NBA Finals: Time for the Thunder to go small

“That's one of our advantages,” Bosh said. “Shane plays big, but he's a deadly outside shooter. That's what he's been doing for years. As long as we play defense well and get stops, we're going to be just fine.”

I'm not advocating a starting lineup change. The Thunder never does that, so there would be chemistry issues. I get it. Start the same five guys. But get Harden in the game earlier. Don't wait until the score is 16-2. Insert Harden three or four minutes into the game and put some pressure on the Miami defense.

With Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and Harden on the court, Miami's defense will be strained. Through three quarters of Game 2, the Thunder's big three played just 10:14 together. Some of that was foul trouble, but some of that was rotation decisions.

And Nick Collison must play more. For whatever reason, his energy has produced against Miami. With Ibaka as its lone big on the court in this series, the Thunder has been outscored 34-33. With Perk as its lone big, the Thunder is down 24-23. With Collison as its lone big on the floor, the Thunder has outscored Miami 64-43.

Brooks' tinkering helped sway the San Antonio series. He moved Thabo Sefolosha onto Tony Parker, and a four-game win streak ensued.

Time to tinker again. Brooks long has ended games with his small lineup — Durant, Westbrook, Harden and either Thabo Sefolosha or Derek Fisher along with one big guy.

The Thunder actually has used the small lineup a lot — 56.4 percent of the time in this series, almost exclusively in the fourth quarters. But that's not enough.

Time for the Thunder to go small. Early and often.

Berry Tramel: Berry can be reached at (405) 760-8080 or at btramel@opubco.com. He can be heard Monday through Friday from 4:40-5:20 p.m. on The Sports Animal radio network, including FM-98.1. You can also view his personality page at newsok.com/berrytramel.