Lakers v Thunder Game 1

The utter domination displayed by the Thunder in last night's 119-90 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers is the start that most Lakers fans were hoping they didn't see.

Of course you could pencil in 25 for Durant pregame and no would be surprised. What is more embarrassing is the the fact he shot 50% from the field and got those points off only 16 shots consisting of mostly mid-range jumpers and three-pointers. Durant has grown in his few playoff runs and is no longer the skinny shooter that easily is pushed off his spots. He is getting the ball where he wants and has added a few new moves (I know ya'll saw the Dirk one leg fade-away).

 But even after the effective game he had, the reason this was a blowout  was something brought up by this blogger in my preview post. "Good Westbrook" showed up tonight. The point total is the least telling of his stat-line. 27 points aren't going to kill a good team, but he took mostly good shots ( 10-15 FG, 1-1 3PT) and had only one turnover. He dished out nine assists, grabbed seven boards, and had two steals in what might have been his most impressive playoff performance to date. Lakers found out the hard way what all of America already knows. The Thunder are serious contenders and have the look in their eyes like last year's Mavs and the Lakers they faced a few years ago. This team sent a message to these Lakers and I sure hope they got it.

In game 2, the Lakers have to make adjustments. I do not think Kobe guarding Westbrook the entire is the right move. Although Kobe is great defensively, at this point in their careers Westbrook's ability to penetrate forces Kobe to play off a little bit. Mike Brown needs to let Sessions guard him tight and force him to penetrate into the teeth of the Laker Bigs. This is playoff basketball. You have to be tough. You have to bump them off their spots. You cannot let Durant and Westbrook take turns hitting uncontested jumpers.

Lakers are okay. They didn't play bad. Bynum had a good game. 20 points 14 boards. Lakers as a team only allowed 10 offensive rebounds. Bench points were heavily favored to the Thunder and will be this entire series, but they have to get more help than just 26 points, most of which came in garbage time. If they can get some bench help and make the right defensive adjustments game 2 should be a little more contested.

The Oklahoma City Thunder are on a quest for a championship and had every look, at least for one game, that that's exactly where they are heading.