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This Saturday, the (7-11) Oklahoma City Thunder will travel to Houston, TX to take on the (3-14) Houston Rockets. Tipoff will be at 8:00 PM EST inside the Toyota Center (Houston). Neither of these teams has had a hot start to the season, but the last time they matched up, the Rockets walked away with a 114-110 win.
The Thunder are coming into this one after falling to the Denver Nuggets, 131-126 in overtime. Oklahoma City battled in that one, but they struggled on the defensive end of the floor. They will have to lock down the Rockets if they want to challenge them on the road.
The Houston Rockets a re entering this game after losing to the Golden State Warriors, 127-120. The Rockets will also have to be better on defense, as they allowed the Warriors to shoot 53.5% from the field. They will need to contest more shots and apply more pressure if they want to take care of business at home.
This game was written/published before last night's results.
The Oklahoma City Thunder are currently in 12th place in the Western Conference standings, but they are only 4.5 games back from the first-place Phoenix Suns. They are also (3-7) in their last 10. On offense, Oklahoma City is scoring 116.9 points per game and they are shooting 46.8% from the floor. This is the fifth most points scored per game and the 14th-highest team shooting percentage. They have continued to attack the basket and score inside, but they have also shown that they have a few players that can step behind the arc and knock down threes. The Thunder are shooting 34.9% from deep, which is the 17th-highest three-point shooting percentage in the NBA. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander continues to lead the way for the Thunder, as he is scoring 31.1 points per game and dishing out 6.3 assists. According to dunksandthrees.com, the Thunder have an adjusted offensive rating of 112.3, which is the 13th-highest offensive rating in the league. The Oklahoma City Thunder have also struggled at the free throw line at different times this season. They have knocked down 77.1% of their shots at the charity stripe, which is the 22nd-lowest free-throw shooting percentage in the league. They can't continue to miss out on these free looks at the basket and still expect to win these games.
On the defensive end of the court, the Thunder have struggled to consistently make stops. According to dunksandthrees.com, they have an adjusted defensive rating of 114.3, as this is the 24th-highest rating in the NBA. The Thunder are also allowing 118.3 points per game and their opponents have shot 46.8% from the floor. This is the second most points surrendered per game and the 18th-highest shooting percentage allowed from the field. They have continued to contest shots near the rim, but their perimeter defense has let them down. Oklahoma City has allowed their opponents to shoot 35.8% from deep, which is the 16th-highest three-point shooting percentage allowed. The Thunder are also snatching 44.1 rebounds per game, as this is the 15th most. They have to clean the glass and secure the ball after missed shots if they want to keep the Rockets from scoring second-chance points.
Injury Report: Mike Muscala C (Finger) is questionable for this game. Chet Holmgren C (Foot) is out for the season.
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