Kevin Durant had 28 points on 11-22 shooting as the electric-again Oklahoma City Thunder took a game from the currently dilapidated Dallas Mavericks 99-95 on Thursday. Dirk Nowitzki missed his sixth consecutive game with a knee sprain. His replacement at power forward, Shawn Marion, played excellent ball against the Thunder with 25 points on 12-17 shooting. But the depth issues stemming from Marion's ascension and Caron Butler's absence led to Brian Cardinal, age 33, getting 16 minutes.
Thunder Vs. Mavericks: Kevin Durant Leads OKC Over Dallas, With Dirk Nowitzki Still Out
Even the Mavericks, with excellent interior defense and a shotmaker like Jason Terry, can't survive 16 minutes of Brian Cardinal against good (maybe great) teams like the Thunder. That is to say the Mavericks can't survive without Dirk, which should (and could) go without saying.
That said, Dallas did keep it close. Both Russell Westbrook and Jeff Green had off-nights; Westbrook seemed to be poor fortune while Green was legitimately limited by Marion, once one of the league's very best defenders. Green ended up shooting 7-17, and Westbrook went 5-16.
But DeShawn Stevenson, Dallas' normal three-and-D two-guard who has been asked to play small forward since Butler went down -- DeShawn can't handle Durant. No one can really "handle" Durant, but DeShawn Stevenson can really not handle Durant.
Serge Ibaka went 6-6 from the floor, scoring 13 points to go with eight rebounds before fouling out 24 minutes in. Three of the buckets were on dunks, which is good considering Ibaka will be in the dunk contest. One was a putback. It was pretty sweet.
The Mavericks still have the seasonal tiebreaker over the Thunder, despite the loss. That could matter as the teams jockey for position atop the West. Dallas is currently No. 2 in the conference, three games ahead of the No. 5 Thunder.
Mavs Moneyball credits OKC’s excellent work on the offensive glass; check out Welcome to Loud City for Thunder analysis.
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