Anthony, George boost OKC
Russell Westbrook had averaged a triple-double, but it was clear he needed an assist.
Even as the MVP a season ago, Westbrook had been overmatched against the Warriors, had lacked the firepower to mount any challenge to the champs. The Thunder upgraded the roster around him, and on Wednesday, Oklahoma City showed the value of its talent.
Westbrook was the star of Oklahoma City’s 108-91 win against the Warriors Wednesday night at Chesapeake Energy Arena, but Paul George and Carmelo Anthony — the stars the Thunder brought in to help compete with the defending champs — combined for 42 points on 16-of-36 shooting.
“Whether I had it, Melo or Russ, we all was in attack mode,” George said after his 20-point, 11-rebound, four-steal performance. “We didn’t allow them to relax at any moment.”
In October, ESPN’s Zach Lowe made waves when, on his podcast, he talked about passages in Jack McCallum’s book “Golden Days” about the Warriors finding Westbrook “easy to guard.”
And while the Thunder remain a far cry from the Warriors, its offense, for one night at least, looked like a challenge.
Four of the Thunder’s five starters scored in double figures — Steven Adams had 14 points — and Westbrook had 34 points on 13-of-27 shooting.
“Everybody on their team had to guard, man,” Westbrook said. “You got to guard every position. Everybody has to defend. You can’t run around and trap and double. It’s too many different weapons on the floor to be able to do that. Definitely did a good job tonight of moving the basketball around.”
Anthony helped get the Thunder started with seven points in the first quarter, and he said the Thunder “showed them something different” with the balance between its big three.
“It was times when Russ was attacking, it was times when Paul was getting it and doing what he do and it was times when I had opportunities to do what I do best,” said Anthony, who had 22 points on 8-of-17 shooting. “Whenever we can keep teams on their heels and everything is clicking from that standpoint, it makes us a tough team to beat.”
Shimmy, shimmy
After a pull-up 3-pointer in the third quarter that gave the Thunder a 20-point lead, George celebrated with a shoulder-shimmy move. It looked a lot like the move Warriors guard Stephen Curry is known for after key 3s.
But George said there was no mimicry in his moves.
“That goes back to Indiana days,” George said. “I’ve always had a little shimmy in me. I haven’t brought it out yet. Tonight was a good time to introduce it.”
Ripped and repaired
The Thunder was prepared for a torn jersey, and so when Paul George’s tore in New Orleans on Monday, there was a backup waiting.
But the hole in the seam at the side of George’s original jersey needed to be repaired on the spot in case the backup ripped, so Marc St. Yves, the Thunder’s director of team operations, set about sewing it.
He got it started, but Lesley McCaslin, seeing his struggle, gave St. Yves a hand. McCaslin said she quickly finished up the repair as George played in his backup jersey.
Tearing has been an issue for Nike’s new NBA uniforms. The back of LeBron James’ jersey ripped on opening night, and it’s happened to several players since.
“They’re definitely lighter. I guess the material is a little thin,” George said on Wednesday. “I talked to some Nike reps. They’re working on that now.”