The Oklahoma City Thunder made the early part of the season look easy. Not only with their 24-1 start, but their margin of victory.
Heading into Wednesday’s home matchup against the Utah Jazz, though, the Thunder are looking to snap out of a rut.
After one of the best starts in NBA history, Oklahoma City has dropped back-to-back games and sits just 6-6 since Dec. 13.
The Thunder are coming off their biggest defeat of the season, a 124-97 blowout loss at the hands of the Charlotte Hornets on Monday.
“There’s a lot of games left in the season,” Oklahoma City star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander said. “We’ve won big, we’ve lost big. Some nights are going to be bad, some nights are going to be great, but regardless, you have to try to get better the next day.
“… It’s hard, obviously, but the best teams do it.”
Thunder coach Mark Daigneault has repeatedly called it a “privilege” to receive other teams’ best shots as the defending NBA champions and says the current inconsistent play can still be a positive if his team reacts the right way.
“It comes with the territory,” Daigneault said. “I think it gives you a unique opportunity to really improve through that. But there’s also a challenge that comes with that. … We’ve got to learn the lesson with these ones.”
Oklahoma City’s biggest step backward has been on the offensive end, where they are posting a 113.7 offensive rating — points per 100 possessions — over the last 12 games after delivering 120.5 points per 100 possessions over the first 25 games.
But Gilgeous-Alexander has been more concerned about getting back to the team’s standard on the defensive side.
Oklahoma City was a league-best 103.3 in defensive efficiency over the first 25 games and has been at 108.5 since. That still ranks second in the NBA over this stretch, but it does not approach the lofty standards the Thunder set.
“Everything’s a work in progress,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “We are not what we want to be at the end of the season. We’re far from that.”
While the Thunder remain at the top of the league with a 105.0 defensive rating, Utah is last in the NBA at 122.0.
It’s an issue that Jazz coach Will Hardy says must be fixed.
“Defense is tiring. Defense is not fun,” Hardy said. “But defense is what gives you the opportunity to win. We can’t show up to the games thinking that we’re just going to outscore everybody. That’s an unsustainable approach.
“And right now, where we are as a team and as a program, we’re trying to build sustainable habits, a sustainable approach for long-term success. Our focus on the defensive side of the ball, individually, has to go up.”
Utah enters Wednesday’s game having dropped four consecutive games and eight of its last 10.
Jazz standout rookie Ace Bailey has missed the last five games with a left hip strain, while Isaiah Hartenstein (calf) and Jaylin Williams (heel) remain sidelined for the Thunder.
Oklahoma City won both previous meetings between the teams this season by an average of 31 points.
