The Thunder, thanks to early season injuries to Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, are still 2.5 games and two spots outside playoff position.
Most assume they’ll pass the Pelicans and Suns at some point. Meanwhile, the season continues, and Oklahoma City’s margin for error diminishes.
The Thunder beat Minnesota on Monday without Durant, and they’ll again be without their superstar.
Frank Isola of the New York Daily News:
Kevin Durant is out tonight vs Knicks.
— Frank Isola (@TheFrankIsola) January 28, 2015
The Thunder’s record with Westbrook and/or Durant in the lineup goes how you’d expect:
- Both: 14-7
- Just Westbrook: 5-5
- Neither: 4-10
But these are the Knicks. With a rusty Westbrook returning from a 14-game absence, Oklahoma City beat the Knicks by 37 in November. There’s only minimal danger of the Thunder losing tonight, even without Durant.
The bigger loss is for New York fans, who won’t get to see Durant as they dream about the Knicks’ Durant-friendly coaching staff luring him to the Big Apple as a free agent in 2016.