Thunder Only Happens in San Antonio

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The Thunder flipped the script, and now they’re heading to the Western Conference finals. 

Kevin Durant scored 37 points, Russell Westbrook added 28, and Oklahoma City beat San Antonio 113-99 on Thursday night to win the Western Conference semifinal series 4-2.

Oklahoma City lost 124-92 in Game 1, but first-year coach Billy Donovan led the Thunder to victory in four of the next five. Oklahoma City controlled Game 6, leading by as many as 28 points.

Westbrook said the Thunder never lost confidence.

“We had that game, and we left it behind us,” he said. “We came out after that and had a different mindset. We knew what we had to do to win the series. They’re a great team. They’ve been winning for 10-plus years, same pace. I’m just proud of our guys.”

Steven Adams had 15 points and 11 rebounds, and Andre Roberson added 14 points for the Thunder. Oklahoma City now will face defending NBA champion Golden State, starting Monday in Oakland, California.

“Golden State’s a great team,” Donovan said. “It will be a great challenge. We’ve got a little bit of time to prepare before we play, but right now, for us, it’s just to enjoy the opportunity to move on, get a chance to continue to play and get as prepared as we can going into Game 1.”

The Spurs were trying to extend the winningest season in franchise history after going 67-15. The 40-year-old Duncan struggled for much of the series before scoring 19 points as San Antonio tried to fight back in the fourth quarter.

Duncan didn’t clear anything up about his future after the game. He has a player option for next season.

“I’ll get to that after I get out of here and figure life out,” he said.

Kawhi Leonard scored 22 points and LaMarcus Aldridge added 18 for the Spurs. San Antonio lost just once at home during the regular season, but the Thunder beat the Spurs twice in San Antonio during the series.

In Game 6, Oklahoma City opened up a 47-29 lead late in the second quarter after a three-pointer by Westbrook that brought a roar from the crowd. Durant’s 3-pointer with 2.3 seconds left in the half pushed the lead to 55-31 at the break. Durant scored 18 points in the first half and Westbrook added 13.

The Thunder looked like the Spurs often do in the first half, running an efficient offense while committing just three turnovers.

It was a season-low point total for the Spurs in a first half. San Antonio shot 31.1 percent from the field before the break and missed all nine of its 3-pointers.

“I thought they did a great job of coming out and punching us in the stomach,” Leonard said. “But we got some open looks that didn’t go down, turned over the ball a couple of times, and that’s all on me.”

Oklahoma City kept the pressure on and led 91-65 at the end of the third quarter.

The veteran Spurs had one last surge left and got as close as 11, but a three-pointer by Westbrook, then a driving layup by Westbrook, killed San Antonio’s momentum for good.

“We always give credit to our opponents, and obviously, OKC turned it up there and turned our execution into forced bad shots, and then we kind of trickled down from there and it snowballed,” Duncan said. “We put ourselves in the hole. We actually played somewhat solid for the second half but it was too little, too late.”

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Durant Ready to Thunder

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Oklahoma City Thunder meet the Philadelphia 76ers in Manchester on Tuesday as part of NBA plans to take basketball to a global audience.

The NBA Global Games schedule features eight teams playing in six countries in the 2013-14 pre-season.

And the exhibition match at Manchester Arena will see players put on a show, according to Thunder's Kevin Durant.

"Hopefully they'll enjoy it and more people [will] start going to matches over here," he added.

Durant is one of the highest-paid sports people in the world but says he is "anonymous" in the UK.

However the 25-year-old USA international told BBC Sport the players were relishing travelling the world and taking their game to potentially new audiences.

"It's going to be hard to convert them from football fans to basketball fans," said Durant, whose team reached the NBA Finals in 2012, where they lost to the Miami Heat.

"But we've just got to go out there and be ourselves.

"As players we've just got to play our hardest and give the people a show.

"We are excited to be travelling to different countries and playing this game that we love. A lot of guys didn't think we'd be travelling all round the world for basketball, so it's worth it."

