# Everything Else > Sports >  ****Official 2012/2013 Oklahoma City Thunder Basketball Thread****

## Teo9969

Thunder Up!

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## betts

There's a chat room at OKCThunderfans if you're interested.

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## Teo9969

1 hour to tip off against San Antonio.

I expect to see a great game. Excited to see the few minutes of PJIII and I hope that Kevin Martin lights up the floor. I hope for a win, but I don't expect it with the last minute shake-up this weekend. 103 - 98, Bad Guys.

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## Teo9969

> There's a chat room at OKCThunderfans if you're interested.


Thanks Betts, I'll have to keep that in mind. I also spend a lot of time on the Landthieves site for Thunder B-Ball...though they are far more unscrupulous over there  :Wink:

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## OKCisOK4me

I used to be a member there but my user name got erased cause I hadn't posted in a long time I guess. Oh well...I won a basketball though!

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## betts

> I used to be a member there but my user name got erased cause I hadn't posted in a long time I guess. Oh well...I won a basketball though!


That's odd, because we have a policy of not erasing user names since people do tend to come and go.  You should join again.  We've got a $250 gift certificate currently up for grabs to the person who guesses this season's win-loss record.

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## OKCisOK4me

I couldn't find my screenname in the member list..THUNDERBALLnOKC378.

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## Just the facts

Two things that haven't changed.

1)  Thunder are still worst team in NBA in the last 10 seconds of a quarter.
2)  If Westbrook has the ball for more than 15 seconds in a possession it will end in a turnover.

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## dankrutka

The second team looked awful without Harden. Martin doesn't create plays for others like Harden did. They need to make adjustments.

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## Teo9969

This loss is definitely on Westbrook. 6/21, no assists in the last 18 minutes, 6 turnovers.

However, What the heck was Scott thinking not putting Sef on Parker? Does he not remember 5 months ago? At the *VERY* least, put him on Parker on the last play of regulation.

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## Just the facts

I guess things could be worse.  We could be the Lakers.

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## Dustin

LOL

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## ljbab728

The season has officially started along with the second guessing.  LOL

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## OKCisOK4me

Lakers are 0-2..and lost by more than 2 points their first game and at home and they're suppose to be dominate! I think we're fine...easy Sooner fans.

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## OKCJapan

If Harden was still in town, Thunder win this game easily.  Watching the game, the offensive struggles could plainly be seen.  Durant had a hard time getting open.  Maynor, with the second group seemed to have a hard time deciding who to get the ball to.  

Clearly, there was a chemisty with Harden. He was a catalyst, especially for Fast Break points.  Those were almost non-existent in this game.  I know we cannot judge this season by the first game.  So, we should be patient, but I think things are going to have to change quickly.

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## G.Walker

People, people, calm down...we are ok, it's just the first game. We had to play a powerhouse team in their house to open season. Kevin Martin had a decent game, he went 4-10 for 15pts, those are Harden numbers. Once Brooks figures out the rotation with the new players, and the new players figure out their role, we will be ok. Now Russell going 6-21 and 6TOs, there is no excuse for that...Thunder Up!

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## dcsooner

The Thunder contiune to consistently do two things late in games that cost them games, turn the ball over and play lazy on defense. These tendencies will cost the Thunder more this season than last due to the trade of Harden who was a decent defender due to his size.  RW continues to more often than not be a one man out of control liability at the end of games.  RW should have matured beyond such damaging play. I think the trade was necessary and I supported it for the long term financial stability of the team, but it will cost this team wins this season. Maybe JH would have brought more stability, creativity, and calm to the Thunder than RW? Oh well.

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## TaoMaas

> If Harden was still in town, Thunder win this game easily.


Maybe not.  As someone pointed out elsewhere, the Spurs beat the Thunder 4 out of 5 during the regular season last year and took the first two games of the Western Conference finals...and all those were with Harden.  The Spurs are just tough and have been for a pretty long time.

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## kevinpate

If Harden this
If Harden that

Gonna be a long season if folks spend it moping like someone who sees a former love walking by the pub window with their someone new.

Best wishes to him with the Rockets, but just like the OKC Thunder ain't the Sonics, Harden ain't a piece of the Thunder no more.  Moving on .. it's healthy.

