OKC Thunder's Defense Impacts Opinions of Star Player in Consecutive Years

On Saturday, the Oklahoma City Thunder ended the Memphis Grizzlies' season.

Memphis, who managed to put up a strong fight in the final two games of the series despite being outscored by 70 in the first two games, needed big performances from the team's stars to take a game away from the Thunder.

After an injury sidelined Ja Morant for the second half of Game 3 and all of Game 4, the team's other stars needed to show up to challenge OKC. Scotty Pippen Jr. had a strong showing for Memphis in addition to a few solid moments from Zach Edey, but Jaren Jackson Jr. and Desmond Bane, who are billed as Morant's co-stars, didn't have strong showings.

Jackson had a strong showing on offense in Game 2, but struggled for much of the series aside from a 26-point performance in a 19-point loss. In the series opener, Jackson went 2-for-13 from the field, scoring four points and committing three turnovers

In Game 3, Jackson got off to a hot start before going ice cold in the second half. The 25-year-old still managed to finish the contest with 22 points, but committed multiple costly turnovers down the stretch.

Game 4 was another forgettable performance from Jackson, who went 3-for-12 from the field to finish with 12 points and five turnovers.

After a lackluster showing against Oklahoma City, national media members have started to question their previous opinions of the 2023 Defensive Player of the Year and two-time All-Star.

"I think we were all pretty high on Jaren Jackson coming into this postseason," Verrier said. "Really kind of recalibrated, especailly from my perspective, where his ceiling might (be). Wasn't the best performance with him kind of in the spotlight."

This isn't the first time Oklahoma City's defense has shut down a former star in the postseason. Last year, former All-Star Brandon Ingram had a tough time against Lu Dort and the Thunder, breifly impacting the national opinion of the former All-Star and Pelicans' standout.

Lu Dort had Brandon Ingram in hell.
The 'Dorture Chamber'. pic.twitter.com/gynqH9Exkg
— No Dunks (@NoDunksInc) April 30, 2024

At the trade deadline, New Orleans shipped Ingram to Toronto in a trade package that returned Bruce Brown and other assets. Ingram had a solid season when he was on the court in 2024-25, but struggled against Dort and company in the playoffs last year.

Ingram had decent outings in the middle two games of the series, but went 5-of-17 in Game 1, and 2-of-14 in Game 4 while the Thunder easily won all four games to move to the second round.

This year, OKC's wins didn't come as easy, but the team is still heading into the second round with at least a week of rest. In the Western Conference Semifinals, the Thunder's defense will need to have another strong performance as Oklahoma City will meet either the LA Clippers or Denver Nuggets.

Want to join the discussion? Like Thunder on SI on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest Thunder news. You can also meet the team behind the coverage.