Thunder Practice Report: Ronnie Price's Defense Standing Out Early In Camp

On Tuesday night the Thunder will partake in the team's annual Blue and White scrimmage in front of fans at John Marshall Mid-High, but first the team held a practice in the morning with a couple select players and Coach Billy Donovan talking to the media afterwards. 

Related: Thunder Media Day Roundup

Here are a few takeaways. 

Ronnie Price carving out potential role with tenacious defense

Things are different around the Thunder practice facility with two veteran players such as Kevin Durant and Serge Ibaka no longer on the roster, but the arrival of veteran point guard Ronnie Price could be beneficial in replacing some leadership. 

Price's role on the team is still to be determined, but his new head coach had plenty of praise for the 11-year pro. 

“Ronnie’s been great, I love being around Ronnie, he’s a veteran, he’s got a great disposition out there, he’s really eager, I think he’s a great positive force every single day," Coach Donovan said. "He understands team dynamics, he understands team chemistry, I think he helps generate that, create that.

"And I think on top of that he’s a good player. Savvy, he’s got a good motor, good energy, defends, knows how to play, has a good skill set he can shoot the ball from behind the line.”

One of the Thunder's founding fathers, Nick Collison, pointed out Price individually as someone who has stood out on the defensive end of the floor.

“Ronnie’s really good at guarding the ball, sliding his feet and impacting the ball on the defensive end," Collison said. "I think that’s what he does best, that’s what he’s done over his time in the league. He can really pick up the defense.

"I think if they’re not getting advantage with the point in the screen, and so much of the offense starts with the point guard, if you can get over the screens, keep everyone else home in the defense, but he’s a guy that sticks out as someone who really relishes playing on defense.” 

It's evident that Price knows what he can do for the team defensively, and if given the opportunity to play in the same lineup with Russell Westbrook, Price wants to help to take some pressure off the franchise player. 

"Russ being a dynamic player that can control the game offensively and defensively, I think I can maybe take some pressure off of him at worrying about defending the No. 1 guy on the other end as far as point guards go," Price said. "Maybe I can give him some relief and let him play off the ball defensively and let him rest his legs so when we need him down in the fourth quarter he’ll have that extra energy."

Donovan tempering expectations for Steven Adams' offensive involvement

After his somewhat drastic improvement towards the end of last season, many have clamored to have Steven Adams more involved in the Thunder's offense, especially with no Durant or Ibaka in the lineup. 

But despite all the hype surrounding Adams entering this season, Coach Donovan wants to pull back the reigns a bit when it comes to putting pressure on Adams offensively. 

“I always temper that, just even my experiences in college, you get a guy that goes one year to the next and all the sudden you get a player that’s a senior who graduates and is gone and then all the sudden you try to thrust this guy into a position or role he’s maybe not ready or accustomed to handling," Donvoan said. " And I’m not saying Steven’s in that position, but what I am saying is, I think people always want to look at a player’s development or involvement on the offensive end. They just want to see if a guy’s going to score more and that to me is a part of development, but there’s a lot of other things I think he can do."

Adams is expected to be one of the team's anchors on the defensive end, but he's never been a player who gets a lot of designed touches in the post. Last season Adams averaged less than one assist per game, but Donovan is confident his big man has the skills to help improve OKC's ball movement. 

"He’s a really good passer, and we need to get his passing more into our offense," Donovan said. "He’s really good at sealing and posting up, and we need to be able to get him more paint touches in areas of the floor where he can be effective. I think some of his evolvement also to do with how well his teammates systematically can help take advantage of the things he does well.”

Price has high praise for Westbrook

Price hasn't been teammates with Westbrook for very long, but he has very high praise for his fellow Thunder guard. 

"Russ is hands down the best player I've ever played with," Price said. "I played with Kobe [Bryant] at the end of his career, Steve Nash was towards the end of his career, Deron Williams was kind of young in his prime. Russ is a superstar. Being able to compete against him in practice, of course it helps me. It energizes me to prepare for practice and if i can stay in front of Russ thirty percent of the time, I'm doing okay.

"So he helps me and i hope he understands me competing against him in practice I'm just trying to help him as well. That's what families do, that's what teammates do."

OKC's move to acquire Price should be very beneficial for Westbrook on an everyday basis. In year's past, the Thunder hasn't had players of Price's defensive caliber to help push Westbrook in practice.