Portland 2-1 or 1-2 in Ford Center?
After finally having a productive night picking NBA games let’s start Saturday with the Portland-Houston game since the Trail Blazers will be in the Ford Center Sunday night.
Portland 95, Houston 93: The Trail Blazers will either be 2-1 or 1-2 when they invade the Ford Center Sunday night, a back-to-back helping the Thunder who had Saturday off. Look for Portland to eake out a win after beating the Rockets in both teams’ season opener earlier in the week.
Philadelphia 104, New York 100: Could be a shootout at Madison Square Garden. The Sixers, coming off a win over Milwaukee, are still trying to figure out how to get Elton Brand more involved. The Knicks are still looking for their first win.
San Antonio 104, Sacramento 88: The Kings actually had a lead late in their game Friday night in New Orleans, but the Spurs should romp after having the incentive of losing at Chicago Thursday night.
Dallas 96, LA Clippers 94: Coming off a dominant upset win over the Lakers Friday night in LA, the Mavericks must guard against a letdown. The Clippers are still looking for their first win.
Washington 94, New Jersey 84: The Wizards’ home opener after splitting road games at Dallas and Atlanta. The Nets have been competitve but are 0-2.
Cleveland 96, Charlotte 83: The Cavs got back on track in Minneapolis and return home. The Bobcats who got their first win in double-overtime over the Knicks. LeBron is close to averaging a double-double during a 1-2 start.
Milwaukee 90, Detroit 86: The Bucks finally got their season started with a road loss. Their home opener is against a Pistons team that looked lethargic against the Thunder without Rip Hamilton, who is sidelined by an ankle injury.
Thunder 91, Pistons 83
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — Last year, the Thunder took two steps back in games like this.
On the road. Bait for a team’s home opener. After a blowout home win.
It used to be the perfect storm. Friday night it was a piece of cake.
For a moment, though, it appeared as though not much had changed. The Thunder scored just 38 first-half points on 39.5 percent shooting. A talented Pistons squad that’s loaded with offensive weapons wasn’t having much trouble putting the ball in the basket in the first 24 minutes. And what we thought was a new and improved Russell Westbrook was regressing by the second, reverting to playing faster and turning over the ball at an alarming rate.
Even when the Thunder took a 10-point lead on two occasions in the fourth quarter, the outcome seemed in doubt. You might have reached ‘Here-we-go-again’ mode when the Pistons clawed within four with 4:27 remaining after surging to an 8-0 run.
But then it happened. The Thunder showed us this year would be different. Westbrook turned the tide when he hustled back instead of hanging his head after Ben Wallace blocked his layup. The Thunder’s point guard returned the rejection on Ben Gordon and helped the Thunder salvage it’s four-point lead. He made two free throws to push the lead to six. After Gordon netted one of two free throws, Westbrook found Nenad Krstic under the rim to bump the lead to seven.
And when Gordon split two more free throws, fundamental ball movement found Thabo Sefolosha in the corner for a 3-pointer that gave the Thunder a 84-75 lead with 2:03 remaining. The crowd filed up the Palace’s steps. The Pistons never got closer than five.
“This was one of our better wins since I’ve been here in terms of holding a team off and being able to get stops when we needed to in the fourth quarter,” said Nick Collison. “We never gave up that bad spurt where a team made a run on us. That’s something we struggled with in the past…It’s good to see in a tough game on the road that guys are still trying to do the right thing. A less experienced team like we were last year, those are the times guys kind of break away from the game plan and don’t make good decisions. But tonight, everybody played well.”
And the Thunder is 2-0.
Thunder to start 2-0?
The Thunder’s schedule is difficut the next five games.
Three Ford Center opponents — Portland (Sunday), Lakers (Tuesday) and Orlando (Nov. 
feature last year’s two NBA finalists and the 54-win Trail Blazers. The two road games — Detroit (tonight) and Houston (next Friday) — are more winnable but… they’re on the road.
Since Oklahoma City will be an underdog in all five games, securing one or two wins the next nine days would be a good start for the young Thunder.
