Close losses expose a glaring truth: Oklahoma City's slump isn't about shooting or boards, but a critical lack of key players.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have lost two straight home games and have dropped three out of their last five games total. All three losses were to Eastern Conference teams (gasp!). All three losses were by one possession. Naturally, Thunder fans are searching for reasons why the defending champs have struggled recently.
Many explanations have been tossed around on social media. Rebounding. Three point shooting. Clutch time offense. Lack of consistent scoring outside of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. All of these are valid, reasonable causes and concerns. But there is one overarching issue at the root of most of those problems.
Health. Or, more specifically, the lack thereof.
OKC is currently missing Jalen Williams, Isaiah Hartenstein, Alex Caruso, Ajay Mitchell, Nikola Topic, Thomas Sorber and just added Cason Wallace to the list during the Toronto Raptors loss on Sunday night. Mark Daigneault would never use injuries as an excuse, but that's five of the Thunder's top eight players out of the rotation.
Rebounding? Hartenstein is the Thunder's leading board man and averages 10.4 rebounds per game. Not only does the seven footer clean up the glass on his own, but his box outs allow his teammates to grab boards even if he doesn't get them himself. OKC's rebounding numbers are night and day with a healthy Hartenstein. Williams is no slouch in that facet of the game, as the guard/forward/emergency center averages over 5 boards per game over the past two seasons.
Three point shooting? While they won't be mistaken for the Splash Brothers, the foursome of Mitchell, Caruso, Wallace and Williams are all capable shooters that defenses have to defend. And the absence of both of OKC's secondary playmakers results in fewer open looks for the other shooters on the team.
Clutch time offense? Gilgeous-Alexander is one of the elite crunch time players in the world, but without the threat of Williams nor Mitchell, opposing defenses are throwing multiple bodies at the MVP and daring others to score. No matter how elite the scorer, passing to an open shooter is usually the right play over trying to iso against two or three defenders.
Lack of consistent scoring outside of Gilgeous-Alexander? Williams averages 16.8 points per game, third most on the team. Mitchell averages 14.1 points, fourth most. Hartenstein averages 11.2 points, fifth most. Wallace averages 7.4 points, eighth most. Caruso averages 6.1 points points, ninth most. That's a total of 55.6 points per game that OKC is missing from their lineup at the moment.
The Thunder have gone through a recent rough patch. But despite a few close, heartbreaking losses, OKC still owns the best record in the NBA. The champs still have plenty of time to right the ship before the postseason.
Their number one priority: getting healthy.