Justin Cooper

December 3, 2018

The Thunder take on the Detroit Pistons tonight on the road at Little Caesars Arena at 6:00PM CST.  The Thunder are riding a two game winning streak, albeit against the bottom of the barrel in the east in the Atlanta Hawks and Cleveland Cavaliers.  The Thunder will be without Andre Roberson, while rookie Hamidou Diallo, and second year SG Terrance Ferguson are still day-to-day with ankle injuries.  The Pistons’ Luke Kennard is a game time decision, still nursing a shoulder injury.

It’s always interesting when the Thunder matchup against former teammate Reggie Jackson, however, the action to watch this evening will be down low where Steven Adams will have his hands full with 7’0”, 280 pound Andre Drummond who is averaging 18.6 points and a league leading 16.4 rebounds per game.  Oklahoma City is still bringing up the rear in three point shooting this season, ranked dead last in the NBA, and relies heavily on Steven Adams contributions on the offensive glass to mitigate the team’s weakness from distance.  Establishing a presence on the glass will be crucial for the Thunder to extend their win streak to three games.

Blake Griffin is also having a stellar season for the Pistons, averaging a career high 24.9 points per game thus far in 2018 while also contributing nearly 10 rebounds per game.  Griffin has also added perimeter shooting to his arsenal this season.  As Kevin Durant noted after the Warriors 111-102 loss to the Pistons, “Blake is not playing like a traditional big, in my opinion.  He’s shooting a lot of 3s and handling the ball in pick-and-roll at the top of the key,” Durant said, adding, “I think Blake is well-rounded as a player, and he’s getting better every single year.  He’s adding the step-back 3, the off-the-dribble 3, and it’s making him tough to guard.”  The task of containing Blake Griffin will largely fall on Jerami Grant and Patrick Patterson tonight.  Look for them to pay special attention to covering the perimeter as Griffin is shooting 36% on the year from three.

 

Oklahoma City is a one point favorite in the contest.

 The game tips off at 6:00PM CST and will be broadcast on Fox Sports Oklahoma, Fox Sports Detroit, and NBATV.