40 Mavericks Thunder Game Four Takeaways

Well, this series is over, and while I'm going to be happy for the ride later, it's just all pain now. Let's get into it while the wound is still oozing...

40) OKC started 9 for 9 from the floor, with better energy and defense than they've had in weeks

39) Scott Brooks actually had a nice coaching moment from going to a full court press after a timeout

38) OKC didn't change the starting lineup, and for once, it worked, giving the Thunder their largest lead of the series

37) Kendrick Perkins and Serge Ibaka were actually effective early

36) Kevin Durant showed that when he passes in the open court and gets touches down low, he goes back to being all kinds of monster

35) Flops can also happen on offensive rebounding; just dive in a random direction and look offended

34) Both teams seem to get something out of full court defensive pressure, which makes their general refusal to use it puzzling

33) Dallas actually missed some free throws

32) Even the Thunder's mop up crew is young and hungry, but also all kinds of sloppy

31) Dirk knows how to end runs with a vengeance

30) Dallas's point guards were sad against the pick and roll in the first half

29) ESPN decided that it was more important to talk about poor fan behavior at the Miami game THEN THE GAME THAT WAS GOING ON IN FRONT OF THEM, BECAUSE THIS NEVER STOPS BEING THE MOST IRRITATING THING IMAGINABLE

28) When the Thunder shoot 68% from the floor, they really should have more than an 11-point lead at the half

27) Thunder Fan has developed a solid distaste for Jason Terry, but they won't need to see him again until next year at the earliest

26) Chandler and Perkins pretty much spend every possession trying to injure each other at this point, and should just get a room

25) For sheer novelty, the Thunder tried Westbrook on Dirk; it didn't work

24) Dallas shot 16 more free throws in the first half, because the Thunder really aren't old enough to avoid dumb fouls, or dumb coaches

23) ESPN is offended by crowds chanting against referee calls, and likes talking to player moms during the game, rather than covering the damn game

22) The most frustrating part about Westbrook's game is how good of a point guard he can be when he simply plays the position

21) Kidd got away with an obvious foul on a three point attempt, leading to a three-point play on the other side, and this how veteran teams stay in games on the road

20) Dallas spent this entire game in drafting trail position, never getting out of touch, and just doing all of the old man things that you do to stay close... and you felt that if they ever took the lead, they'd win

19) For some reason, the Thunder do not isolate and punish JJ Barea on defense every minute he's on the floor

18) Brendan Haywood's flagrant foul was so obvious, it didn't even matter that he did it to a big man

17) Durant's rebounding was contagious, and his three off a second chance opportunity from Collison should have been a killshot

16) OKC got more than half of their missed shots back tonight off the boards, which is hard to do

15) Harden fouled out with 4:34 left, and the Thunder absolutely fell apart without him

14) Dirk missed another free throw tonight, which must mean he's hurt or something

13) ESPN kept giving the Thunder the game well before it was over, because ESPN is all about Not Watching The Game

12) Westbrook blew two critical free throws as Mark Jackson continued to stroke him

11) On the plus side, this series going short does mean less of this broadcasting crew

10) Keeping Dirk under double figures in the fourth quarter seems to be absolutely impossible

9) That call on Collison with 6.4 seconds left was weak, but since Dirk was getting the ball, he was scoring someway or another

8) As soon as it went to overtime, it was over

7) The last nine minutes of Thunder basketball is the single best reason why Brooks will never win a championship in this hemisphere

6) Give it up to Shawn Marion; that last block on Durant was perfection, and ballsy considering that Durant does get a fair number of calls

5) In the final analysis, the team with the best player wins... and that's Dirk, by a lot

4) Dallas never lead in regulation and still won, which is damn near impossible to do

3) OKC seems to think that moving the ball in the clutch is against the rules

2) Give it up to Jason Kidd: 16 steals in 4 games and the game-winning three

1) It's unfair to be so disappointed in this young of a team not coming through at the highest level of competition, but life is unfair