Bucks 115, Thunder 98
Observations news and notes from Saturday’s game….
* At least the Thunder gave the home fans a good showing in the Ford Center finale. Tonight’s loss could be the start of an ugly three-game trip to end the season.
* Couldn’t help but to picture Bucks guard Ramon Sessions in a Thunder uniform next season. He’ll be a restricted free agent this summer, turned only 23 today and can play both point guard and shooting guard. I wouldn’t be surprised if Sam Presti went after Sessions much like he did Nenad Krstic and Utah’s C.J. Miles, signing both player’s to offer sheets that weren’t overly expensive but pricey enough that their respective teams had to think long and hard about matching. Because of Milwaukee’s cap situation next season, $64 mil and maybe more depending on Charlie Villanueva’s situation, the Bucks might not be in a position to keep him around.
* Richard Jefferson destroyed OKC tonight. His 13 of 21 shooting doesn’t tell the story of how hot he was thanks to a 1-for-4 7:27 in a meaningless fourth quarter.
* Russell Westbrook is growing before our eyes, folks. He’s putting up all-around numbers pretty regularly and now more than ever is really making a concerted effort to get his teammates involved first before looking for his own offense. His 13 points, seven rebounds, six assists and one turnover in only 26 minutes were another step in the right direction.
* Don’t know what happened to Jeff Green tonight. He was a non-factor offensively and couldn’t rise to the challenge of being the guy who slowed down Richard Jefferson defensively.
* Shaun Livingston was 7-for-7 from the field for 14 points off the bench. He had only two assists, but to see his offense coming along is a good sign.
* Earl Watson played for the first time since March 11. He had a nice all-around game with five points, seven assists and four rebounds, leaving coach Scott Brooks to say Watson will get some minutes in these final two games.
* Brooks said he had planned on giving Watson the minutes anyway, but it helped that Thabo Sefolosha missed the game after dislocating his left index finger on Friday. Sefolosha will miss the final two games because of the injury.
* You knew it was embarrassing when…. Damon Jones entered the game with 6:50 remaining.
* Most interesting lineup of the season….Earl Watson, Russell Westbrook, Kyle Weaver, Kevin Durant and Jeff Green. Brooks was trying to match up with Milwaukee’s small-ball lineup of Luke Ridnour, Richard Jefferson, Joe Alexander, Luc Mbah a Moute and Charlie Villanueva.
* Brooks said Nick Collison remains day-to-day with a thigh contusion.
* I don’t think we’ll see Durant Green and Westbrook lose much playing time, but we could be in for a good amount of D.J. White, Kyle Weaver and Shaun Livingston in these final two.
* Thunder is taking the day off Sunday before getting back at it Monday against the Blazers.
-DM-
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Comments
Just caught the score of the Blazers game – 34 point deficit with 5 mins to go? At this rate, the Blazers will have beaten the Thunder by a combined score of over 60 points. Brutal. I predict that the Bucher article will come to be known as the “ESPN the Mag Curse” and we are destined for a hundred years of bad luck against the Blazers.
thanks Rick.
About Ramon Sessions, he was drafted in the 2nd round (56th pick) in 2007 by the Bucks. 2nd round draftees don’t have to go to the structure like 1st round draftess. According to hoopsworld.com, this year will be the last year’s salary for Sessions ($711,517), and since the Bucks didn’t make a qualifying offer (not yet), he will be an unrestricted free agent next season. But since the Thunder has Russell Westbrook, Thabo Sefolosha, Shaun Livingston, and Kyle Weaver, Sessions won’t make any playing time for the team.