Tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET the Oklahoma City Thunder (33-10) will take their five-game winning streak into Boston where they will meet the Celtics (15-29) in NBA action that can be live streamed here. OKC fans can find the radio broadcast on WWLS 98.1, while Celtics fans can hear the contest on WEEI 93.7.
Kevin Durant has been on a nearly unfathomable offensive tear for the length of this streak and even prior-he hasn't been held to under 30 points in his last 10 games. (Durant) scores because he's a smart player," Thunder coach Scott Brooks said. "He scores because he has the ability to put the ball on the floor and score on different spots on the floor. He also scores because we have good players around him. If you double team, we have guys who can make you pay."
Indeed Durant, newly nicknamed the "Slim Reaper," is on fire. Beyond the scoring though, he's increased his playmaking as well in the absence of fellow star Russell Westbrook, raising his assists per game to a career-high mark of 5.1.
Part of his rising assist totals are the improvements made by power forward Serge Ibaka, and reserve point guard Reggie Jackson, who has risen to the occasion in masking the loss of Westbrook. He notched a career-high 27 points in Oklahoma City's win Wednesday over the defending Western conference champion Spurs and added eight assists to the mix.
Complicating matters for the struggling C's, defensive wizard Avery Bradley's out of commission for a minimum of two weeks with a sprained ankle. He was likely too small to handle Durant, but he'd be able to check Jackson.
Despite long odds, Boston's Gerald Wallace said their best shot at winning games like this is playing worry-free. "We don't have anything to lose," Wallace said. "Let's just go out and play loose, play together and kind of have fun in the game. I think that's what we did tonight, and it brought us closer together.
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