After a so-so record making daily NBA picks here is Friday’s predictions:
Detroit 94, Thunder 90: This is a game the Thunder could win but the Pistons were impressive in their 22-point road win at Memphis. For OKC to post the upset (they’re a 7-point underdog), the Thunder must at least break even on the boards and score some points in transition.
LA Lakers 99, Dallas 92: A deeper roster was supposed to take some pressure off Dirk Nowitzki but that wasn’t the case in the opener. Lakers should improve to 2-0 but they haven’t hit the road, yet, even though that shouldn’t be an issue.
Boston 96, Chicago 88: The Celtics have been impressive. The Bulls now discover what the Spurs did Thursday night, that playing back-to-back nights, the second game on the road, is difficult.
Atlanta 98, Washington 96: One of the better games tonight. Gilbert Arenas and the Wizards played well in a road win at Dallas. The Hawks won at home. They win again at home but Washington has a shot.
Miami 96, Indiana 94: The Pacers are a slight favorite but D-Wade finds a way to get the Heat a valuable road win.
Philadelphia 98, Milwaukee 88: The Sixers try to bounce back after losing at Atlanta. Believe it or not, the Bucks haven’t played a game, yet.
Cleveland 96, Minnesota 90: The 0-2 Cavs get a break by playing Minnesota but the Timberwolves are at home. Still, LeBron and Shaq take out their frustration on rookie coach Kurt Rambis’ squad.
Orlando 90, New Jersey 85: Vince Carter’s return to Jersey. The Magic hits the road for the first time. The Nets blew a big lead at Minnesota but this is their home opener. Carter gets the last laugh.
New Orleans 96, Sacramento 86: After an ugly opening loss at Dallas, the Hornets right the ship with a home win over the hapless Kings.
Phoenix 106, Golden St. 98: The Suns posted a solid road win against the Clippers. Their home opener is against a Warriors team that couldn’t beat Houston at home.
Utah 96, Clippers 90: The Jazz are tough at home. The Clippers, a team some say is a playoff contender, are 0-2 and in danger of falling to 0-3 if they can’t post an unlikely road upset.
Toronto 95, Memphis 90: The Raptors looked good at home against LeBron and the Cavs. Memphis was horrible. But at least the Grizzlies are at home. But they were at home Wednesday night, too, and were embarrassed.
New York 98, Charlotte 95: The Bobcats are favored at home but after their dismal franchise-record low point total at Boston the high-scoring Knicks will post the upset.
Cavs 0-2? Time to panic?
The Sporting News, always trying to be ahead of the curve, did a huge story in its NBA season preview issue breaking down a projected Cavaliers-Lakers matchup in the 2010 NBA Finals. They used four pages to comapre the two teams.
Oops.
It’s only two games. The Cavs will be fine. It’s not like they’re going to miss the playoffs. LeBron James’ triple-double in the loss Wednesday night at Toronto was a reminder he’s probably still the best player in the league.
But Cleveland’s 0-2 start is a sign the Cavaliers might not be the Eastern Conference favorite many of us made them out to be, myself included.
Shaquille O’Neal, Cleveland’s much hyped off-season acquisition, has been a liability defensively. Opponents are taking advantage by pulling him away from the basket, then driving around him, exposing Shaq on pick-and-rolls.
Shaq appears to be a bad fit for the Cavs, who are at their best when they’re running in transition.
With Delonte West’s current troubles, the Cavs’ depth is thin for the time being.
Panic? No. Cleveland should win 55-plus games, possibly get to 60 again. King James is that good.
But after watching the Opening Night loss, at home, to the Celtics I certainly wish I had a mulligan on my presason picks just three days into the season.
Boston’s aging roster must stay healthy. The playoffs are a long way off. Things can change in a week or two much less six months. But early in the season, it’s apparent the Celtics, not the Cavs, are the favorite to win the Eastern Conference.
Spurs to win on the road
Continuing an early-season trend of picking every NBA game, after showing improvement in my W-L record the second night, look for the Spurs to start the season 2-0.