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## TaoMaas

> If Harden this
> If Harden that
> 
> Gonna be a long season if folks spend it moping like someone who sees a former love walking by the pub window with their someone new.
> 
> Best wishes to him with the Rockets, but just like the OKC Thunder ain't the Sonics, Harden ain't a piece of the Thunder no more.  Moving on .. it's healthy.


Yep...it happens to most good teams.  May we always be so lucky as to have a supply of players that other teams would be willing to pay $80 million to have.

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## SSEiYah

This is pretty cool

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## Teo9969

> If Harden was still in town, Thunder win this game easily.  Watching the game, the offensive struggles could plainly be seen.  Durant had a hard time getting open.  Maynor, with the second group seemed to have a hard time deciding who to get the ball to.  
> 
> Clearly, there was a chemisty with Harden. He was a catalyst, especially for Fast Break points.  Those were almost non-existent in this game.  I know we cannot judge this season by the first game.  So, we should be patient, but I think things are going to have to change quickly.


I don't know that I totally agree that we win easily with Harden. But if that is so, then all the more reason to get rid of Harden. OKC cannot...canNOT win a title against this Miami Heat with their current offensive system. It's the first thing I wanted to see this year with or without Harden, and it doesn't seem we made any adjustments.

Maynor's grouping with Thabeet, Sefolosha, Martin, and Collison makes it pretty obvious who should get the ball. Martin is the 1st option, Maynor is the 2nd, and Collison is the 3rd. You run plays so that one of those 3 can get a high percentage shot.

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## MonkeesFan

> This is pretty cool


And they still lost

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## Just the facts

> RW continues to more often than not be a one man out of control liability at the end of games.  RW should have matured beyond such damaging play.


This.  I would rather see anyone else on the Thunder team with their hands on the ball in the final 15 seconds of a quarter.

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## Spartan

I think the Thunder deserve a thread for every single game much more than OU football does.

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## BlackmoreRulz

Thabeet is an upgrade from Nazr

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## Teo9969

I agree Sid. Especially since he will be on a non-contender, I'm happy for Harden.

As long as OKC people realize that even if Harden puts up 50 points every game from here on out, he still would have only put up an average of 15 to 20 pts/game for the Thunder.

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## SoonerBoy18

Harden this, Harden that, are we going to post stats about every game he plays?... keep it moving, he clearly didn't want to be in Oklahoma City so keep it going and I thought it was very disappointing / funny when the fans inside the arena werent even paying attention when Kevin Martin came on the floor, missed a potential great standing ovation.

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## king183

> Harden this, Harden that, are we going to post stats about every game he plays?... keep it moving, he clearly didn't want to be in Oklahoma City so keep it going and I thought it was very disappointing / funny when the fans inside the arena werent even paying attention when Kevin Martin came on the floor, missed a potential great standing ovation.


It's not that the fans weren't paying attention, but that the PA announcer had a major delay between his entry and the announcer saying Kevin Martin had entered the game. When the announcer said it, the crowd went wild. The announcer had that problem all night, by the way. He completely failed to announce PJIII's entry into the game in the 2nd quarter.

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## Just the facts

The PA announcer is new this season.  The main guy last year got arrested for sex crimes against children and was fired.

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## OKCDrummer77

> The PA announcer is new this season.  The main guy last year got arrested for sex crimes against children and was fired.


But he's not new to the NBA.  He was with the Rockets for seven seasons, around 1996-2003 or so.

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## Teo9969

> But he's not new to the NBA.  He was with the Rockets for seven seasons, around 1996-2003 or so.


It's all starting to make sense ;-)

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## Just the facts

> It's all starting to make sense ;-)


Yep.  Maybe he needs a reminder who he works for now.  :Smile:

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## Teo9969

At home, and without Josh Smith to worry about, OKC ought to roll the Hawks tonight. Would be nice to see the bench get some good minutes, particularly PJIII and Thabeet, both of which need to start making progression as soon as possible. If OKC can put the game away with 5 minutes left, would love to see Jackson and Lamb run the backcourt.

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## Jake

Ibaka and Perkins form probably the worst duo of a 4 and 5 in the NBA. Awful.

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## Stan Silliman

> I agree Sid. Especially since he will be on a non-contender, I'm happy for Harden.
> 
> As long as OKC people realize that even if Harden puts up 50 points every game from here on out, he still would have only put up an average of 15 to 20 pts/game for the Thunder.


No, he would've averaged 50 along with Durant's 32 and RW's 26 and the Thunder would be averaging 120 ppg. In my ifs and buts world, anyway.