Having been part of the USA side which won their 14th Olympic basketball gold medal at the London 2012 Olympics, this is Durant's second visit to the UK. He also played for USA in a 118-78 win over GB's Olympic team in a friendly in Manchester in July 2012.

The Oklahoma forward says he returns with fond memories of winning gold last year.

"It is great to come back here," added Durant. "Last summer was really cool just to be amongst so many great basketball fans and people who enjoy watching it.

"It was fun to be a part of the Olympics here and playing for your country, you can't beat that. I have some great memories of the UK and things that will stick with me forever."

KD factfile 

Age: 25

Height: 6ft 9in (2.06m)

Weight: 240lb (17st 2lb /109kg)

NBA debut: 2007

Career average: 26.3 points per game

International career:

2010 World Championship gold medal (named tournament MVP)

2012 Olympic gold medal

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Dozen Straight Wins for OKC

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Oklahoma City's biggest stars displayed a unique version of balanced scoring against Atlanta: Russell Westbrook led the Thunder in the first half and Kevin Durant dominated the Hawks over the final two quarters.

Durant set a season high with 41 points, and Oklahoma City held off Atlanta 100-92 on Wednesday night for its 12th straight win.

Westbrook had 27 points -- 21 in the first half -- and 11 assists. Durant scored 28 points in the second half, including 18 in the fourth, and also had 13 rebounds.

No other Oklahoma City player scored in double figures.

"There's going to be nights where one has the hot hand and there's going to be other nights the other does," Thunder coach Scott Brooks said.

Both top scorers were hot against the Hawks. Durant made 6-of-9 shots in the final period, including three 3-pointers, and the Hawks couldn't find a way to slow the 6-foot-9 forward.

"We double-teamed him, we zoned him," Hawks coach Larry Drew said. "He still made shots. You can't stop him when he's hot like that."

Durant said Westbrook's strong first half helped open more opportunities for him after the break.

"He was aggressive and they were giving him jump shots," Durant said. "We just played off of that. He was very good and it opened up for me in the second half."

Durant acknowledged he launched some "questionable" shots. "But my teammates wanted me to do it," he said.

Jeff Teague led Atlanta with 19 points, Josh Smith had 17 points and 12 rebounds, and Al Horford and Lou Williams scored 13 apiece.

Durant was especially strong after Atlanta cut a 16-point deficit midway through the third quarter to 73-69.

Durant slowed Atlanta's comeback attempt when he dominated a sequence on both ends of the floor, blocking a shot by Smith before throwing down a jam. Smith drew a foul and Durant sank the free throw to push the lead to 85-75.

With about 3 minutes remaining, Durant hit a fallaway jumper. Less than a minute late, he made a spin move and then sank a 3-pointer over the 6-foot-7 Kyle Korver, who was left shaking his head.

"He's just one of those players," Korver said. "People don't understand how tall he is and how long his arms are."

The fallaway jumper and spinning 3-pointer would have been unlikely attempts for most players.

"That's him, though," Horford said. "He can do it. He's that good of a player, unfortunately for us."

Oklahoma City (21-4) improved the NBA's best record and atoned for a 104-95 home loss to the Hawks on Nov. 4. That loss left Oklahoma City 1-2; it is 20-2 since then and hasn't lost since Nov. 23 at Boston.

The 12 straight wins match the longest streak for the franchise since 1996, when it had a 14-game winning streak as the Seattle SuperSonics.

The Hawks took their last lead at 19-17 on a follow shot by Anthony Morrow. The Thunder then went ahead with a 10-1 run that overlapped the end of the first period and the start of the second. Martin opened and closed the run with jumpers.

Oklahoma City stretched the lead to 17 on four straight free throws by Durant following fouls by Morrow late in the half.

"You can't have a second quarter like we did," Horford said. "We had a lapse and they took a big lead. You can't do that against a team like them."

The Thunder led 68-52 midway through the third quarter, but a technical foul against Smith with 3:12 remaining in the period seemed to spark the Hawks.

Smith sank a 3-pointer as part of Atlanta's 8-0 run to close the period. Anthony Tolliver scored the first three points of the fourth quarter on a free throw and jam to cut the Thunder's lead to 73-69.

