NBA Special: Where do the Oklahoma City Thunder stand after the game 4 meltdown?
The road to the NBA Finals got extremely bumpy for the Oklahoma City Thunder after a huge meltdown late in the fourth quarter of the game-4 against the mercurial Dallas Mavericks.
The Thunder struggled to sustain the momentum down the stretch against the eighth seeded Memphis Grizzlies in the Conference semi-finals but then, they were facing a team that was also young at the big stage. However, this time
the same struggle has placed them on the cusp of elimination against a side that knows all about the crunch situations and the deep stretches in the playoffs.
In the game-4 of the Western Conference Finals, on a 3-pointer from the influential forward Kevin Durant, the Thunder had amplified their lead to 15 points with five minutes remaining on the clock. What unearthed after that was
a stretch that not only left the jam packed Oklahoma City Arena and the Thunder stunned but the Mavs themselves.
In the ensuing period, Russell Westbrook was the only player for the Oklahoma City, who managed to land a bucket till the end of regulation time as the Mavericks romped with 17-2 run and took the game into overtime. Dirk Nowitzki,
the seven foot German power forward, who had been a thorn in the side of the Thunder all series long erupted again. The sharp-shooting sensation thrust a 12-point avalanche down the stretch to put the Mavs in a very strong position.
Thunder’s appalling stretch continued in the extra 5 minutes as well and the visiting Dallas wrapped up an electrifying 112-105 victory and took a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven game series.
Scott Brooks, Thunder head coach was upset with the performance of the team and said after the game. "This is a tough loss to accept but we have to learn from it. Our guys played hard but we struggled down the stretch. Now we have
to focus on one game. It's a tough loss for the players, the coaches, the organization and the fans. We have to execute better. The turnovers really bothered us, just way too many."
Having two of best shooters of the league in the team, including the two time scoring champion Durant, it is quite concerning for the Oklahoma City to lose a game because of missed offensive plays down the stretch. Durant was specifically
woeful in the last few minutes of the regulation as the sell out crowd watched in horror. Mavericks’ enormous play-off experience cannot be denied however a team who can make it into the Conference Finals must know how to carry the action till the end.
"If this loss did not hurt, there's no such thing as a loss that can hurt you. No question that this is a very difficult loss, but it is a loss you have to take." Brooks said.
The Oklahoma City Thunder are on the brink now and need to confront the veteran Dallas Mavericks with a different game-plan. They have to fight for every points and have to keep their head during the clutch time, which is the biggest
problem for Thunder at the moment.
There is no doubting the capabilities and talent of the team. The presence of Kendrick Perkins at the back has added a new dimension to the Thunder back court. Durant and Westbrook are more than good at the front. The Thunder’s
also carry a prolific bench player in the form of James Harden, who is incredibly instrumental at the crunch time. Nick Collison has proven that he is no mug either and has been very effective in hounding Nowitzki.
However, the need of the moment is that, OKC learn from their mistakes and put shackles on Dirk, much like the Miami Heat are doing on certain Derrick Rose in the Eastern Conference Finals.
The game 5 of the series will be played at the American Airlines Centre on Wednesday night. If the Thunder do not learn from their last game, they might well see their play-off journey coming to an end.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are the writer's own and in no way represent Bettor.com's official editorial policy.
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