Injuries have derailed the Oklahoma City Thunder season thus far. The Thunder are off to a 3-12 start, good enough for last place in the Western Conference. Both Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant are expected to return to the active roster in the near future.
Westbrook and Durant are arguably the most explosive tandem in the league. However, in a difficult Western Conference, the team may be digging a hole too deep to recover from. The Dallas Mavericks barely made the playoffs a year ago with a 49-33 record. Oklahoma City would have to go 46-21 the rest of the way to finish right under 50 wins. The bottom half of the Western Conference playoff bracket will be extremely competitive.
Kevin Durant is the reigning league MVP. Counting him out of the playoffs prematurely would be foolish. Westbrook has the heart of a lion. Both men will return to the lineup with a sense of urgency. This is not the first time Westbrook and Durant have been forced to deal with adversity. The Thunder faced elimination in game six of last year's Western Conference First-Round playoff series with the Memphis Grizzlies. Durant and Westbrook came out firing and forced a seventh game back in Oklahoma City. The Thunder eliminated the Grizzlies in route to their fourth consecutive trip to the Western Conference Finals.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have a mountain to climb if they hope to make the playoffs next Spring.
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