OKC Thunder's 3-Point Defense Troublesome as Postseason Looms

At this point in the season, it's admittedly hard to judge Oklahoma City for any of its games over the final stretch. This team is 64-14, coming off a massive winning streak, and a full 13.0 game lead on the rest of the Western Conference. The team has referenced multiple times this week that it can get pretty monotonous at this point in the season with such a big lead.

Taking the Thunder's record and dominance out of the equation, though, and simply putting a magnifying glass on the last week of basketball, it has certainly been concerning. It's all about timing in the NBA, when team's hit their stride and when team's start to cool off. The worst thing that could possibly happen for this dominant Thunder team is they fizzle out too early.

It's clear that Oklahoma City has lacked effort and intensity, two things that will certainly return with playoff basketball. The concerning part, though, is that during Oklahoma City's surprising two-game skid, the exact same issues that the Thunder had in the playoffs a season ago are beginning to resurface.

In blowout losses to Houston and Los Angeles, Oklahoma City got severely out rebounded and dominated in the paint. Both the Rockets and the Lakers torched the Thunder from 3-point range, just like the Mavericks did a season ago. And lastly, Oklahoma City's role players were simply nowhere to be found.

Against Houston, Cason Wallace, Alex Caruso, and Lu Dort combined to shoot 2-for-17. Oklahoma City gave up a combined 29 rebounds to Steven Adams and Jabari Smith Jr. as Houston imposed its will. Against the Lakers, Oklahoma City let up wide open triple after wide open triple. Los Angeles shot 22-of-40 from 3-point range, while the Thunder's supporting cast fell short once again.

There's no real fix for the last two outings. Oklahoma City will have to find that motivation and drive again, and they will in the playoffs. But the shot variation is sometimes uncontrollable. Oklahoma City has been a terrific defensive team all season long, and their role players have been the NBA's best. The Thunder will have to trust what has gotten them there and hope for the best.

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