Westbrook ended Atlanta's 11-0 run with a jam following an offensive rebound by Nick Collison.

Serge Ibaka had 4 points and 14 rebounds for the Thunder.

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Thunder Warrior Win all About Durant

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Three-time NBA scoring champion Kevin Durant is determined to become known as more than a one-dimensional player.

He took a big step in that direction Sunday night as he notched his first career triple-double with 25 points, 13 rebounds and a career-high 10 assists, and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Golden State Warriors 119-109.

"I really didn't care, to be honest. If it came, then that's cool. If it didn't, then just keep playing," Durant said. "It feels good to get one. Now, I guess I've got a little monkey off my back. I can just go out there and play."

Durant has endured some growing pains this season trying to improve his floor game, with a bump in his assist numbers coinciding with an increase in his turnovers, too. He came in averaging four turnovers per game, the fourth-worst in the league.

But after ending up with more turnovers than assists in each of his first five NBA seasons, Durant is starting to reverse that trend this season. He's also grabbing about two more rebounds per game than any other time in his career.

"There's going to be nights where I have to score 30. There's going to be nights where I have to have seven or eight assists," Durant said. "So, I'm just trying to be an all-around player and just continue to help my team win."

Durant turned it over just twice in this one and pumped his right fist after he set up Kevin Martin's 3-pointer with 4:57 to play for his 10th assist. The play also helped the Thunder hold on after Golden State cut a 21-point deficit to seven in the fourth quarter.

Russell Westbrook scored 30 points and Martin had 23 off the bench as Oklahoma City had a season-high 31 assists for the second straight game and a season high in points. Durant, Westbrook and Martin also combined for 22 assists.

Stephen Curry led the Warriors with 22 points, and David Lee chipped in 19 points and 10 rebounds.

"Durant's a pretty good passer to begin with and we decided we were going to load up a lot on him and Russell when they got the ball and make other guys beat us," Lee said. "The problem with loading up sometimes on him is that he's 6-11 and can see over it and make passes.

"I always considered him a pretty unselfish player, considering the amount of talent he has to score the basketball. I don't think that you would call him a selfish scorer by any means."

It looked for a while as though Durant might be stuck on nine assists -- matching his previous career best from a double-overtime game against Denver during his rookie season in Seattle.

Durant and Westbrook teamed up to score eight straight points late in the third quarter, with Westbrook's 3-pointer from the top of the key extending Oklahoma City's lead to 86-67. Durant had a chance to pick up his 10th assist before the end of the third period, but instead kept the ball on a fast break and wound up with a three-point play that put the Thunder ahead 94-73.

He started the fourth quarter on the bench, but got a chance to come back in when Oklahoma City's reserves let the lead start slipping away.

Coach Scott Brooks put his All-Stars back in with 8:18 left, after Curry's 3-pointer drew Golden State to 101-88. Nick Collison used a nifty touch pass off an offensive rebound to set up Serge Ibaka's layup, and Durant assisted on Martin's 3 on the next trip as Oklahoma City stemmed the tide.

"Some guys can just pass, some guys can just shoot, some guys can just rebound. Obviously, with Kevin, he can do many things on the floor and we always have to challenge him because we don't know how good he will end up being," Brooks said.

Brooks said he doesn't want Durant to become a passer, but rather a play-maker.

"Every year for the next 100 years, he's going to be an MVP-type calibre player, and this is what MVP players do," Brooks said. "They make your team better, you win games and you do everything. You fill the stat sheet.

"You don't want to be a guy that just scores 35 and the team doesn't have success."

Carl Landry had 14 points and Jarrett Jack scored 12 for Golden State, which lost despite shooting 52 percent from the field. Warriors reserve Richard Jefferson pulled himself out of the game late in the first quarter after straining his right calf, and he did not return.

The Warriors wiped away an early seven-point deficit to go up 32-31 in the second quarter but Eric Maynor answered with a 3-pointer to start a 19-6 response that put Oklahoma City ahead to stay.

