The Oklahoma City Thunder have been one of the most disappointing NBA teams this season. There were high expectations for the team after they acquired Paul George and Carmelo Anthony during the offseason, but they currently have an 8-12 record to show for it.
It’s a long season, though, and the Thunder are just now approaching the quarter-mark of their schedule. Now is the time for the team to figure out where they can improve so they can make the necessary adjustments, which is what they’re likely attempting to do.
Anthony was asked about the state of the team on Thursday, and he told reporters that he and his Thunder teammates are angry, but not frustrated.
“Nobody is moping around, nobody is frustrated,” Anthony said, via Royce Young of ESPN.com. “I think guys are angry. I think guys are pissed. That just comes from your competitive nature, wanting to win games — understanding what we have over here, the talent level that we have over here and not being able to put it together right now. So that’s where the anger comes in at.
“I think in this game you almost have to be angry when you’re losing basketball games. The way we’re losing basketball games, it’s more on us than anybody else. The anger part comes in, and I think when you’re angry you show that you care. It’s different than being frustrated. Being angry and being frustrated are two different things.”
Melo does have a good point, as players often look to force shots and play aggressively when they’re frustrated, which rarely ends well. His teammates’ anger and competitive drive will likely lead to them taking some extra time to assess what’s going wrong so they can improve going forward. Only time will tell if they’ll be able to get it together and become the contender everyone expected them to be.
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