OKC's painful internship continues

Chalk up another painful learning experience for the Thunder, which got caught from behind by a veteran Suns team that simply looked more sure of themselves down the stretch on Tuesday night.
It wasn't so much that Oklahoma City blew the game; Steve Nash just snatched it back, draining jumper after clutch jumper in one of those, 'he's still got it' efforts, rescuing a 99-98 win.
Counterpart Russell Westbrook is going to be special, but he's not used to having the ball in late-game situations. Right now, the hustle game is his forte, and he's going to have to take his lumps in order to ramp up to the level he needs to be at for the Thunder to pull off games like these.
After picking up an offensive rebound off a Kevin Durant miss on OKC's final possession, Westbrook never seemed comfortable with the shot and wound up taking an awkward jumper when he should've set back up, either by dribbling out himself or finding an open teammate to initiate one final look. At that point, the shot clock was off and the team could've reset and created a better opportunity.
Thinking on your feet takes poise, and poise comes with experience. It's important that Westbrook and new coach Scott Brooks capitalize on these situations and emerge as quick studies by learning from mistakes.
Losing a home game to Phoenix is nothing to hang your head about. It was disappointing to come so close, but it's not like coming up short against the Suns is going to keep them out of the postseason or anything. This first season in Oklahoma City is about making progress with the bigger picture in mind.
Progress has already made under Brooks in that the Thunder is committing much fewer turnovers and digging in better on the defensive end. Making life difficult for a team like Phoenix is a baby step. For now, stringing a few of those together is all Oklahoma City can hpe for.

Tuesday's +/- report: Andray Blatche (+21, 25 points, 12 rebounds, five blocks) certainly responded to Washington's coaching change. Deemed out of shape by Eddie Jordan -- he was, by the way -- Blatche put together a dominant performance as the x-factor in the Wizards win. All-Stars Caron Butler (+23, 35 points, eight rebounds, six assists) and Antawn Jamsion (+25, 25 points, 11 rebounds) played like they had a pact going not to let Ed Tapscott lose his debut, but certainly welcomed Blatche's help... Jamal Crawford (-18, 4-for-10, seven assists) made his debut in Don Nelson's starting lineup and seemed at ease. He just didn't have his jumper going...It's nice when a 26-point night qualifies as quiet, but LeBron James (+17) barely looked like he was breaking a sweat in Cleveland's romp at Madison Square Garden, where seven Cavs scored in double-figures... Seven Knicks broke into double-digits, too, including newcomers Al Harrington (-20, 13 points, nine rebound in 27:16) and Tim Thomas (-3, 16 points, six rebounds, four assists), neither of whom started... Nate Robinson (-20 in 18:29) had one of those nights where he shouldn't have bothered to leave the house. Not only was he ineffective as a starter, but had to leave in the second quarter with a strained groin... With Josh Howard still out with a bad ankle and Gerald Green down with a back issue, Antoine Wright (+6) took advantage of a spot start to score a career-high 24 points in 39 minutes, helping Dallas even its record at 7-7... Jason Terry (+10, 29 points, five assists) delivered the result down the stretch, continuing to thrive under Rick Carlisle as the Mavs' most effective player... The Pacers have to be frustrated about blowing a fourth-quarter lead to their ex-coach, but should be encouraged about the progress Brandon Rush (+8, 8-for-12) is making. His emergence, in addition to the development of Danny Granger (-10, 22 points, nine rebounds) and Marquis Daniels (-2, 14 points, 11 rebounds) are helping make up for the absence of Mike Dunleavy... The Lakers went on a 37-12 run after New Jersey tied the game mid-third quarter, with Jordan Farmar (+24, 18 points, five rebounds) and Sasha Vujacic (+25) serving as L.A.'s most effective backcourt of the night, although they did get a nice assist from Lamar Odom's (+29) playmaking skills.