: Isaiah Joe #11 of the Oklahoma City Thunder drives towards ... [+] the basket during the fourth quarter against the New Orleans Pelicans at Paycom Center on February 13, 2023 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ian Maule/Getty Images)
Getty ImagesThe NBA All-Star break is officially here, as the Oklahoma City Thunder send three representatives to Salt Lake City for various events. The team has played in 57 games to this point while going 28-29.
Currently sitting at tenth in the Western Conference, Oklahoma City has a real shot at making the play-in tournament this season. There’s 25 games remaining in the 2022-23 campaign and the Thunder have the second easiest remaining strength of schedule.
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With that in mind, what can be expected of the team following the break and down the stretch of the season? There’s quite a few things to consider the rest of the way as it relates to whether or not Oklahoma City makes the postseason.
Getting and Staying Healthy
The Thunder recently got Jeremiah Robinson-Earl back from injury, but are still missing Aleksej Pokusevski. Following the trades of Mike Muscala and Darius Bazley, Oklahoma City is as thin as ever at center.
This is also now the youngest roster in the history of the NBA.
Getting back to full health at some point in the coming weeks will be huge for the Thunder. It will be equally as important to stay healthy.
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In the past two campaigns, major injuries after the NBA All-Star break have derailed the final stretch of the season for the Thunder. With how Oklahoma City is playing right now, even injures to rotational pieces could be significant.
Carrying Momentum
Since the start of 2023, the Thunder have been a top ten team in the NBA based on record. They’ve also been one of the top teams in the Western Conference on the season overall, carrying the fifth highest Net Rating (+1.65) into the break.
Will the week off slow down the momentum, or will OKC find a way to continue to ride the wave?
The All-Star break is always an interesting milestone for a variety of reasons. For some teams, it’s a much needed reset before closing out the season. For others, it’s a potentially negative event for momentum.
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Luckily for the Thunder, their first game back is against the Utah Jazz, who were recent sellers at the trade deadline and are trending towards the lottery. However, Oklahoma City will have three-straight games following that contest against teams in the top half of the Western Conference playoff picture.
Maintaining Offensive Efficiency
The Thunder defense has been a stabilizing force all season long. Whether or not shots are going in on a given night, Oklahoma City’s defense has generally kept the team competitive.
More recently, however, the offense has really started to click. Since the turn of the calendar year, the Thunder have the best offense in the NBA, scoring 120.6 points per 100 possessions. A big part of this is an uptick in 3-point shooting efficiency, as Oklahoma City has knocked down 39.4% of its triples since the start of January.
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Especially with Muscala now gone, the shooting and overall offense will look different the rest of the way. He was key in several situations over the past month or more being a spark plug to get the Thunder back into games or pull away from opponents.
All things considered, the offensive efficiency is likely to regress as it’s probably not sustainable. It will come down to how dramatic that regression to the mean is the rest of the season.
A Bit of Luck
At the end of the day, Oklahoma City playing well is only half of the equation as it relates to making the postseason. The Thunder will also need some luck in the form of the teams around them losing games.
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With how tight the Western Conference standings are today, there’s a real shot at OKC climbing over the final stretch of the season. There’s also the clear possibility of falling well out of the play-in picture.
Minnesota Timberwolves (31-29)
Dallas Mavericks (31-29)
New Orleans Pelicans (30-29)
Golden State Warriors (29-29)
Oklahoma City Thunder (28-29)
Utah Jazz (29-31)
Portland Trail Blazers (28-30)
Los Angeles Lakers (27-32)
The Thunder can only control the games they play in. All of the teams in this range will be highly motivated to play at an extremely high level the rest of the way.
When it comes down to it, the Oklahoma City Thunder do have a clear path to the postseason. With that in mind, there will be several potential hurdles along the way.
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Nick Crain, Contributor
https://www.forbes.com/sites/nicholascrain/2023/02/16/at-the-break-oklahoma-citys-path-to-postseason-getting-more-clear/
By: Nick Crain, Contributor
Title: At The Break: Oklahoma City’s Path To Postseason Getting More Clear
Sourced From: www.forbes.com/sites/nicholascrain/2023/02/16/at-the-break-oklahoma-citys-path-to-postseason-getting-more-clear/
Published Date: 02-17-2023
Frequently Asked Questions
Which NBA player has had the most blocked shots in a single year?
Mark Eaton set the all-time records for blocks (456) and blocks per game (5.56) in a season during 1984-85. The NBA's single-season record for Eaton is 256, which is the most ever set.
