NBA scores 2017: Kevin Durant scores 40 as Warriors defeat Thunder

Kevin Durant scored a season high 40-points

Jan 19, 2017, 1:00 PM UTC

Oklahoma City Thunder v Golden State Warriors

Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

In their second meeting of the season between former teammates Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant, Durant stole the show. Durant scored a season high 40 points while only taking 16 shots on the night. He actually finished 13-of-16 from the field, meaning he scored 40 points and only missed three shots all night. Yes, he only missed three shots all night! Durant also grabbed 12 rebounds and dished out 4 assists on his way to leading the Warriors over the Thunder. Coincidentally, his second highest scoring total of the year, which was 39-points, also came against Oklahoma City.

Russell Westbrook finished the game with another triple-double, his 21st of the season, racking up 27 points, 15 rebounds, and 13 assists.

The game’s intensity went up a notch near the end of the first half when Zaza Pachulia gave a hard foul on Russell Westbrook. The Warriors had a foul to give and Pachulia used it in an interesting way, blocking Westbrook like a football player and even staring him down after the foul as Westbrook laid on the ground. Since the referees called it a Flagrant 1, OKC was able to tie the game at 56 going into the half with the foul shot and a following jumper from Enes Kanter.

The second half was all Golden State with some major help from Kevin Durant. The Warriors outscored the Thunder 37-22 in the third quarter. Through three quarters, the Warriors were a +24 with Kevin Durant on the court and -9 without him.

Now one game past the halfway point, the Warriors are 36-6. At this time in 2016 they were 38-4 and they were 36-6 in 2015, take from that what you will. The Warriors seem to be figuring out how to play with Kevin Durant just fine after also defeating the Cavaliers earlier in the week. Kevin Durant will return OKC for the first time since leaving for Golden State on February 11.

The Blazers aren’t showing anything like last year’s magic

Portland — picked by most people to finish in the bottom two or three in the Western Conference — was last season’s surprise team. They started the year sluggishly, sitting at 15-24 on Jan. 8, before rattling off a 29-14 record the rest of the way that earned them the No. 5 seed. They even won that first round playoff series against Los Angeles, albeit a Clippers squad that was ravaged with injury. There was hope Portland’s young players would improve this offseason, but at the very least, we expected more of the same.

The Blazers aren’t even in the playoffs now, falling a game behind Denver for the No. 8 seed which projects to be historically bad. While the 7th-seeded Thunder are currently in line for 47 wins this year, the Nuggets are projected to win just 35. A 12-game game between two seeds, especially at the bottom of the playoff picture, is almost unheard of.

As mentioned, it was January when the Blazers began their playoff push and looked like a totally different team. We’re past the midway point, and there aren’t any signs that it’s happening. Portland has lost three in a row, getting blown apart by the Hornets on Wednesday. In their last two games, the Blazers have lost by 42 combined points.

The West is still wide open for the Blazers to take it, and they may be buyers at the deadline looking for added defensive help at centers. Right now, though, there’s no sign of the team that shocked us all just a year ago.

Joel Embiid isn’t joking around anymore

6-2. That’s the Sixers’ record in January, a record that’s better than the Cavaliers, Rockets and Spurs. Ten straight. That’s how many times Embiid has scored at least 20 points, which is one shy of tying a Sixers’ record by someone you’ve probably heard of.

An easy schedule helped, but it’s more than that. On Wednesday, the 76ers beat the Raptors in a 94-89 affair, flaunting their surprisingly good defense while Embiid dropped 26 points. Only three other teammates broke double figures, but that’s alright — Embiid is proving to be more and more unstoppable. His combine lists him at 7’0, but he’s grown a couple inches since then. The height and the weight has turned him into a bully down low, and his ability to get to the free throw line has improved every month. (He shot 12-of-14 on Wednesday.)

Still six games out of the No. 8 seed, chalking up a playoff run for the young Sixers seems optimistic. But winning in any form is a grateful sight in Philadelphia, and why should the Sixers worry about the future while their present play is working so well?