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## Just the facts

> Ibaka and Perkins form probably the worst duo of a 4 and 5 in the NBA. Awful.


Having Perkins is like losing two good people.

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## Praedura

Ok, last night's game against the Hawks sucked.

If you want to relive happier times... i.e. Friday night's game against Portland, then check out this:

Laura's exchange year in Oklahoma

It's a blog by an exchange student from Finland currently living with a host family in Edmond. And she's checking out the local culture, including Thunder games:







Yeah, the blog is written in Finnish (translate.google.com is your friend), but the pics pretty much speak for themselves.  :Smile:

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## Just the facts

> Yeah, the blog is written in Finnish (translate.google.com is your friend), but the pics pretty much speak for themselves.


Go to Google Translater, put in the web address and hit translate.  It will translate the entire website into English for you.

Google Translate

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## Just the facts

> Or just use Chrome and it automatically does it for you when you go to the website.


I hate IE9 so much (I am still on 8) I might have to move to Chrome.

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## king183

I'm a season ticket holder and make it to most of the games. When I can't go, I always make sure someone uses my tickets.  In just the two home games we've already had, the crowd is far worse than anything I've seen the last 3 years. There are hundreds of empty seats (many of them in the corporate section, which is what the tv cameras see) and fans start leaving early in droves.  Last night was particularly embarassing, when thousands got up to leave with about 2 minutes left and the game still within reach. If I were a Thunder player and saw those lines of people exiting the arena, I would be pissed.  After the game, I heard people doing the "Boomer"  "Sooner" chant. What the hell?

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## G.Walker

> I'm a season ticket holder and make it to most of the games. When I can't go, I always make sure someone uses my tickets.  In just the two home games we've already had, the crowd is far worse than anything I've seen the last 3 years. There are hundreds of empty seats (many of them in the corporate section, which is what the tv cameras see) and fans start leaving early in droves.  Last night was particularly embarassing, when thousands got up to leave with about 2 minutes left and the game still within reach. If I were a Thunder player and saw those lines of people exiting the arena, I would be pissed.  After the game, I heard people doing the "Boomer"  "Sooner" chant. What the hell?


I wouldn't worry about it too much. Its not basketball season yet, if you know what I mean. With NCAAF and NFL going on right now, and with the height of football season at hand, its hard for Thunder fans to get into it right now. The true NBA season really doesn't start until after the All-Star game in February. I am a Thunder fan, but while NCAAF and NFL is in season, its just hard for me to get up for the NBA right now...

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## Jake

> I'm a season ticket holder and make it to most of the games. When I can't go, I always make sure someone uses my tickets.  In just the two home games we've already had, the crowd is far worse than anything I've seen the last 3 years. There are hundreds of empty seats (many of them in the corporate section, which is what the tv cameras see) and fans start leaving early in droves.  Last night was particularly embarassing, when thousands got up to leave with about 2 minutes left and the game still within reach. If I were a Thunder player and saw those lines of people exiting the arena, I would be pissed.  After the game, I heard people doing the "Boomer"  "Sooner" chant. What the hell?


If I were a Thunder player I would be pissed losing to the Atlanta Hawks without their best player.

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## onthestrip

> If I were a Thunder player I would be pissed losing to the Atlanta Hawks without their best player.


Eh, its just one game of 82. I seriously doubt they were that broken up about it. But I do think Presti should use current players/draft picks to make a midseason move and find a reserve big man that can score inside. We currently dont have anyone that can do that right now.

And for the people chanting boomer sooner... just have to shake my head at that. Especially in a season were OU isnt undefeated or ranked #1. There is still a few sooner fans that havent yet realized there is a new big dog in this state.

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## BoulderSooner

> Eh, its just one game of 82. I seriously doubt they were that broken up about it. But I do think Presti should use current players/draft picks to make a midseason move and find a reserve big man that can score inside. We currently dont have anyone that can do that right now.
> 
> And for the people chanting boomer sooner... just have to shake my head at that. Especially in a season were OU isnt undefeated or ranked #1. There is still a few sooner fans that havent yet realized there is a new big dog in this state.


look at TV ratings .. and numbers ... OU football is far and away still the "monster" in this state

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## BlackmoreRulz

I was at the game last night, I didn't hear a Boomer/Sooner chant...they were chanting OKC/Thunder. As far as the game went, I'm a little concerned with the chemistry of the team. There was a play where Ibaka botched a pass from Durant and KD was visibly upset about it, I'd never seen this from this team as they have always been so supportive of their teammates no matter what they did.

