Thunder at Rockets Gamethread

Tonight the Rockets face the Thunder, returning home to Toyota Center after going 3-1 on a four game in six nights road trip swing through the West. They dropped a game in Denver, but rebounded in a big way the next night in Utah, and went on to dispatch Phoenix, talking their Talking Stick and shouting them down. They rudely dethroned the Kings in a game that seemed to mean a lot to the Kings and their Krowd.

Now, at last they return home, down James Ennis III, but adding Iman Shumpert. They also no longer have, Sauce Castillo and Wade Baldwin IV, if indeed they ever did have them.

James Ennis went from a figure of widespread derision, or at least frustration, with some guarded optimism mixed in, to being a figure of the stature of The Missing Romanov Heir, the Bearer of The One Ring, and The Chosen One To Guard Tall Wing Types.

It’s amazing what a trade can do for a narrative. Tonight we should get to see new addition Iman Shumpert in action. Perhaps he can soothe the hitherto unknown craving for the basketball stylings of James Ennis.

Anyhow, its OKC, who can be annoying. We’ll see if they are still as committed as they’ve seemed this season to actual basketball, rather than the anti-basketball they ofttimes plop into a contest.