When it comes to important players on the Oklahoma City Thunder, reigning NBA Most Valuable Player Russell Westbrook is obviously still at the top. However, Andre Roberson could have a case for being right behind Russ.
Roberson, while much-maligned as an offensive player, is brilliant defensively and has been a major factor in the Thunder starting lineup’s success this season. That’s been all the more evident whenever he’s been off the court and Alex Abrines has taken his place.
Per Fred Katz of the Norman Transcript:
Thunder starters are outscoring opponents by a fantastic 11.3 points per 100 possessions this year. The lineup w/ 4 starters & Abrines in place of Roberson is GETTING OUTSCORED by 7.7 points per 100. And it's all because of the defensive hit. Those are OKC's 2 most played lineups
Roberson has missed three games this season; the Thunder lost twice and gave up 116 points at home in both of those losses. It’s clear by the numbers just how big of an impact his presence or absence on the Thunder team has been, especially on the defensive end.
However, it’s also indicative of the Thunder’s lack of depth that they don’t have anyone much better than Abrines to fill in for Roberson. If the Thunder fail to find anyone who can come in and play significant minutes apart from their starters, they could be in big trouble if Roberson were to go down for a significant stretch of time.
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