2) Oklahoma City Thunder
Record: 12-7 (2nd Northwest, 5th Western Conference)
When the Thunder opened the year with four consecutive Ls, some thought a storm was brewing in OKC. But now, the Thunder look to be right on schedule thanks to some stifling defense.
Through Sunday night’s games, the Thunder lead the Association in D-rating at 102.6. They’ve also wracked up more steals than any other team at 10.6 per contest and have held opponents to just 32 percent shooting from 3-point range, which is second only to the Boston Celtics.
The fact that they’ve managed all this without the services of their All-World defender Andre Roberson is pretty incredible. If he can come back late this season and get back into the swing of things, the Thunder will be a force come postseason play.
Also — despite a certain Stifle Tower’s offensive growth this season, I’d probably take Steven Adams over him for an All-Star spot if I had to pick right now. On the year, Adams is averaging nearly 16 points, 10.5 boards and 1.7 steals per game. He edges out Paul George with a team-best net rating of 11.3.
He’s been really, really good for a surging team that’s just a few days removed from waxing the Golden State Warriors.