Thunder vs Celtics Preview and Gamethread: 4th attempt at first win for OKC

Game: Oklahoma City Thunder vs Boston Celtics

Time: 7pm CST

Location: Chesapeake Arena, OKC

Broadcast: TNT, FSOK

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Entering the 4th game of the season, the Thunder are desperate to get their first win. The break between Sunday’s game versus the Kings and tonight’s game versus Boston should give coach Donovan and the team time to gameplan a path to victory.

Even at home getting this win versus Boston won’t be easy. The Celtics are one of the best teams in the league and go a legitimate ten deep. How well can the Thunder bench play in comparison to Boston’s bench will be a key to watch — there cannot be a major drop-off when stars Russell Westbrook and Paul George come off the court.

This game also offers us great individual matchups. Westbrook will be going head to head with all-star Kyrie Irving, while George will have his hands full with the combination of Gordon Hayward and Jayson Tatum. A lot of star power in this TNT primetime game.

In order to get their first win of the season, the Thunder must improve defensively. Oklahoma City gave up 131 to a Kings team lacking any elite scorer. Meanwhile, Boston has multiple players who are known for their great scoring prowess. Coach Donovan mentioned after practice Tuesday, the team has been working on defensive communication during practice.

“I think against Sac (Sacramento) our pick and roll coverage we broke down, I think we did a better job today creating the clarity of the communication.” said Donovan.

Oh! and hitting some open threes wouldn’t hurt either.