Taking one look at the Thunder roster and trying to sort out minutes could make your head spin. The level and depth of talent that Head Coach Billy Donovan has to work with is immense, so early on in U.S. Cellular Thunder Training Camp, the general of the team has been figuring out ways to get everyone meaningful minutes.
So far, the Thunder’s core trio of dynamic two-way players – Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and Serge Ibaka – have hovered around the 20-minute range during the Thunder’s first two preseason games. The same can be said of some of the Thunder’s other emerging young talents Enes Kanter, Dion Waiters. Mitch McGary, Steven Adams and Andre Roberson.
As for role players like Anthony Morrow, Nick Collison, D.J. Augustin, Josh Huestis, Steve Novak, Kyle Singler and Cameron Payne, their minutes have mostly been around 15 per game as Donovan finds the right player combinations and personnel groupings that may see time together in the regular season.
“One thing you don’t want to do is get into a situation where you’re playing 12 or 13 guys and nobody is really getting into any kind of rhythm or any kind of flow,” Donovan explained. “I’ve been trying to keep certain guys on the floor for at least six minutes at a time if not longer where those guys can get into a good rhythm and a good flow. I’m trying to give them an extended period that they can play together.”
Adams returned on Friday night against Fenerbahce after sitting the Thunder’s preseason game against Minnesota due to a sore back, and will be available to play on Tuesday night in Tulsa against the Dallas Mavericks. Donovan is “hopeful” that Singler can play on Tuesday, as he recovers from a bone bruise on his left knee. The Thunder will have shootaround on Tuesday morning, see how Singler feels and go from there.
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Defensive Pick-and-Roll Strategy
As Donovan looked over film this offseason and analyzed the Thunder on the floor, there were some small subtleties of the game that he wanted to incorporate into how the team plays this season. One wrinkle is the way the Thunder defends the pick-and-roll, with the guards aggressively getting over screens and big men hanging in the lane to prevent drives.
That strategy is intended to force ball-handlers to move the ball on to a teammate or to take a difficult, contested two-point range shot.
“It’s been going very smoothly,” Adams said of some of the schemes Donovan and his staff have implemented. “We did a good job of adapting to the new defensive system. The coaches are really onto it about all that sort of stuff and we seem to pick it up well because everybody is passionate about the defensive end and they all try to maintain the standards.”
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Using Bigs to Swing the Ball
At practice on Monday, Donovan also mentioned some of the plans he hopes to install into the Thunder’s offense. One such aspect of the offense is the way the team utilizes its big men like Adams, Ibaka, Kanter, Collison and McGary. In order to keep the floor moving and to make sure defenses can’t load up to playmakers, Donovan wants his forwards and centers to be conduits within the offense.
Moving the ball from one side of the floor to the other with the pass, dribble hand offs and other actions can help put Durant, Westbrook, Waiters, Augustin and other Thunder creators in more advantageous positions in relation to their defenders. If those players can get a step on their man and see space between themselves and the rim, then the Thunder’s chances of coming away with points increase dramatically.
“There’s a lot of ball movement, everybody gets open shots because it spreads the floor out and there’s a lot more spacing, which allows Kevin and Russ more open shots,” Adams explained. “They can make tough shots, but it can make it easier on them and all of us.”