The Thunder took on their last Summer League opponent in the Pacers this morning. If they won and the Bobcats lost, they would become the Orlando Summer League champions. Read on for a quick recap of the action.
The game started off on a 8-0 run by the Thunder. D.J. White looked good in the run, even making a rare post move score. Apparently, the Pacers got to the game late, and it showed in their performance. Ryan Reid had a good quarter, getting two tough post buckets and taking a charge. Mustafa Shakur and James Harden continued to score well. All in all, the quarter was mostly forgettable, besides an amazing dunk by Paul George.
The second quarter was one of complete domination for the Thunder. The only mentionable talent on the Indiana Pacers was Magnum Rolle, who had some nice scores, and Paul George, who had adequate defense in the paint. James Harden continued to get to the line and hit nice layups. A particularly hilarious moment came when Russell Robinson seemingly accidentally ran directly into James Harden. It looked like Robinson did it intentionally, but I'm not judging.
Below: What did Cole Aldrich have to say about the Thunder? Were the Thunder Summer League Champions?
Cole Aldrich stepped in the booth during the third quarter, and talked about how "stoked" he was to be part of the Thunder. And he admitted that he was a small part of the huge picture, which was nice to see. He also revealed that he found out about his trade to the Thunder through the ticker at the back of the stage.
The actual game in the third was somewhat more notable than the first two. The Pacers slowly worked their way back into the game via Paul George and Magnum Rolle. Kyle Weaver did a decent job of running the point, and Vaden and Hammonds hit some shots late to sustain the Thunder's lead.
The fourth quarter saw the unexpected emergence of Cliff Hammonds, who had an impressive block on Paul George. The rest of the quarter saw a Pacer comeback as the Thunder were playing the bottom of their bench. It eventually got to a point where the Pacers were down by 6, and Kramer got 3 free throws. He made only 1 of the 3, when a Thunder player was called for over the back. The Pacers made 1 of the next 2, and the game was pretty much over from that point on.
With the Magic beating the Bobcats, the Thunder are now the Orlando Summer League Champions. Amazing? Not really, but it is a testament as to how good of a GM Sam Presti is.
And there's really not much to learn from this game from a thunder point of view. Ryan Reid continues to show he's semi-legit, Hammonds had an alright game, and Robert Vaden still can't shoot. It was a nice look at the other players with Ibaka, Maynor, and Mullens out of the game.
Awards:
Thunder Wonder: Mustafa Shakur, for another solid game.
Thunder Down Under: Kyle Weaver, for having an all-around nice Summer League.
Thunder Blunder: Robert Vaden, who still can't shoot an NBA 3.
Thunder Plunderer: Paul George, who was slammin' defensively and offensively. He and Rolle have a good future ahead of them. Marcus Williams is done though.
Next Game: In the Pre-Season. See you on the other side!
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