Tag: 2020-21 preseason

Theo Maledon reacts to 20-point effort vs. Spurs: I know my strengths

The Thunder’s rookie point guard seems to be a cool customer.

Thunder rookie Theo Maledon may have impressed a number of people with his 20-point, five-rebound, two-assist effort in Saturday night’s 121-108 win over the San Antonio Spurs, but one person that was not impressed was Theo Maledon himself.

Despite scoring a team-high and pushing the Thunder to a 15-6 run that helped the team secure the victory, afterward, when asked whether he was impressed with what he did on the floor, the rookie had a surprisingly nonchalant response.

“Not really,” he said to reporters after the contest when asked whether he was surprised with how well he performed.

“I feel like I was confident, my teammates really told me to be confident, coach told me to be aggressive, so really I had a lot of confidence coming in.”

But while it is important to keep things in perspective, preseason games are usually about providing hope and giving young players an opportunity to at least show that they look like they belong on an NBA court.

Without question, Maledon passed that test, even if it was against the Spurs’ “B” team.

“I know my strengths and what I can bring to the team and I feel like that’s what I did today, tonight. For sure, I want to get better and better and that was a good start.”

Newly-installed Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault also provided his opinion, giving his rookie point guard high marks, though he himself wasn’t taking any credit for the standout performance.

“He did look comfortable,” the coach told reporters, according to DailyThunder’s Brandon Rahbar.

“We can’t take any credit for it. That’s his starting point. Like all young players, there will be good games and bad games. We won’t overreact to a good game. It’s just one game.”

While it may have only been one game, it’s fair to say — at least from the standpoint of Maledon — that it couldn’t have gone any better.

He’ll have an opportunity to do it again on Wednesday night when the Thunder play host to the Chicago Bulls in its second preseason contest.

Theo Maledon and Aleksej Pokusevski shine in 121-108 win over Spurs

Head coach Mark Daigneault will come away from Saturday night’s game feeling good about his two prized rookies.

On Saturday night, the Thunder may have been short on bodies, but they certainly weren’t short on effort.

In the club’s first preseason game, despite being without seven of its rotation players, led by rookie Theo Maledon, head coach Mark Daigneault’s team took a 121-108 victory from the San Antonio Spurs.

In the end, the victory won’t count for anything, but the Thunder will travel back to Oklahoma City feeling good about themselves after thoroughly outplaying the Spurs over the course of the game’s first three quarters. Leading by as many as 20 points in the game’s first half, the Spurs closed the gap in the fourth before a late 12-5 run helped the Thunder hold on for the win.

Isaiah Roby joins starting lineup for shorthanded Thunder vs. Spurs

The Thunder were without seven of its rotation members on Saturday night, which opened the door for Isaiah Roby.

In the grand scheme of things, it might not mean much, especially since many members of head coach Mark Daigneault’s rotation didn’t make the trip to San Antonio, however, the Oklahoma City Thunder rolled out a rather interesting starting lineup on Saturday night.

In its first preseason game, against the Spurs, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and George Hill were joined by Hamidou Diallo, Mike Muscala and Isaiah Roby as the game’s starters.

Of the five, Roby’s inclusion probably came as the biggest surprise. After making only three appearances with the Thunder last season, Roby played a grand total of just 11 minutes. His starting on Saturday night could be an indication that, now fully healthy, he will enjoy better placement among the team’s depth chart.

Lu Dort, Darius Bazley, Al Horford, Justin Jackson, Ty Jerome, Josh Hall and Darius Miller were not with the team, and it stands to reason that at least a few of the absentees will fight for significant rotation minutes, as well.

But at least for one night, as the club seeks to give him an opportunity to develop, Roby was included in the starting unit.

Although the 2020-21 season is expected to be a long one in Oklahoma City, head coach Daigneault’s rotations will be interesting to watch, including the extent to which Gilgeous-Alexander is included in potential three-guard lineups.

After making a name for himself during last season’s playoff matchup against the Houston Rockets, Dort will likely enjoy a bigger role, as well.

The Thunder’s second preseason game will take place on Dec. 16 when it plays host to former head coach Billy Donovan and his new team, the Chicago Bulls. That contest will tip-off at 7:00 p.m. CT.

Roby, we can assume, will be hoping to hold onto the minutes he inherited on Saturday night.