Any report on Westbrook? He had a large ice pack on his left shoulder when he sat down in the first qtr.

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## onthestrip

> look at TV ratings .. and numbers ... OU football is far and away still the "monster" in this state


Still no excuse to chant boomer sooner at a thunder game.

And weve had this argument in another thread before. You cant compare ratings of different sports.

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## clz46

> I'm a season ticket holder and make it to most of the games. When I can't go, I always make sure someone uses my tickets.  In just the two home games we've already had, the crowd is far worse than anything I've seen the last 3 years. There are hundreds of empty seats (many of them in the corporate section, which is what the tv cameras see) and fans start leaving early in droves.  Last night was particularly embarassing, when thousands got up to leave with about 2 minutes left and the game still within reach. If I were a Thunder player and saw those lines of people exiting the arena, I would be pissed.  After the game, I heard people doing the "Boomer"  "Sooner" chant. What the hell?


I am with on this one. I am also a season ticket holder and I really don't think there is a good excuse for missing the games or leaving early whether we are winning or losing. It is disrespectful to the players and the tickets are too expensive to have empty seats when the paper continues to say we are sold out. I know they are "sold" but the true attendance is much less than that. If you are not going to the game give them to a friend. I know lots of people who want to go.  Please lets not start the OSU/OU stuff again.

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## SoonerBoy18

> I wouldn't worry about it too much. Its not basketball season yet, if you know what I mean. With NCAAF and NFL going on right now, and with the height of football season at hand, its hard for Thunder fans to get into it right now. The true NBA season really doesn't start until after the All-Star game in February. I am a Thunder fan, but while NCAAF and NFL is in season, its just hard for me to get up for the NBA right now...


I think it starts on the day of Christmas or the day we play the Lakers.

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## dankrutka

Here are the new Thunder alternative jerseys that they're wearing on Friday:

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## kevinpate

Nice!

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## MonkeesFan

Very ugly!

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## OKCisOK4me

I bought one and love it and everyone last night was like, "how'd you get one of those already?"  lol

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## SoonerBoy18

It looks like a little league uniform! Poor design skills I sware!

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## Bill Robertson

I like the simplicity. We were there Friday night and I would say from the number of people wearing or carrying an alt jersey that they went over pretty well.

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## Bellaboo

> It looks like a little league uniform! Poor design skills I sware!


Its design looks like the 1956 Cincinatti Royals uniform, a throw back classic......they looked good to me, and KD said he liked the change up in style.

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## Teo9969

RE: Basketball  :Wink: 

The more time that elapses after "The Trade" (And if the Thunder make it to the Finals again, I believe it will become known as such in Thunder lore) the more I like it...and for the record, I liked it to begin with.

OKC currently has 3 Top 25 scorers. The team is moving the ball a lot more effectively than they have in the past. And they are not even close to having "gelled" yet. Martin is giving the same points production as Harden (better, actually...which is what we mainly needed to replace) and he's 6th in the NBA, I believe, in +/-.

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## adaniel

^^
Well said. I miss the beard but I'm largely over it. He got his money, we got K-Mart, lets all move on. 

The only people who still have an issue with this whole thing is the media. The same media, btw, who said the Lakers would be world beaters with their superstar lineup.

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## dankrutka

Time will tell... Martin has done what he does (e.g, score efficiently) very well so far, but he doesn't make his teammates better like Harden did. Harden is a more complete player than Martin, and he fit incredibly well with the Thunder both leading the second unit and as a conduit for KD and Westbrook. In the end, I still think we're a worse team, but time will tell. There's no point in rehashing it every night, but it's also silly to make a final judgment until after the season. We'll see...

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## OKCisOK4me

Four years down the road when someone else disappears from the roster, we're going to see the same people come out of the wood work cause they don't understand NBA Basketball operations.  This isn't college ball folks.

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## MonkeesFan

I am going to laugh if they lose to Detroit and it looks like they might....

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## BrettM2

> I am going to laugh if they lose to Detroit and it looks like they might....


It would be a very bad loss, but they happen over the course of an 82 game season.  I figured you would know that as a Magic fan...