Spurs 98, Bulls 93: After dominating the Hornets, the Spurs flew from San Antonio to Chicago late Wednesday night. Those type of back-to-back games, flying more than 1,000 miles, is one of the toughest challenges of playing in the NBA. But the Spurs are a veteran team accustomed to the challenge.
This is the Bulls’ season opener. They’re at home. Chicago and Milwaukee are the only teams to have not played a game. But San Antonio was so efficient against New Orleans it’s hard to pick against the Spurs. And it wouldn’t be surprising if the Bulls show a little rust, having gone more than a week without playing a game.
Trail Blazers 104, Nuggets 101: This should be an entertaining game after both teams won their openers at home, two teams hoping to compete with San Antonio, Dallas and Utah for a top four seed.
Portland looked good early but was so-so in the fourth quarter in its opener against Houston. The Nuggets finally pulled away against the Jazz, led by Carmelo Anthony’s 30 points. It would be a huge road win for Denver but Portland is tough at home.
Thunder 102, Kings 89
So what did we learn about this year’s Thunder squad after one game?
If Wednesday night’s season opener taught us anything it was that this team can be pretty good when it plays hard for 48 minutes. The 102-89 win over Sacramento proved that the things the organization has preached since moving here in July of last year — teamwork, energy, effort, commitment and patience — can indeed pay off.
“It was a good start,” said coach Scott Brooks. “I thought we played some pretty good basketball.”
The Thunder has become a more confident group. That was perhaps the biggest revelation on opening night. You can see the progression in almost everything the players do, everything they say.
Kevin Durant was spotted at his locker before the game, slouched in his office-style chair with his long legs stretched out. He seemed calm, prepared for anything that was about to come his way. Less than an hour before tip-off, he looked every bit as at ease as he claimed to be only a day earlier, on the eve of his third NBA season.
And after the wire-to-wire win, the Thunder’s dressing room was far from festive. Players hardly flashed smiles, let alone celebrated the opening victory. Media members filled the room with more noise than the guys who had just put on the show. It was almost a surreal scene considering it was one that rarely played out after big-time wins last year.
“It’s an encouraging start,” said Nick Collison, “but there’s 81 more games.”
The ROY Race Minus Blake Griffin
James Harden (pictured above in the bow tie) rejected the notion that he’s got a better shot at Rookie of the Year now that L.A. Clippers rookie and No. 1 overall pick Blake Griffin could miss up to six weeks with a knee injury. The Thunder’s No. 3 overall pick out of Arizona State said the 2009 draft class still is too deep, too talented to get overly confident just because Griffin will miss a chunk of the season.
“Obviously Blake’s a tremendous player,” Harden said. “I hope he recovers very well. But we have a great class. Jonny Flynn over there (in Minnesota), Tyreke Evans, who we’re playing against (tonight) has a chance, Brandon Jennings, Stephen Curry. It goes down the line. These are some great players who are put in positions to play and help their teammates win games. So it’s up for a hunt.”
But how will Griffin’s near two-month absence impact the Rookie of the Year race?
Of this year’s 30 first-round picks, 21 are set to make their debuts tonight. Four of them will be in the Ford Center for tonight’s season opener against Sacramento. Top five picks Harden and Evans will get a heavy dose of minutes. Sacramento forward Omri Casspi, the No. 23 overall pick, will make history when he checks into the game for the first time and becomes the first Israeli to play in the NBA. And Byron Mullens, the No. 24 pick will be on the Thunder’s bench as well.
Griffin isn’t out of contention for the award. But he’ll have to make up ground in a hurry when he returns. That could be rather difficult considering Griffin is on a Clippers team with a talented frontcourt and he’ll be experiencing his rookie growing pains more than a month later than everyone else in contention.
So with Griffin out of the picture for now, what largely was considered a two-man race might be about to blossom into free-for-all between seven main competitors. Here they are, listed in order of most likely to win it.
Opening night preview
When the NBA schedule came out nearly two months ago I wrote the Thunder’s scheudle is especially difficult the first two months, that if the Thunder could go 14-18 or 13-19 those first 32 games before the calendar flips to 2010, a young team might stay within sniffing distance of playoff teams much of the season.
