Keys to the Game
Suffocating Defense – The Chicago Bulls are by far the worst offensive team in the league; they average only 93.6 points per game. On the other side, Oklahoma City is the second best defensive team for points allowed (98.4) and defensive rating (98.5). If the Thunder play hard defense then there is no doubt they will win this game.
Shot Selection – From the fans to the media, they all scratched their head over the Thunders shot selection so far: too many long two-pointers, contested mid-range shots, and a lot of unnecessary isolation ball. However, in the past couple of games, we were able to see a little improvement in this aspect and it translated into two solid wins. Oklahoma City should keep up with this trend no matter how the game evolves.
Build Chemistry – With Adams probably still out, Anthony still questionable, and a harmless opponent, the Thunder will have the possibility to build more chemistry within their non-starter players. This will have a positive impact in the long run. When given the chance, we already saw how helpful players like Dakari Johnson and Josh Huestis can be. Plus, the more playing time they have the larger the sample size is. This means that coach Donovan will have more options to adjust during games when something doesn’t work out as planned.
Injury Report
Oklahoma City Thunder
- Steven Adams (Calf – day by day)
- Carmelo Anthony (Back – day by day)
Chicago Bulls
- Justin Holiday (Personal reason – out until 17th November)
- Nikola Mirotic (Face – out until the end of November)
- Zach Lavine (Knee – out until the end of November)
- Cameron Payne (Foot – out until the end of November)
Teams Stats
Oklahoma City Thunder
PPG 103.8 – OPP PTS 98.4
FG% 45.0 – 3PT% 35.7 – FT% 72.5
APG 21.2 – RPG 41.7– TOV 15.3
Chicago Bulls
PPG 93.6 – OPP PTS 103.9
FG% 40.9 – 3PT% 31.8 – FT% 76.5
APG 22.0 – RPG 45.7 – TOV 15.9
Cover Photo by Jeff Haynes | NBAE via Getty Images