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## MonkeesFan

> It would be a very bad loss, but they happen over the course of an 82 game season.  I figured you would know that as a Magic fan...


Yeah I know

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## Jake

The Pistons are terrible.

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## MonkeesFan

Thunder got lucky but I love seeing the Pistons lose, I hope they go 0-82

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## MonkeesFan

I bet the Magic will lose to the Pistons on Friday giving them their first win, the Pistons have the Magic's number...

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## Bellaboo

> The Pistons are terrible.


Out of 8 games, the Pistons have played 6 on the road. They have had 2 one point losses and have been blown out just once......they'll win some games this year, they are just very young.

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## Bellaboo

FYI....the last I checked, Harden has shot just 28% from the field in his last 4 games........

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## OKCisOK4me

> FYI....the last I checked, Harden has shot just 28% from the field in his last 4 games........


Who?

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## Bellaboo

> Who?


James Harden - Houston Rockets

Had a great 2 game start but has come back to reality.


Maybe I need to move on from the trade  ?   Although I think it'll turn out good for us.

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## MonkeesFan

> James Harden - Houston Rockets
> 
> Had a great 2 game start but has come back to reality.
> 
> 
> Maybe I need to move on from the trade  ?   Although I think it'll turn out good for us.


He is being sarastic

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## SoonerBoy18

When Harden returns we should either A, Boo him for wanting to leave because of his greediness which is what I want to do; or B; Welcome him back even though he had a poor finals performance. Which was probably done purpose.

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## OKCisOK4me

> James Harden - Houston Rockets
> 
> Had a great 2 game start but has come back to reality.
> 
> 
> Maybe I need to move on from the trade  ?   Although I think it'll turn out good for us.


Sarcasm, buddy, sarcasm...

I don't see you talking about Nate Robinson or Jeff Green or Nenad Kristic or anyone else that has gone through the trade doors.  Who cares about James Harden?  Let's worry about him when we play Houston and our ball handling capabilities are a lil better than the 20 turnovers our team is averaging.




> When Harden returns we should either A, Boo him for wanting to leave because of his greediness which is what I want to do; or B; Welcome him back even though he had a poor finals performance. Which was probably done purpose.


Welcome him back.  No reason to be ill about it.  If you knew you could get more money and a max contract vs. a four year deal and less money, wouldn't you do the same?  You can't weigh what he wanted to do vs. what it came down to.  Applaud him when he's introduced and that's it.  Boo him when he plays dirty against us.  Due to the restrictions on flopping, he'll probably limit that.

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## Bellaboo

No reason to boo him, I'd taken the extra 25 million myself if I was in his sneakers.........he was torn but then it became a business decision. A professional athlete doesn't know how long he'll be able to play due to injury. You take it while you can get it, and he did.

Then lets hope the Thunder spanks the Rockets pretty good......

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## dankrutka

> When Harden returns we should either A, Boo him for wanting to leave because of his greediness which is what I want to do; or B; Welcome him back even though he had a poor finals performance. Which was probably done purpose.


(A) I'd like to remind you that Presti ended negotiations, not Harden. We'll never know what Harden might of accepted. Besides, he was clearly worth it. Call me when you voluntarily take a pay cut that large. (B) I'm assuming you're kidding. Otherwise, this is a pretty ridiculous assertion that makes no sense at all. 

I'll always love Harden for what he did for the Thunder. It's okay to continue to like him if he's on another team. If I was at that game I'd give him a standing ovation and then cheer for the Thunder to beat him down.

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## Dubya61

If I read right, Presti was working under a deadline.  I also read that Harden was disappointed with the way the trade happened, but I'm sure his agent (should have) kept him informed of any deadlines or likelihoods.

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## dankrutka

Presti was working under a self-imposed deadline so the Rockets could get what they wanted for that particular deal... I believe that OKC could have gotten a good deal for Harden _next_ summer and made a run at the title this season. It feels weird talking about it now though because it's done... Also, Harden's agent wouldn't have wanted Harden to take an OKC deal for less... he got way more money for himself with the Houston contract. That's one problem with these types of negotiations. The guyg giving Harden advise is a businessman who wanted money, not necessarily what was best for James. It's complicated now doubt...

