Morning Report: Durant Kept Plugging Away
Nov 2 2009 10:26AM
When Thunder head coach Scott Brooks announced that Kevin Durant was appointed one of the team’s captains, one of the leadership qualities that stood out to Brooks was that Durant still had the ability to lead a team and not give up when times were tough.
Brooks saw just that in last night’s 83-74 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers when the Thunder’s leading scorer couldn’t get his shot to fall.
Durant shot 3-for-21 from the field for 16 points but he never got down on himself.
A year or two ago, Brooks said that might not have been the case.
“You’re seeing the maturity take place right in front of all of our eyes,” Brooks said. “A game like this he would have been out of his mind. But I thought stayed within the team. He is one of our captains and it showed tonight. A game like this you can easily say I’m going to sit and hide or not defend or not work on parts of his game but he stayed with the game plan and did a pretty good job defensively. He just missed shots. He missed shots he would normally make.”
But all was not lost for Durant. He was able to contribute in other ways, which speaks to his dedication on the defensive end and desire to be a better playmaker.
The Thunder challenged Durant during the offseason to become a better rebounder. He went out and grabbed five rebounds on Sunday. The Thunder wanted Durant to be more active on the defensive end. So he used his length and athleticism to block two shots. And when he struggled to hit a jumper, Durant didn’t give up. Instead, he continued to attack the basket and draw fouls. He ended up 10-for-14 from the free throw line.
“That’s a part of me growing, being a leader,” Durant said. “I have to lead my team in the tough times and the good times. I wasn’t making shot tonight but I was still encouraging my teammates, playing my hardest on the defensive end. It happens. It happens to the best of them. Games like this are tough on me but I’ve got to comeback tomorrow in practice and work even harder.”
Brooks said he expected Durant to be in the gym early Monday morning getting his shots in. Durant, who said he usually shows up to the practice facility at least an hour prior to practice, said he’d likely be putting in extra time before and after practice.
Work ethic is one thing Durant will never struggle with.
He’s usually one of the last players to leave the practice floor as he hoists shot after shot from nearly a dozen spots on the floor, or works feverishly on his pull-up jumper off the dribble.
Everyone has his off night. Durant said he’ll comeback more focused for the next game.
“It’s the third game of the year,” Durant said. “Next game I’ve got to be more aggressive and continue to play defense.”
Contact Chris Silva
Brooks saw just that in last night’s 83-74 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers when the Thunder’s leading scorer couldn’t get his shot to fall.
Durant shot 3-for-21 from the field for 16 points but he never got down on himself.
A year or two ago, Brooks said that might not have been the case.
“You’re seeing the maturity take place right in front of all of our eyes,” Brooks said. “A game like this he would have been out of his mind. But I thought stayed within the team. He is one of our captains and it showed tonight. A game like this you can easily say I’m going to sit and hide or not defend or not work on parts of his game but he stayed with the game plan and did a pretty good job defensively. He just missed shots. He missed shots he would normally make.”
But all was not lost for Durant. He was able to contribute in other ways, which speaks to his dedication on the defensive end and desire to be a better playmaker.
The Thunder challenged Durant during the offseason to become a better rebounder. He went out and grabbed five rebounds on Sunday. The Thunder wanted Durant to be more active on the defensive end. So he used his length and athleticism to block two shots. And when he struggled to hit a jumper, Durant didn’t give up. Instead, he continued to attack the basket and draw fouls. He ended up 10-for-14 from the free throw line.
“That’s a part of me growing, being a leader,” Durant said. “I have to lead my team in the tough times and the good times. I wasn’t making shot tonight but I was still encouraging my teammates, playing my hardest on the defensive end. It happens. It happens to the best of them. Games like this are tough on me but I’ve got to comeback tomorrow in practice and work even harder.”
Brooks said he expected Durant to be in the gym early Monday morning getting his shots in. Durant, who said he usually shows up to the practice facility at least an hour prior to practice, said he’d likely be putting in extra time before and after practice.
Work ethic is one thing Durant will never struggle with.
He’s usually one of the last players to leave the practice floor as he hoists shot after shot from nearly a dozen spots on the floor, or works feverishly on his pull-up jumper off the dribble.
Everyone has his off night. Durant said he’ll comeback more focused for the next game.
“It’s the third game of the year,” Durant said. “Next game I’ve got to be more aggressive and continue to play defense.”
Contact Chris Silva