"They're the reigning Western Conference champions playing at home, playing well. You want to compete and find a way to beat them and in the end they shoot the ball 13-for-20 from 3. You give up 119 points," Curry said. "That's not going to cut it."

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Thunder Beat the Bulls

The NBA scoring champion had eight of his 24 points in the final period, and the Thunder beat the Bulls 97-91 on Thursday night thanks to Kevin Durant.

"It was one of those games you have to grind out," Durant said. "We've been through so many. We know what it takes."

Durant iced the game with an off-balance jumper off one foot with 35.1 seconds to play. He added another jumper a few seconds later and then finished his game-ending spree with a couple of free throws.

Oklahoma City outscored Chicago 31-19 in the fourth quarter, overcoming a six-point deficit.

"That's winning time, fourth quarter," Durant said. "In the fourth quarter, we really turned it up a lot. But if you want to be a really good team, you've got to do that from the beginning of the game."

Serge Ibaka scored 15 of his 21 points in the first half and had a team-high nine rebounds for the Thunder, who beat the Bulls for the third time in their past four games at Chicago.Russell Westbrook finished with 16 points and 12 assists.

"I told (Durant) be aggressive, just be aggressive, especially in the fourth quarter," Westbrook said. "It was his time. Everybody knows that's his time. He took his time and got the shots he needed."

Luol Deng led the Bulls with 27 points, and Richard Hamilton added 20 points and eight rebounds. Joakim Noah had nine points, 13 rebounds and a team-high six assists.

"Overall, I thought we played hard but we turned the ball over a lot," Noah said. "(Durant) hit some really tough shots."

Hamilton made a tying jumper with 2:52 to play, but then Durant took over, making a floater from the top of the key over Deng to keep the Bulls at bay.

"I was on him," Deng said. "He's 6-9 (6-foot-9). A great player. Really tough shot."

While Durant came up with some clutch baskets at one end, the Bulls had no one to answer with star point guard Derrick Rose sidelined with a knee injury that will keep him out of action into the new year.

"Derrick Rose is an unbelievable player, don't get me wrong. He is Chicago," Durant said. "But those guys are great complements to him. Once one of your best players is out, guys got to step up, and that's what they've been doing ever since he's been out."

The teams combined for 43 turnovers. The 21 miscues by the Bulls were a hot topic after the game.

"We have to sustain our defense and take care of the ball," Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said. "We did not sustain our effort and we need to have low turnovers."

Durant was passive for much of the game and didn't attempt a free throw until the closing seconds. He has had just one game without a free throw attempt since the start of the 2010-11 season.

"I like Kevin to be a playmaker," Thunder coach Scott Brooks said. "That is what separates great players from good ones. The 19 shots like tonight are where I like him to be."

The Thunder put together a 7-0 run to grab the lead with 8:34 to play. Nick Collison capped the surge with a layup off a pass from Eric Maynor.

Deng snapped the run with his third 3-pointer of the game. Deng entered the contest 1-for-11 from behind the arc. Chicago ranked last in the league in 3-point makes, attempts and percentage, but hit a season-high five 3s in the game.

"Lu provides whatever you need," Thibodeau said. "If you need him to score more, he can do that."

The Thunder responded a six-point run, taking a five-point lead after Ibaka blocked a Deng shot from behind, igniting a fast break and Thabo Sefolosha's layup.

"They are hard to guard," Thibodeau said. "They made some tough plays and closed it out."

Kirk Hinrich scored seven points to lead a third-quarter charge for the Bulls, hitting his second 3-pointer of the game and reaching double figures in scoring for the first time this season. Chicago led 72-66 entering the final period.

The Bulls jumped to an early eight-point lead, but the Thunder closed the opening period with a 9-2 run to tie the game. Durant scored the last six points of the quarter on two dunks and a jump shot.

Ibaka scored 11 points on 5-for-9 shooting in the opening quarter and increased that to 15 by the half, when the Thunder led 48-47.

