The Oklahoma City Thunder have been mocked for a slow start that has the team go under .500 over the first 17 games of their regular season schedule. They, however, silenced their critics on Wednesday, when the Thunder downed the defending NBA champions, the Golden State Warriors in a convincing 108-91 victory at home.
That win should be a big boost to the Thunder’s morale, as they look to start turning things around while the season is still in its early goings. While the Thunder have been losing a number of games, their underperformance couldn’t be blamed on their defense.
Oklahoma City is one of the only four teams in the NBA today that allow fewer than 100 points per game. They are surrendering just 98.1 points per contest to be exact, which is good for third best in the league.
All-Star forward Paul George is easily one of the top reasons why Oklahoma City is succeeding in bottling its opponents’ offenses, though the 27-year-old swingman thinks that he’s an underrated defender, per Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated.
“I don’t think I get the respect. I’ve done it at a high level in Indiana. But that’s an award the media gets to vote for and chooses. I don’t think I was on that national level in terms of my defense.”
Interestingly, George feels that way even though he’s been named to three All-Defensive Teams before.
Paul George, above anything else in basketball observers’ perspectives, is a dangerous scoring threat, who could find ways to drain shots in a variety of manner, so it’s understandable for people to notice his offensive prowess over other areas where he’s good at – like defense.
Regardless of the level of respect he’s getting, the four-time All-Star remains one of the best two-way players in the league. On the season, George is averaging 21.8 points, 6.2 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and 2.6 steals per game.
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