The Thunder go from a disappointing loss last night to a new game tonight in Salt Lake City, where they will face the Utah Jazz. It should be another competitive game that is a contrast in styles, so let's discuss!

Be sure to check out the great site SLC Dunk when you have a moment.

Records: Oklahoma City Thunder (20-6) at Utah Jazz (13-11)

Time: 9:30 PM Central Standard Time

Place: EnergySolutions Arena, Salt Lake City, UT

TV: ESPN

Radio: WWLS The Sports Animal (98.1)

Enemy Blog(s): SLC Dunk, Salt City Hoops

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The Thunder conclude their road trip tonight by paying a visit to the Utah Jazz. Utah is struggling to stay above .500 after starting the season well, but still have a strong 11-4 home record and have beaten a number of quality opponents so far. Though they are on a two game losing streak, the Jazz have played well enough this season to defeat the Nuggets, Clippers, and Trail Blazers, so OKC must have a better game plan in place tonight if they are to recover from last night's poor effort.

The Jazz are an inside-out team, which is the exact opposite of the Thunder. Their offensive thrust begins with their two talented big men, Paul Millsap and Al Jefferson. Both of these players have had good success against the Thunder in the past, taking turns scoring 30+ points against the Thunder interior. Given OKC's struggles against LaMarcus Aldridge this week, the Thunder must acknowledge that their fortunes will lie on being physical with Jefferson and Millsap and keeping them off the offensive boards.

Utah is not a highly potent team from the guard position, but one player that the Thunder must be aware of is Devin Harris. Harris is yet another super-quick scoring point guard who can get into the lane and finish around the rim. It would be terrific if the Thunder were able to limit Harris below his career high tonight (47 is the high water mark). The Thunder guards have a clear advantage over the Jazz back-court, but they must be patient and allow their advantages to manifest over the course of the game.

Up to this point it has been easy to give the Thunder the benefit of the doubt in many of these games, but I think that tonight is the first one where the burden is on the Thunder to prove that they're worth their salt. At this point in the first half of the season, we cannot still just assume that they'll come out focused on defense, rebound well, and take care of the ball; they haven't been, and now they have to reverse all of these trends.

I think the Thunder will be competitive, but I feel that the Kings game wasn't their true reality check; rather, this game will be. I believe this will be the case because OKC is being stripped away of its self-perception in order to better understand who they really are. I think that the last aspect of that off-reality is in their self-assurance that they can always bounce back. In the NBA, it's just not that easy.

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Prediction: Jazz 98, Thunder 95

Thunder coach Scott Brooks got a little air time while he was in Sacramento yesterday, chatting with KHTK in Sacramento. He took the opportunity to talk about his coaching experience, his relationship with his young team, and their run to the Western Conference Finals last season.

Scott Brooks Still Not Satisfied Despite Best Record in West | Sports Radio Interviews

Please be sure to read the entire interview. I have excerpted a few quotes here:

Best part of coaching the Thunder:

"Their ability to come back every day and get work done whether we have an incredible win or tough loss. Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, James Harden, (Kendrick) Perkins, Nick Collison, they all come back knowing that they have a job to do to get better every day and work every day..."

Where he would like the team to get better at:

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Last night's game against the Kings was a bitter pill, but this soaring slam by Russell Westbrook made the announcers' tongues turn to taffy.

What I love most about it is that two of the guys in the booth on this night were Reggie Miller and Chris Webber, two of the more accomplished All-Stars of yesteryear. Their careers overlapped that of such high fliers as Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Kobe Bryant, and Vince Carter. I mean, you've seen Reggie; you KNOW he got dunked on a lot. And yet in this briefest of moments when gravity became optional for Westbrook, they were suddenly sitting there outside the Tower of Babel.

The Thunder get less than 24 hours to figure out how to correct some of the many problems they encountered in losing to the Kings last night, as they face the Utah Jazz in this evening's late game. The Jazz, like the Kings, have some talent and ability and are better coached. OKC had better bite down on that mouth piece.

Post-Game Nuggets | NewsOK

Rohde writes:

I'm almost certain the answer to this question is "no," but here it goes: Has any team ever won an NBA title leading the league in turnovers? My guess is no, and the answer will remain no because the OKC Thunder will not win an NBA title committing this many turnovers.

OKC Bites It Against the Kings | Daily Thunder

James takes a more optimistic view of the game last night, noting that it was just one of many, and that it is possible to turn things around this season. Sometimes, the other team just plays better.

ARCO Thunder Rules the Night | Sactown Royalty

This great write-up from the Kings' side of the playing field should hopefully give us all a bit of perspective. Bill Parcels once famously said that the more desperate team usually wins. Last night, the Kings played in a state of greater desperation and won.

Perkins on Jim Rome Show | CBS Sports

Kendrick Perkins joined the Jim Rome Show to talk about the dunk and the tweet that won't die.

Chris Webber Returns Home | ABC News

Before Chris Webber was an NBA commentator, he was an All-Star power forward for the Sacramento Kings. In fact, as I think back on my first experiences watching C-Webb, I recall having a similar impression that I did when LeBron James came into the league. He, like LeBron, just looked like he was built to play basketball. Interestingly, as gifted as Webber was, we saw the same shortcomings then that we see today with LeBron. I don't want to critique Webber though; he is an eloquent and thoughtful guy and I really like his reflections in this article on playing in Sacramento.

Judging the West Reserves | Ball Don't Lie

Russell Westbrook's slow start notwithstanding, he's the second best player on the best team in the West. He belongs.

Jeremy Lin, Landry Fields, Nerd Handshake | SB Nation

I get the eyeglasses move, but what is Lin doing at the beginning? Turning book pages?

Celtics Win Tip, Call an Audible | CBS Sports

Add another entry into my "NBA players have a lot of time on their hands" diary. Solidarity with the Patriots? Tweaking Doc Rivers? Who knows, who cares. That's a great tip-off.

Craig Saiger...Oh Yes | SB Nation

The effervescent Craig Saiger may be paying tribute to the Legend of Zelda.

The Thunder's loss last night to the Kings was a frustrating one to watch, as many of OKC's common struggles came to the surface once again. Unlike their loss to the Wizards earlier this season where it was evident that the Thunder just weren't focused, last night's loss had more to do with the Kings exploiting all of the Thunder's Achilles Heels - defensive rebounding, turnovers, and 4th quarter play calling. It was difficult to watch because we've seen these problems before and we know that they must be dealt with if OKC is ever to take the next steps forward.

Put that aside for a moment though, and consider this game from the Kings' perspective. Last night was not just a run-of-the-mill game for them. The Kings are once again fighting for their survival in Sacramento, and both the players and fans came out in full force and solidarity. Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson was on hand. The team honored Chris Webber, with a jersey to hang in the rafters. For the Kings players, this game meant something to them, and it was more than just an opportunity to compete against the team with the best record in the league. In the end, I was sad to see OKC lose, but it was still heartening to witness the kind of unity and passion that we saw in Sacramento last night.

The Thunder are finding ways to win in spite of a grueling 5 game road trip. What players have most stepped up to fill the void left by Thabo Sefolosha's injury? Plus, why do the Thunder leave so many opposing teams grumbling? Brent and Blayne share their take.

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