Oklahoma City Thunder Early Exit in the Western Conference

Oklahoma City Thunder Early Exit in the Western Conference

What happened to the Oklahoma City Thunder? Just simple thoughts about the fall of the Thunder who were supposed to be back in the NBA Finals again. The fact that the Thunder grabbed the No 1 seed in the Western Conference means that they were ready to take another shot at the NBA title. However, there were few factors that contributed to their fall. Let's examine it.

1. Not signing James Harden - Early in the season, the Thunder's questionable move in not getting Harden probably had caused them something. Not evident in the regular season as the Thunder played well by winning 60 games. Though Kevin Martin took the shoes of Harden in the regular season, the playoff was not a perfect fit for the Thunder.

2. Russell Westbrook injury - This can be the biggest of all the reasons. The competitiveness of the Thunder was none existent when Westbrook was sidelined with injury that the defense of the opponents concentrated on Durant. Losing the No 2 option was hard to fill in for the Thunder.


3. Kevin Durant's clutchness - How about Kevin Durant's missing many shots in the fourth quarters of the last two games? What if he converted most of his shots? Durant has to learn to be clutch in the future for his team to win close games. It's a learning process. LeBron James took some time until last year to score under the pressure.

4. Much improved Grizzlies - Never discount Grizzlies in the picture of the fall of the Thunder. Memphis overpowered the LA Clippers in the first round and it was  not a fluke. Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph dominated the Thunder. In short other teams like the Grizzlies have caught on the Thunder.

Next year is another journey for the Oklahoma City Thunder. Probably additional players to spice up the roster?

NBA Playoffs Schedule 2013: In case you are in the Philippines

Not that much excitement this time here in the Philippines as the NBA Playoffs Schedule is underway. The absence of Kobe Bryant will affect the interest of the NBA fans here. Filipinos have been inloved by the acrobatic moves of Bryant the same way they were enthralled by Michael Jordan in the 90's. Filipinos loved those two players and this is the NBA Playoffs without them. However, the nation will be routing for Miami Heat probably. Not because of LeBron James but our very own Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra. Of course the fascination of watching LeBron James always attracts millions. A replica of Bryant or Jordan? How about the flashy game of Kevin Durant? Will he fill the void that Bryant left? Because the popularity of Kobe Bryant in the Philippines, millions will still tune in their television to watch the Los Angeles Lakers. How will the Lakers subdue the power of the San Antonio Spurs? How will coach Mike D'Antoni uses his two big guys? The enthusiasm in this game is to high that it need not to be neglected at all. Everybody wants to see the aging Tim Duncan against Dwight Howard at his prime. How about the strategy of fouling Dwight Howard? Hack-a-Howard? In terms of being emotional, we love to see the Miami Heat winning back-to-back. We want Spoelstra to be mentioned as a Filipino of course. While the rest of the country are too much engrossed by the May 13 election, the sports lovers will tune in to the NBA Playoff Games. Watching NBA Playoffs Games in the Philippines is not complicated as watching boxing. Through cable and satellite providers, Filipinos can watch the NBA games. Check your provider if NBA channel is available. Also, ABS CBN will cover the NBA Playoffs, though some games might be televised in delayed basis. Some of the my friends are watching the NBA Playoffs live online stream. I don't have the idea how to do that but they told me it is possible. Moreover, today is Sunday and the NBA games will be live Monday. Here's the NBA Playoffs Schedule live Philippine time Atlanta Hawks vs Indiana Pacers at 1:00 AM Monday Los Angeles Lakers vs San Antonio Spurs, 3:30 AM Monday Milwaukee Bucks vs Miami Heat, 7:00 AM Monday Houston Rockets vs Oklahoma City Thunder, 9:30 AM Monday It is more likely that ABS-CBN will capture the Rockets vs Thunder live while the rest will be in a delayed telecast.