Well, tonight we start to find out if a young team is up to that challenge. It’s Opening Night. Game 1 of that 32-game stretch is in the Ford Center, a game OKC should win.
The two most interesting items from shoot-around Wednesday morning, a few hours before tipoff, was coach Scott Brooks’ response to Kevin Durant possibly leading the league in scoring at some point during his career and Opening Night excitement.
Durant finished sixth in the league in scoring last seson. When asked if No. 35 could eventually win a scoring title, Brooks’ final answer was the most revealing.
“Kevin has an offensive game that’s pretty good at (age) 21. But he still needs to continue to learn the tricks and crafts of that position,” Brooks said. “And he has. He did a great job over the summer.”
In other words, Durant’s offensive game still has much room to grow as he gains more experience. That’s why many are predicting the former Texas star might someday win a scoring title.
One stat best sums up Durant’s scoring potential. LeBron James is the only player in NBA history to score more points than Durant before their 21st birthday.
Brooks’ initial response shifted focus to Durant’s desire to be recognized as a player who helps his team win on both ends of the court, not just scoring.
“There’s no doubt Kevin Durant is a special player,” Brooks said. “The thing I really admire about Kevin is he knows he’s good and he can score and score in a lot of different spots. But that’s not his focus. He wants to continue to develop and make winning basketball plays.
“He said it best last year. He had All-Star numbers but felt he didn’t deserve it because we didn’t win enough games, that you should be able to win games if you’re going to make the All-Star team. With Kevin he will develop and get better.”
In response to Opening Night, Brooks, as he often does, spoke about down-the-roster players since that best describes his scrappy career.
“It’s always a good time for a player,” Brooks said. “One, you made the team. Two, you get an opportunity to enjoy playing after all the hard work you put in through the summer (and see it) show up on the court.”
Thunder will win opener
After going an unimpressive 2-2 on Opening Night, thanks to the Wizards and Celtics posting upsets, here are my predictions for tonight’s dozen games.
OKC 96, Sacramento 91: The Kings dominated the final preaseson game but the Thunder played with no emotion. Tonight, the atmosphere will be electric. It won’t be easy but the Thunder starts 1-0.
Cleveland 96, Toronto 93: For the second straight night the Cavs are involved in one of the best games. The Raptors, opening at home, are much improved. If Toronto wins an 0-2 start for the Shaq/LeBron Cavs would be placed under much national scrutiny.
Orlando 94, Philadelphia 88: The Sixers are erratic and sometimes pull off upsets but the Magic is always tough at home.
Boston 98, Charlotte 90: The Celtics overcame an early 14-point deficit and looked impressive in Cleveland. They won’t slip up in their home opener.
San Antonio 96., New Orleans 84: There’s good vibes in the Alamo City following some off-season moves, bad vibes in the Big Easy where Emeka Okafor didn’t practice much all preseason. Spurs win easily.
Denver 106, Utah 97: The Nuggets hope to build on their solid trip to the Western finals last year. The Jazz is tough at home but often struggles on the road. Melo and Chauncey start 1-0.
Clippers 103, Phoenix 100: A coin toss game. I’ll go with the Clippers at home. Eric Gordon and Chris Kaman played well in the opener against the Lakers.
Miami 108, New York 102: This could be the highest scoring game of the night. D-Wade might score 40.
Atlanta 101, Indiana 94: The Hawks are trying to crack the top three in the East. Jamal Crawford makes his Atlanta debut.
Memphis 95, Detroit 93: My upset special. Allen Iverson (torn hamstring) won’t play but Grizzlies still squeak out a win to boost fan morale.
Golden State 110, Houston 104: Another high-scoring, run-and-gun game. The Rockets trailed by double digits much of their opener at Portland.
New Jersey 97, Minnesota 95: The Timberwolves are favored at home but the Nets, led by Brook Lopez and Devin Harris, post the upset.
Power Lunch Thunder Chat Transcript
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