Hakeem Olajuwon holds the NBA's record for most career blocks at 3,830. Olajuwon had an average of 21.8 points and 11.1 boards over his 18-year playing career, which included 1,238 games. He also had 2.5 assists and 3.1 block per game.
Which team is the most successful in NBA basketball?
This question will be debated for many years by fans. The Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics have the most NBA championships, with 17 titles. The Chicago Bulls had their heyday in the 1990s when they won six titles under Hall of Fame coach Phil Jackson. Five championships have been won by the San Antonio Spurs since 1999. The Golden State Warriors have won four of the last ten. Other notable NBA teams include: the Philadelphia 76ers in 1980, the Kobe Shaq Lakers from 2000s, LeBron James's Miami Heat squad that won back–to-back championships (2012) and 2013.
What is a restricted free player in the NBA?
An NBA restricted free agent is a player who has fulfilled their rookie contract but becomes an unrestricted-free agent. Their rights remain with their former team. In such a situation, the team is allowed to match any offer made by another team to the player. The player can choose to match any offer made by another team. However, they must stay with the previous team and honor their contract. This allows teams the opportunity to retain valuable players, even though they may not be able pay them due to their salary cap. Teams can use restricted free agents to build their rosters with great flexibility.
How long can a player stay on waivers for?
A waiver is a condition in which a NBA player is released by their team at any time during the season. Waived NBA players are eligible for a waiver 48 hours before another team can claim them. If more than one person claims the player within that time period, priority goes to team with the worst record.
Statistics
- An estimated 800 million viewers watched the [105]2017–18 season. (en.wikipedia.org)
- "NBA first-round ratings drop 27 percent, 40 percent since 2017–18". (en.wikipedia.org)
- Between 2012 and 2019, the league lost 40 to 45 percent of its viewership. (en.wikipedia.org)
- The opening game of the 2020 Finals between the Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat brought in only 7.41 million viewers to ABC, according to The Hollywood Reporter. (en.wikipedia.org)
- Meanwhile, the opening night rosters include a record-setting 234 players with some G League experience, according to the NBA ( Twitter link ). (hoopsrumors.com)
External Links
sports.yahoo.com
- Yahoo Mail, Weather and Search. Politics, News, Finance, Sports & Videos.
- NBA Finals Game 1 receives the lowest audience in recorded ratings history
sbnation.com
si.com
- NBA Free Agency Preview: Biggest Questions And Rumors
- Free From Quarantine: The NBA Bubble Is A Unique Experience
bleacherreport.com
How To
What is the best way to get drafted into the NBA?
High school and college are the two main routes to becoming a NBA basketball player.
NCAA schools such as Duke University and North Carolina State University offer college-level educations. These schools offer four year education and training. During this time, players develop their ball handling, shooting and rebounding skills. They learn how defense and offense can be run. They also develop the mental skills necessary to become a professional runner.
Prep schools are located outside the states where high school players live. These schools focus on developing talent by providing athletes with individualized attention. The schools teach academics, character development and sportsmanship.
Before they can be allowed to join the draft, both types of players must pass the exact same physical test. The test involves running 40m, jumping over a 5ft6" box, standing on 1 leg, and throwing the football through a tire.
After passing these tests, players can be invited to workout with different NBA teams. Their height, weight, wingspan and speed are the criteria for evaluation by teams.
Teams also look at their previous experience. AAU Basketball players are likely to be given preferential treatment.
A lot of players who are too small to play professionally are considered "one-and-done" prospect. These players are usually selected in the second round.
Some players choose to skip college and go straight to the NBA. These players are known as "prospects." Prospects don’t have to wait until the last year to declare their eligibility for the draft.
They can ask for an exemption to allow them to participate in the draft early. If a prospect does this, he can compete with other prospects during the predraft process.
Summer leagues are a great way for prospects to increase their chances of being selected. Summer league games take place in July and August.
These events enable scouts see players in action without worrying too much about injury risks.
June marks the start of the NBA Draft. This is when all top prospects are evaluated by the 30 NBA teams. Each team gets a certain number of picks within each round.
In this example, the 15th overall pick is the first pick of the first round. In the third round, the 20th selection is the 60th pick.
After the draft, teams trade to make their rosters complete. Some teams host mini-camp tryouts, inviting potential draftees along to train with them.
Draft day is thrilling! What happens?
There is no waiting around for your name to come up once the draft has begun. Each NBA team selects players from the pool.
Once a team selects a player, it sends him a contract that outlines his salary, playing time, and benefits. He is now a member.
He also receives a jersey that bears his name and a uniform that includes his new nickname.
Finally, he signs his contract. This means that he has officially joined the NBA.
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