Jimmy Butler helped Chicago stay close the second quarter, putting up six points, three rebounds and three assists in the period, while playing solid defense on fellow reserve Kevin Martin, who scored 15 points for the Thunder.

Hinrich finished with 12 points.

Deng sprained his left thumb during the fourth quarter after it appeared he got hit by Ibaka. He was icing the thumb after the game.

"I jammed my thumb," Deng said. "Just got to ice it, treat it, I have a jammed thumb."

Deng injured his left wrist last season, tearing a ligament. He decided to put off surgery on the injury and has noted several times over the past few months that he might not have to have surgery on the wrist at all depending on how it responds to treatment.

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King James Finally Wins NBA Crown

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LeBron James made the right call coming to Miami after he finally became an NBA champion.

James had 26 points, 11 rebounds and 13 assists, and got the kind of help that was worth leaving home for, leading the Heat in a 121-106 rout of the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday night to win the NBA Finals in five games.

"It means everything," James said moments after the win. "I made a difficult decision to leave Cleveland but I understood what my future was about ... I knew we had a bright future (in Miami). This is a dream come true for me. This is definitely when it pays off."

James added the finals MVP Honour to his regular-season award, calling it "the happiest day of my life" during the award ceremony as he stood atop the championship podium with his teammates.

He left the game along with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh for good with 3:01 remaining for a round of hugs and the start for a celebration he's been waiting for since arriving in the NBA out of high school as the No. 1 pick of the 2003 draft. James hopped up and down in the final minutes, shared a long hug with opponent Kevin Durant, and then smiled as he watched the confetti rain down from the rafters.

"It's about damn time. It's about damn time," James said.

The Heat took control in the second quarter, briefly lost it and blew the game open again in the third behind their role players, James content to pass to wide-open 3-point shooters while the Thunder focused all their attention on him.

The disappointment of losing to Dallas in six games a year ago vanished in a blowout of the demoralised Thunder, who got 32 points and 11 rebounds from Durant.

Bosh and Wade, the other members of the Big Three who sat alongside James as he promised titles at his Miami welcoming party two summers ago, both had strong games. Bosh, who broke down in tears as the Heat left their own court after losing Game 6 last year, finished with 24 points and Wade scored 20. The Heat also got a huge boost from Mike Miller, who made seven 3-pointers and scored 23 points.

That all made it easier for James, the most heavily scrutinised player in the league since his departure from Cleveland, when he announced he was "taking his talents to South Beach" on a TV special called "The Decision" that was criticised everywhere from talk shows and water coolers straight to the commissioner's office. James has said he wishes he handled things differently, but few who watched the Cavaliers fail to assemble championship talent around him could have argued with his desire to depart.

He found in Miami a team where he never had to do it alone, though he reminded everyone during this sensational postseason run that he still could when necessary. He got support whenever he needed it in this series, from Shane Battier's 17 points in Game 2 to Mario Chalmers' 25 in Game 4.

In the clincher it was Miller, banged-up from so many injuries that he limped from the bench to scorer's table when he checked in. He made his fourth 3-pointer of the half right before James' fast-break basket capped a 15-2 run that extended Miami's lead to 53-36 with 4:42 remaining in the first half.

The Thunder were making a remarkably early trip to the finals just three years after starting 3-29. With Durant, Russell Westbrook, Serge Ibaka and James Harden all 23 or younger, the Thunder have the pieces in place for a lengthy stay atop the Western Conference.

But their inexperience showed in this series, a few questionable decisions, possessions and outright mistakes costing them in their franchise's first finals appearance since Seattle lost to Chicago in 1996. Westbrook scored 19 but made only four of his 20 shots, unable to come up with anything close to his 43-point outing in Game 4, and Harden finished a miserable series with 19.

Nothing they did could have stopped James, anyway.

Appearing fully over the leg cramps that forced him to sit out the end of Game 4, he was dominant again, a combination of strength and speed that is practically unmatched in the game and rarely seen in its history.

