Donovan Won't Take Away Roberson's Hope of Returning
Let's get you up to speed on all the Thunder injury news. First, Darius Bazley is still doing some stationary shooting per Billy Donovan. Bazley is progressing, but the Thunder has no plans to speed up his return to the court.
Bazley is still recovering from a right knee bone bruise. Donovan says the medical team will "stay right on the plan."..."Even if he felt like he could do more, they're not going to rush him."..."Everything they've put him though he's responded really, really well to."
We found out earlier this week that Andre Roberson is back in Oklahoma City. Roberson has been working out, but he is not practicing with the team. Donovan has thought about how Roberson would fit in with the current Thunder rotation but, he's not planning for that. Donovan says Roberson is not in excellent game shape, but he has been conditioning.
The primary concern for Roberson is the fact that he hasn't had any basketball contact in two years. "He hasn't had to go over screens; he hasn't had to go in a block out, he hasn't had to drive the ball against contact." Donovan won't take away the hope that Roberson has to get back to playing. But, it is late in the season, and Donovan will have to decide if Roberson can help the team.
The Thunder goes for a series sweep of the Sacramento Kings tonight at the Peake. Oklahoma City needed Chris Paul's defensive prowess to keep the Bulls from overcoming a 24 point deficit on Tuesday to secure a 124-122 victory.
The Kings are winners of three consecutive games. Sacramento had three bench players score in double digits with Kent Bazemore leading the way with 24 points in 31 minutes during a 112-94 smacking of Golden State.
Tonight is the only trip the Kings will make to the Peak, which is a good thing considering Sacramento is 2-0 in their last two flights to Oklahoma City.
The last time the Kings were in town, former Sooner Buddy Hield scorched Billy Donovan's crew for 34 points in 35 minutes. I asked Donovan why Heild has been so good against the Thunder. "He can get his shot on his own; he can make difficult shots, he's obviously an elite offensive player."
If you have YouTube TV, you could be missing future Thunder games. As of Saturday, the streaming service is scheduled to quit carrying Fox Sports Regional channels.
YouTube is in dispute with Sinclar, the parent company of Fox Sports Regional. A similar situation happened with Dish and Sling last year and still isn't resolved. If you steam Hulu and AT&T TV Now, could be your only options to see the Thunder.
Thunder/Kings tonight on Fox Sports TV.
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