What’s the biggest thing Oklahoma City coach Scott Brooks has learned through this first round playoff journey, the team’s most successful postseason jaunt since moving to their new city in 2008?
“I learned that we have some good players,” Brooks said. “We have a team full of players that are committed to playing good basketball.”
Up and down the roster, Oklahoma City has not only gotten good basketball from a number of players, but timely play as well. Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook might steer the ship but they can’t navigate it across rough playoff seas themselves.
And so in Game 1 Eric Maynor chipped in with 12 points off the bench. In Game 2, James Harden put a stamp on the win with 18 points and five rebounds. In Game 3 Serge Ibaka played his best, most significant game of the series with 22 points and 16 rebounds.
“It’s like that in the playoffs,” Thunder center Kendrick Perkins said. “You never know what guy is going to step up and be the hero of the game. I said it’s going to be a different guy on this team every night that’s going to win a playoff game for us. That’s what makes us so talented. That’s what makes us the team that we are to have a chance to actually win the championship. We have enough talent, we’re deep enough that’s it’s going to be a different guy each game that’s going to hit a big shot or make a big play for us to win a game.”
Said forward Nick Collison: “First of all, (general manager Sam Presti) has done a good job of putting talent together. I think we’ve got a lot of talented guys and that’s a difference. The biggest difference in years that we struggled is we have more talent but talent only takes you so far.
“Games like this says a lot about different guys’ character, the ability of guys like Russell and Kevin to make the pass, make the play. And guys like Serge (Ibaka) just step up and make shots. Not something they’ve done a lot in their career. We got a lot of guys who can play and we’re playing well right now. And we’re in a good spot.”
Still, tonight’s Game 4 at the Pepsi Center is their first closeout chance as a team — ever, as the Thunder. Brooks understands the enormous challenge ahead of his group tonight.
“It’s always the toughest game because every team, you don’t want to go home, you want to keep extending this series because you don’t know what could happen when another game goes by,” Brooks said. “We understand Denver is not going to say ‘We want this season to be over, go ahead and get this game from us.’ They’re going to play hard, they’re going to do their best to play well.
“We’re going to have to fight them and do our best to keep them from doing what they want to do. That’s always been our game plan, and we’ve done a good job with that.”
Chris Dempsey: 303-954-1279 or cdempsey@denverpost.com