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## BrettM2

> Presti was working under a self-imposed deadline so the Rockets could get what they wanted for that particular deal... I believe that OKC could have gotten a good deal for Harden _next_ summer and made a run at the title this season. It feels weird talking about it now though because it's done... Also, Harden's agent wouldn't have wanted Harden to take an OKC deal for less... he got way more money for himself with the Houston contract. That's one problem with these types of negotiations. The guyg giving Harden advise is a businessman who wanted money, not necessarily what was best for James. It's complicated now doubt...


Sign and trades are more difficult under the new CBA than the old one, so there's no telling if we would have been able to get more or not.  Fact is, Presti had a good deal and pulled the trigger.  I still think we'll make a run at the title this year.  I've yet to see any evidence that we wasted the only opportunity we had to get to the Finals and win.  Maybe it'll be that way after an entire year, but we're currently 6-2 with a five game winning streak.  Not always pretty, but we are winning the games we should be winning.  As our guys continue to mesh (with Martin, Thabeet, and Maynor having to establish chemistry), I think we'll only get better.

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## Teo9969

> Presti was working under a self-imposed deadline so the Rockets could get what they wanted for that particular deal... *I believe that OKC could have gotten a good deal for Harden next summer and made a run at the title this season.* It feels weird talking about it now though because it's done... Also, Harden's agent wouldn't have wanted Harden to take an OKC deal for less... he got way more money for himself with the Houston contract. That's one problem with these types of negotiations. The guyg giving Harden advise is a businessman who wanted money, not necessarily what was best for James. It's complicated now doubt...


No chance they could get the deal they got.

They will make a run for the title this season.

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## BoulderSooner

> Presti was working under a self-imposed deadline so the Rockets could get what they wanted for that particular deal... I believe that OKC could have gotten a good deal for Harden _next_ summer and made a run at the title this season. It feels weird talking about it now though because it's done... Also, Harden's agent wouldn't have wanted Harden to take an OKC deal for less... he got way more money for himself with the Houston contract. That's one problem with these types of negotiations. The guyg giving Harden advise is a businessman who wanted money, not necessarily what was best for James. It's complicated now doubt...


why  he was a restricted FA .. and the thunder showed they were not going to offer him the MAX .. houston (or dallas or PHX) would have signed him to a max offer sheet .. period ...   then the thuder either match ..(then cant trade him for half a year)  or don't  (and he is gone) ..

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## Bill Robertson

> why  he was a restricted FA .. and the thunder showed they were not going to offer him the MAX .. houston (or dallas or PHX) would have signed him to a max offer sheet .. period ...   then the thuder either match ..(then cant trade him for half a year)  or don't  (and he is gone) ..


Right. And if Hardin had gone to Dallas or Phoenix he could have added something to either of those teams. I, as a Thunder fan, don't want to see the Thunder facilitating trades or FA acquisitions that make possible western conference playoff teams any better. Hardin to Houston shouldn't be a threat.

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## Bellaboo

Presti got more value for the Thunder by executing the trade when he did. He even told Harden and his agent that Houston could offer the 5 year max. Not that many teams still have that to give, as we gave ours to Westbrook.

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## Teo9969

Shot differentials in all 9 games thus far:

Spurs +2
Portland +13
Hawks +12
Raptors +10
Bulls +11
Pistons +16
Cavs +10
Detroit +10
Memphis +21

This absolutely has to change. Can't win games when you let the ball shoot the ball almost 12 more times than you every game. That's pretty much spotting the team 10 points.

Gotta generate more turnovers and play better defense. Martin isn't as bad as people made him out to be, but he's not very good either. He needs to learn that OKC doesn't really need his help inside. His man is consistently far more open than he ought to be.

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## Jake

There are a lot of things wrong with the team, but can I just say that Kendrick Perkins is terrible. Just....terrible.

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## OKCisOK4me

I'm positive there are a ton of Boston fans that would disagree with you and Thunder fans as well.  He's not an offensive asset, he's in there to protect down low on defense.  Do people not get that?  

Last night was a true test game.  I was impressed they only had 15 turnovers last night but that still needs to come down to somewhere around 8-10 a game.  Team has a lot of work to do before they can be considered a legitimate contender for the playoffs.  They have a long way to go.  Thankfully there's still 73 games left.

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## Jake

Perkins is a consistently low rebounder along with not containing any offensive ability. He only had 2 the entire game....that's awful.

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## blangtang

"Pass the damn ball, Russel!"