Wade skipped to each side of the court before the opening tip with arms up to pump up the fans, then James showed them nothing wrong with his legs, throwing down an emphatic fast-break dunk to open the scoring. He made consecutive baskets while being fouled, showing no expression after the second, as if he'd hardly even known he was hit. Drawing so much attention from the Thunder, he started finding his wide-open shooters, and the Heat built a nine-point lead before going to the second up 31-26.

Oklahoma City got back within five early in the third before consecutive 3-pointers by Chalmers and Battier triggered a 27-7 burst that made it 88-63 on another 3-pointer by Miller. James didn't even score in the run until it was almost over, hitting a pair of free throws after he was flagrantly fouled by Derek Fisher while powering toward the basket.

Gone was the tentative player who was mocked for shrinking on the big stage last year, too willing to defer to others who didn't possess half his talents. This time, he was at peace off the court and on attack on it, vowing to have no regrets and playing in such a way they wouldn't be necessary.

James promised multiple titles at his welcoming party, and the Heat have three pieces to build around. Pat Riley will have to fill some holes on the roster, but will likely find some players eager to come to Miami for the good weather and great chance to win.

Miller was one of them last year, and though injuries have ruined his effectiveness, his shooting turned this into the only blowout of the series after Miami had outscored Oklahoma City by just 389-384 over the first four games.

Miami Creating Heat for Thunder

Oklahoma delivered a performance from Russell Westbrook and ran out to a huge early lead. But somehow, it still wasn't enough for the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Their hopes in these NBA Finals took a massive hit on Tuesday night, even after getting 43 points from Westbrook, 28 more from Kevin Durant and staking itself to a 17-point lead by the time the first quarter was over.

But now Oklahoma City is now officially on the brink. 

LeBron James finished with 26 points, 12 assists and nine rebounds, Dwyane Wade and Mario Chalmers each scored 25 points and the Miami Heat beat the Thunder 104-98 in Game 4 to take a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven title series.

"I can guarantee this," Thunder coach Scott Brooks said. "We have fight in us."

Game 5 is in Miami on Thursday night, where James and the Heat can capture the NBA title that they were assembled to get two years ago.

History says the Thunder are now in deep, deep trouble. No team in NBA history has rallied from a 3-1 deficit in the finals. No team has even forced a Game 7 when faced with that scenario.

Westbrook took 32 shots, as many as James and Chris Bosh tried combined. He made 20 -- half of Oklahoma City's field goals on the night -- and finished with seven rebounds and five assists as well. For a guard who struggled so much so many times against Miami, it was a breakout night that the Thunder desperately needed.

"I thought Russell was terrific tonight," Brooks said. "The guy played relentless. He was aggressive. He kept us in this game and he gave us a chance to win."

Said Heat coach Erik Spoelstra: "He was tremendous tonight."

What they also needed was to take advantage of that tremendous night -- and that didn't happen, largely because Miami made sure Oklahoma City only had two options by night's end.

Durant's mother grabbed him by both arms as he walked off the floor, hugging him and then using her right hand to turn his face back toward her, trying her best to console the scoring champion.

For the final 16-plus minutes, the Thunder were reduced to playing 2-on-5 basketball. Serge Ibaka made a jumper with 4:46 left in the third quarter, cutting Miami's lead to 68-66.

After that, it was either all Westbrook or all Durant, all the time.

And they were superb, again, just not superb enough to take down Miami. After that Ibaka jumper, no other Thunder player besides the team's two superstars scored a point.

"It's not disappointing. It's just, it happens that way," Brooks said. "Russell had a great game. We were going. We were going with him. He was making terrific plays at the basket. He was attacking, he was getting into the teeth of their defense and made basketball plays."

James Harden struggled yet again, shooting 2 for 10 for the second straight game, though he did finish with 10 rebounds. Nick Collison scored six points, but the other three Oklahoma City starters -- Ibaka, Kendrick Perkins and Thabo Sefolosha -- combined for a mere 13 on 6-for-16 shooting.

Westbrook was amazing. Durant was great. Everyone else was nearly nonexistent.

And if the Thunder don't figure out a way to do something no NBA team has ever done throughout the rest of this series, James will finally get that ring he's spent nine seasons chasing.