Mark D. Smith – USA Today Sports Images
The Oklahoma City Thunder will have yet another chance to close out their series with the Houston Rockets on Friday and advance to the second round of the NBA Playoffs. They jumped out to a 3-0 lead to the series, but have struggled over the past two games which has caused their lead in the series to dwindle to 3-2. This has obviously been heavily related to Russell Westbrook’s injury.
Without Westbrook on the floor, the Thunder’s offense has obviously been very Kevin Durant-centric. Durant has been fantastic over the past two games averaging around 40 points per game and still maintaining a high level of efficiency. However, the Thunder’s offense as a whole has struggled because no one else beyond Durant has really stepped up to the plate to help fill the void left by Westbrook.
One player that has noticeably not stepped up his game is Oklahoma City’s power forward Serge Ibaka. Ibaka had somewhat of a breakout year offensively, averaging 13.2 points per game on 57.3 percent shooting. Considering that he used to basically only score on dunks and that he now has a nice jumper, that’s great improvement for him.
However, he hasn’t stepped up without Westbrook in the lineup. In the three games since Westbrook’s injury, Ibaka has averaged just 13 points per game on 17-36 shooting. More importantly, he seems to have reverted to only scoring on put-backs and when he gets an open cut to the rim.
If the Thunder want to close out the Rockets and have success beyond the first round, Ibaka has to be more aggressive on the offensive end in several different ways. Though he’s not a great offensive player with his back to the basket, it would be nice to feed him on the block to, at the very least, cause the defense to collapse on him so he can kick it out to an open shooter. He also needs to find ways to get open for his mid-range jumper more often.
Ibaka is really the key for the Thunder as they go forward in the postseason. If he remains complacent with scoring his 13 points per game and with not asserting himself on offense, the Thunder are going to struggle. Durant is one of the best offensive players in the game, but he can’t do it all himself. Ibaka has to be the guy to take some of the offensive burden.
Cody Williams is a Senior NBA Writer with Rant Sports. Follow Cody on Twitter @TheSizzle20 and like his Facebook page.
