Thunder (6-7) at Celtics (10-3) Game #14 11/14/22

[Neurotic Guy]

White with 16pts, 5 assists, and 4 stls.  +21

His D down the stretch was spectacular.

[Silas]

These guys turned the game around in the 4th with smothering D.  Maybe the strong D from last year woke up.

[Sophomore]

White with 16pts, 5 assists, and 4 stls.  +21

His D down the stretch was spectacular.

Was indeed.

[Donoghus]

Celtics win & SGA drops about 42. 

Only off by 5 pts   

[hpantazo]

These guys turned the game around in the 4th with smothering D.  Maybe the strong D from last year woke up.

It's good to see that it's still in there somewhere when they want to bring it out

[SCeltic34]

The Thunder were 6-4 in their last 10 games and they had a pretty tough schedule, including playing MIL twice.  Don't let their record fool you, they were playing some good basketball.  That was a good win.

[radiohead]

JT was 1/9, JB 0/5 on threes. Overall we shot 10/37, but somehow the team found a way to win. This team is starting to look special indeed!

[Kuberski33]

This team is special.

It's looking that way.
Tatum has taken it to another level but they have a deep roster and they obviously enjoy playing with each other.  You figure with a veteran team there will be a few nights where they say screw it and don't make the effort. Tonight was looking like one of them but then the 4th quarter happened.

As soon as they get the team defense nailed down - and it's improving - they're going to start blowing out teams a lot more often than we've seen to date.

[Neurotic Guy]

After JT and JB, so many Cs can have a high-impact night:  Marcus, Al, Malcolm, Derrick, Grant, Payton, Sam…and Rob!

[Goldstar88]

Tatum was really good defensively. Had 3blks and 3stls. Don’t think his def gets talked about enough.

[Atzar]

The Thunder were 6-4 in their last 10 games and they had a pretty tough schedule, including playing MIL twice.  Don't let their record fool you, they were playing some good basketball.  That was a good win.

They don't defend much but they score a ton of points.  They tallied 132, 132, and 145 points in their three games prior to playing us.  And two of those games were against Toronto and Milwaukee, two good defensive teams (granted MIL was missing some people). 

SGA, in particular, has become a monster and will likely be an All Star this season. 

[hpantazo]

Tatum was really good defensively. Had 3blks and 3stls. Don’t think his def gets talked about enough.

Definitely. He's been great defensively all season. It's a clear improvement.

[Kuberski33]

Tatum was really good defensively. Had 3blks and 3stls. Don’t think his def gets talked about enough.

The guys with his offensive skill set who work at it defensively like he does - it's a pretty short list.
I've got MJ, in-his-prime, Lebron.  Those are the two who come immediatly to mind. Not sure who else.

[Atzar]

Tatum was really good defensively. Had 3blks and 3stls. Don’t think his def gets talked about enough.

Tatum's defense is a good argument against defensive statistics in their current form.  Defensive RAPTOR thinks he's a negative defender this season, and DBPM thinks he's a roughly neutral defender.  On the other hand, all of the knowledgeable basketball discussion talks about how elite he has been at that end. 

Statistics have their place but I'd go with the eyes on that one. 

[Goldstar88]

Tatum was really good defensively. Had 3blks and 3stls. Don’t think his def gets talked about enough.

The guys with his offensive skill set who work at it defensively like he does - it's a pretty short list.
I've got MJ, in-his-prime, Lebron.  Those are the two who come immediatly to mind. Not sure who else.

Kawhi, too. But yeah, it’s a short list.