Tramel's ScissorTales: Play-in showed OKC Thunder how far it's come and how it has to go

The Thunder’s play-in tournament games were quite illuminating.

A 123-118 victory at New Orleans showed how far the Thunder has come.

A 120-95 loss at Minnesota showed how far the Thunder has to go.

The latter came Friday night, ending a promising season that is temporary disappointment for a franchise with a bright future. But the Timberwolves showed that OKC’s shortcomings are many.

“These two games have given us a really good range of all the possibilities of our team,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said. “The other night showed us a really really good version of ourselves and what we’re capable of.

“And understanding how to tap into that and how to get to that as a team. And tonight showed us that that’s not a given, and you have to go earn it and you’ve got to get back to zero and you’ve got build that again and go earn it again.”

More: Thunder report card: OKC has no answer for Karl-Anthony Towns in loss to Timberwolves

The Thunder was bullied by Minnesota. OKC is not nearly big enough inside to consistently match up with the likes of Karl-Anthony Towns and Rudy Gobert. Maybe that will change next season, when 7-foot Chet Holmgren should be healthy to commence with his rookie season.

Or maybe it won’t change. Maybe the Thunder needs even more bulk inside. To be determined.

The win at New Orleans set the NBA landscape ablaze with Thunder potential.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Josh Giddey combined for 63 points, each making 11 of 22 shots.

Then against Minnesota, they combined for 28 points on 7-of-32 shooting.

“Obviously, didn’t throw our best punch,” Daigneault said in Minneapolis. “The other night was pretty close to our best punch on both ends of the floor. Tonight, we had some regression, and this is all part of the deal.

“You see where your highs are, you see where your lows are, and you learn from each of them and you just keep using all those experiences to get better, and that’s what we’ve got to do.”

More: Tramel's ScissorTales: OKC Thunder guard Josh Giddey has plenty of magic to his game

With so many young standouts – and more on the way – optimism is natural. In the play-in games, the Thunder started two 24-year-olds (SGA and Luguentz Dort), two 20-year-olds (Giddey and Jaylin Williams), and Jalen Williams, who was 21 against the Pelicans and 22 against the Timberwolves (Friday was his birthday).

Plus Holmgren, who turns 21 in two weeks.

But don’t get the idea that NBA excellence will be quick. Daigneault just noted that the Thunder was “pretty close” to its best punch against New Orleans. And yet the short-handed Pelicans took OKC to the wire.

“The contrast of those two games as we head into the off-season is a good tangible for our team, and hopefully we can learn from as we carry forward,” Daigneault said.

Here’s what we learned from the Thunder season. This team will get better.

Here’s what we learned from the Thunder play-in games. This team better get better.

More: Chet Holmgren gives injury update at Thunder exit interview, says he's 'past the rehab part'

Quinn Ewers the man for Texas Longhorns

Quinn Ewers wasn’t exactly fabulous in his first season as the Texas quarterback, and then the Longhorns signed phenom recruit Arch Manning from a football royalty family.

But make no mistake. Ewers will be the Texas QB going into the 2023 season.

“I think it's pretty clear to say that Quinn's our starting quarterback and we feel very good about that,” UT coach Steve Sarkisian said Saturday after the Longhorn spring game.

Ewers completed 16 of 23 passes for 195 yards.

“I thought Quinn was really efficient today," Sarkisian said.

Ewers didn’t have a great first season at Texas, after transferring from Ohio State. He completed 58.1 percent of his passes for 15 touchdowns and six interceptions.

Manning, the nephew of both Eli and Peyton Manning, is a ballyhooed recruit from New Orleans who graduated high school early to enroll in January.

Manning obviously is a fan favorite, but he completed just five of 13 for 30 yards.

True freshmen quarterbacks rarely are ready. OU fans had best remember that with Jackson Arnold. The Sooners’ 2021 sensation, Caleb Williams, was the exception, not the rule.

In Austin on Saturday, Manning wasn’t even the second-best quarterback. Redshirt freshman Maalik Murphy, who missed the first five practices this spring, completed nine of 13 passes for 165 yards.

So it appears the 2023 Longhorns will be Ewers’ team.

"I wasn't where I wanted to be last year," Ewers said. "I feel like I let most of the fans down, and I don't want to be in that same situation this year."

Ewers said he’s gotten in better shape.

"Obviously, something had to change if I wanted to end up where I want to be in the future," he said. "I'm starting right here. I'm eating a lot better. I'm doing all the small things a lot harder, and I'm excited."

Who knows how Texas will end the 2023 season at quarterback. But we know how Texas will begin the season at the most important position.

