Just an FYI, Ous was sent down to the G League to work on some very specific things, so don’t judge his overall performance based on his numbers down there.
For reference, “Dieng was sent down to the NBA G League once Kenrich Williams returned from the injury report, and he had a task to focus on. While it sounds easy, it is hard to learn to play in those short spurts, but Mark Daigneault highlighted that is how he will be used with the Thunder.”
There sure does seem to be a lot of panic for a team who’s the 2nd youngest in the NBA and has started the season 8-4….
I think a little bit of data and context would be helpful on this topic.
Based on the current state of the NBA, rebounding doesn’t seem to be as big a deal as it once was.
Last season, the Houston Rockets were the 2nd best rebounding team in the NBA (and had the 2nd worst record).
Utah was #5.
Charlotte was #7.
OKC was #14.
Denver was all the way down at 16.
Minnesota was at 23.
Philadelphia was at 26.
Cleveland was at 27.
Do we have a problem with rebounding? Yes. We are missing at some fundamentals.
Are we winning? Also yes.
This season?
Phoenix is 4th in rebounding and they’re not good.
Utah is 5th. Also not good.
Denver and Portland are tied at 15/16. The best team is tied in rebounding with arguably the worst team.
Can we acknowledge that maybe rebounding isn’t a core contributor to winning?
Again, I agree we need to improve…but we ARE winning…against good teams…
This is an opportunity for us to grow and develop, not the moment for some big roster change to address a panic attack in our fanbase.
According to Basketball Reference, we are currently:
Off Rtg: 115.8 (8th of 30)
Def Rtg: 109.8 (7th of 30)
Net Rtg: +6.0 (5th of 30)
All while being the second youngest team in the NBA.
World. Class. Dumb.
My favorite thing about this question is the variety of players being mentioned…and all are reasonable answers. Dieng. Poku. Joe. Wallace. Micic. Hustle. And honestly, I’m probably missing someone that should be included in the list. And it’s conceivable that someone ELSE could pop as a monster that impacts winning THIS season. Hell, it could be JWill!!
Someday we will remember this season as “the good old days” when a new legacy was being born.
IMO Ous has been looking his best and most efficient at the 3 and sometimes 4 in SL and preseason. He definitely has the size to play some time at the 5, but looks most assertive playing 3/4. His shooting is good and his perimeter defense is one of his best skills. He’s also not much of a rim protector or shot blocker (yet, and maybe not ever) so that’s mainly why I think he lands long term outside of the paint.
Just my 2 cents.
I can’t blame you for liking Ray Allen….but he’s definitely not a Thunder player….
In the current NBA? Not crazy at all IMO. We’re still having to guess with Chet, but it LOOKS like he could every bit the shot blocker Ibaka was…AND a better shooter from deep.
Ibaka was crazy strong though……
I’m disappointed this is even a thread.
Baseless Twitter rumors that have been reported by **ZERO credible news outlets and we’re already discussing who’s replacing him?