More: How Kendal Daniels will play a huge role in Oklahoma State football's new 3-3-5 defense

Mailbag: 1950 Heisman voting 

Heisman Trophy history is quite important to OU fans, with their seven Heisman winners. Here’s an example:

Dean: “I am interested in your opinion about whether Claude Arnold should have been OU's first Heisman Trophy-winning QB. I have often wondered how Ohio State's Vic Janowicz or SMU's Kyle Rote's 1950 performance rated ahead of the Sooner QB.

“Claude Arnold passing: 57 of 114, 1048 yards, 9.2 yards per attempt, 13 TDs, one interception. Passer rating 163.1 Led country. Rushing: 77 for 291 yards, 3.8 ypa, four TDs.

“Vic Janowicz passing: 32 of 77, 561 yards, 7.3 ypa, 12 TD, seven interceptions. Rushing: 77 for 291 yards, 3.8 ypa, four TDs.

“Many voters probably submitted their votes prior to late-season losses to Illinois and Michigan, in hindsight making Janowicz' 1950 Heisman Trophy award suspicious.

“Kyle Rote passing: 490 yards. Rushing: 762 yards. TDs: 13. SMU collapsed from No. 1 in the country to tied for fifth in their conference, beating hapless conference foes Rice and Arkansas.

“Any help with understanding why Claude Arnold did not win the Heisman (or even rate ahead of OU's Leon Heath, eighth in the voting, would be greatly appreciated.”

More: 'Better late than never': Why OU's D.J. Graham switched from cornerback to wide receiver

Tramel: Claude Arnold was a good quarterback. A national-championship quarterback. But the problem is looking at 1950 through the prism of modern voting. Seventy-three years ago, voters didn't have nearly as much access to statistics or highlights or much of anything else.

They read game accounts (usually short) and magazine articles. We think of ESPN as hyping players, but it was much worse in the '40s and '50s. No television. No internet. No access to information. One story in the Saturday Evening Post could swing an entire Heisman election.

And Heismans back then often were won by previous year accomplishments. In other words, Billy Vessels got on the radar of people in 1950. Then he won in 1952.

One play could win a Heisman. Billy Cannons punt return in 1959 a prime example.

So who knows?

Another factor: team success was not as paramount as today. And maybe they had it right in the 1950s. Paul Hornung won the 1956 Heisman despite Notre Dame’s 2-8 record. And Paul Hornung was a heck of a player.

Also, statistics didn’t mean much in 1950. Particularly passing stats. They were considered a lark. Sort of like home runs in 1915, or 3-point shooting in 1985.

Here's another thing. In 1950, Arnold did not make all-Big Seven. Iowa State's Bill Weeks was the first-team quarterback.

All-conference voters had some of the same limitations as Heisman voters but were better-versed on their subject material. The question isn’t why Arnold didn’t win the Heisman. The question is Arnold didn’t make all-conference.

More: Why Oklahoma, Texas coming to SEC makes me think of Bobby Bowden | Toppmeyer

The List: Unforeseen in-state NBA careers 

Austin Reaves was one of the stars of the NBA Playoffs’ opening weekend. The second-year Laker had 23 points on 8-of-13 shooting in a 128-112 victory over Memphis.

Reaves, who played for two seasons at OU, made all five of his fourth-quarter shots, plus two foul shots, and scored 14 points. The Lakers outscored Memphis by 14 points in Reaves’ 8½ minutes on the court in the fourth quarter.

Reaves, who signed with the Lakers as an undrafted rookie in 2021, is building one of the more surprising NBA careers from OU or OSU players.

Here are the 12 best players from four-year Oklahoma schools who were drafted outside the top 30, which is the current first round:

1. John Starks, OSU: Undrafted, but one of the great meteoric rises in sports. From stocking groceries to junior college to eventually OSU, Starks became a New York Knickerbockers icon. He played 886 NBA games, with 420 starts, and averaged 12.5 points a game.

2. Garfield Heard, OU: The 40^th pick in the 1970 NBA Draft, by Seattle, Heard was a power forward at OU who went on to play 787 NBA games, averaging 8.7 points and 7.5 rebounds.

3. Clifford Ray, OU: The 40^th pick in the 1971 NBA Draft, Ray was a defensive-minded center at OU who went on to play 784 NBA games, averaging 7.4 points and 8.9 rebounds.

4. Allen Leavell, Oklahoma City: Drafted 104^th overall, by the Rockets, in 1977, the 6-foot-1 point guard played 700 games and made 244 starts. Leavell averaged 9.5 points and 4.8 assists.

5. Richard Dumas, OSU: The 46^th pick in 1991, by the Suns, Dumas played only 102 NBA games, due to substance-abuse issues. But he was sensational in his rookie season, 1992-93, averaging 15.8 points a game. His career average was 10.6.

6. Alvin Scott, Oral Roberts: A part of ORU’s big-time talent wave in the 1970s, Scott was the 136^th overall pick in 1977, of the Suns. The 6-foot-7 forward played 627 games, averaging 4.9 points and 3.2 rebounds.

7. Eduardo Najera, OU: The 38^th overall in the 2000 draft, by Houston, Najera’s rugged, versatile game translated well to the NBA. He played in 619 games, made 85 starts and averaged 4.9 points and 3.7 rebounds.

8. Anthony Bowie, OU: A wing on Billy Tubbs’ mid-1980s teams, Bowie was the 66^th pick in 1986, by Houston. Bowie played 461 NBA games, mostly with Orlando, making 87 starts. Bowie averaged 6.4 points a game.

9. Austin Reaves, OU: The Lon Kruger guard transferred from Wichita State and became a Sooner star. In 125 NBA games, Reaves has averaged 10.2 points a game.

10. Brent Price, OU: The 32^nd pick in 1992, by Washington, Price played in 418 NBA games and made 80 starts. He averaged 5.9 points and was born too soon – his .387 3-point percentage would be highly-prized these days.

11. Haywoode Workman, ORU: The 49^th pick in the 1989 draft, by the Hawks, the 6-foot-2 guard played 359 NBA games, averaging 5.5 points. Workman has been an NBA referee since 2008.

12. Eddie Robinson, Central Oklahoma: The undrafted forward signed with Charlotte and played five NBA seasons, in 278 games, averaging 7.0 points a game.

More: OKC Thunder exit interviews: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Josh Giddey & Co. wrap up 2022-23 season

Russell Westbrook proving worth to Clippers

When the Clippers signed Russell Westbrook in February, at the apparent urging of Paul George and Kawhi Leonard, the roster addition was widely criticized.

Toxic. Over the hill. Ill-fitting. A variety of terms described Westbrook after his Laker adventure.

None are applicable anymore.

Westbrook was valuable to the Clippers down the stretch, particularly after George’s injury three weeks ago. Westbrook’s Clipper numbers: 15.8 points a game, .489 shooting (far above his career average), .356 3-point shooting (career best), 7.6 assists.

And in Game 1 of the Clippers’ Western Conference series against the Suns on Sunday, Westbrook was vintage Westbrook.

The Clippers upset Phoenix 115-110, with Westbrook making the play of the game, a block of Devin Booker’s driving scoop shot with 10 seconds left, then a save by knocking the ball off Booker and out of bounds.

The Clippers led 111-108 at the time and basically put away the game.

And Westbrook was a whirling dervish the entire game, with 11 rebounds, eight assists, three blocked shots, two steals, two turnovers and, wait for it, 3-of-19 shooting.

Westbrook being Westbrook.

The shooting will drive you nuts, but just like so many nights for so many years in Oklahoma City, Westbrook produces chaos. Sometimes chaos is good. Especially for this Clipper team, which seems to be outmanned against the Suns.

Westbrook upstaged long-time Thunder teammate Kevin Durant, who had 27 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds for Phoenix.

With the Clippers leading 109-108 inside the final minute, Westbrook rebounded a Kawhi miss, keeping alive a possession that led to two more missed shots and eventually two Westbrook foul shots.

“He was mad about missing shots,” said Clipper coach Tyronn Lue. “And I said, 'Listen, your shot is not important. Take good shots, take the right shots, but what you bring to our team is way more valuable, and that's rebounding the basketball.'

"That's the three offensive rebounds at the end of game against the extra possession, the defense on KD, the stop on Book at the end, and defensively, he was locked in."

Remarkably, Westbrook also 3-of-19 from the field in a 2021 playoff game, and his Washington Wizards beat Philadelphia 122-114 in a Game 4 in which Westbrook had 19 points, 21 rebounds and 14 assists.

“I guess that's a secret number,” Westbrook said. “We won both games ... if it works, I'm good with that."

Westbrook, at age 34, isn’t what he once was. But he’s still something. And sometimes something special.

"He's a Hall of Fame point guard," Leonard said. "He's been big in playoffs before. He's been to the Finals. I expect him to play great and do his job."

Berry Tramel: Berry can be reached at 405-760-8080 or at btramel@oklahoman.com. He can be heard Monday through Friday from 4:40-5:20 p.m. on The Sports Animal radio network, including FM-98.1. Support his work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today. 

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OKC Thunder play-in tournament shows where franchise is in NBA rebuild