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## OKCisOK4me

Well luckily for our team, guys like Westbrook and Durant are flying all over the place on defense snatching up those boards. KDs rebounding average so far this year is higher than in years past and even though Perkins is physically a lot healtheir but he's not as mobile as the younger guys. I think he'll be just fine.

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## Teo9969

> Perkins is a consistently low rebounder along with not containing any offensive ability. He only had 2 the entire game....that's awful.


And yet he had the best +/- stats of the entire team, in a game where his presence actually does make a difference one way or the other.

Take out Perkins and Gasol/Randolph put the game away in the 3rd quarter.

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## Bellaboo

My wife works with a woman whose daughter works as a car hop at an Edmond Sonic......she says Kendrick Perkins brings his kid in there 2 or 3 times a week, buys $20 worth of food, pays with a 100 dollar bill and tells them to keep the change........

----------


## blangtang

I saw this was in the Oklahoman, looks like they are trying to figure out how to get some more offense from the second unit.

"Scott Brooks plans to change up Kevin Durant's substitution pattern, creating more time apart for Russell Westbrook.

The change is largely to help out Oklahoma City's bench, which has struggled this year after being such an asset last season."

I'll have to watch and see how this subbing works tonight.

----------


## Bellaboo

> I saw this was in the Oklahoman, looks like they are trying to figure out how to get some more offense from the second unit.
> 
> "Scott Brooks plans to change up Kevin Durant's substitution pattern, creating more time apart for Russell Westbrook.
> 
> The change is largely to help out Oklahoma City's bench, which has struggled this year after being such an asset last season."
> 
> I'll have to watch and see how this subbing works tonight.



I t worked very well, it was a complete dismantling of the Hornets last night.

----------


## Teo9969

> I t worked very well, it was a complete dismantling of the Hornets last night.


How did he work 0/35 rotations? I didn't get to watch the game.

----------


## BrettM2

> How did he work 0/35 rotations? I didn't get to watch the game.


Durant subbed out with about 3:30 left in 1st, Russ in charge for that bit.  Seemed to work really well, especially with Martin on fire.

----------


## Bellaboo

> How did he work 0/35 rotations? I didn't get to watch the game.


Durant played the entire second period with Martin, and they were bombing shots from everywhere. The lead was 29 at the half.....No starters played the 4th period.

----------


## Stan Silliman

I have two club level side tickets for the Warriors game tonight for sale in Sect 221. They are the roomiest seats in the Arena ($ 77 face). PM me if you want.

----------


## Stan Silliman

Sid, call me at 204-2677

----------


## kevinpate

Of all the days to take a nap
 :Smile:

----------


## Bellaboo

They played pretty good......easy win.

----------


## king183

This thread is an excellent tool to determine who on this board knows absolutely nothing about basketball and how it's played. (e.g., those saying Kendrick Perkins and Kevin Martin aren't good players).

----------


## Teo9969

> This thread is an excellent tool to determine who on this board knows absolutely nothing about basketball and how it's played. (e.g., those saying Kendrick Perkins and Kevin Martin aren't good players).


Perkins haters always make me laugh. Dude is the only reason we have a chance against teams with front courts like Memphis and LA. If we manage to catch the Lakers, Clips, and Grizz consecutively in the playoffs, Perkins will be about $10M underpaid on the season.

----------


## Bill Robertson

> Perkins haters always make me laugh. Dude is the only reason we have a chance against teams with front courts like Memphis and LA. If we manage to catch the Lakers, Clips, and Grizz consecutively in the playoffs, Perkins will be about $10M underpaid on the season.


My son-in-law is one of those Perkins haters. Every time the Thunder come up he complains about Perkins low stats. I'll never get him to understand that as mainly a low-post defender the numbers that stats show isn't what he's here for. And he's very good at what he's here for.

----------


## kevinpate

I admit to knowing little of the game, but isn't Perkins' primarily role to muss up the stats of the guys in the other shirts?

----------


## Bill Robertson

> I admit to knowing little of the game, but isn't Perkins' primarily role to muss up the stats of the guys in the other shirts?


That is exactly his job.

----------


## TaoMaas

> Perkins haters always make me laugh. Dude is the only reason we have a chance against teams with front courts like Memphis and LA. If we manage to catch the Lakers, Clips, and Grizz consecutively in the playoffs, Perkins will be about $10M underpaid on the season.


Thank you! Perk plays his role well.  People who are down on Perk must not have been watching the games before we traded for him.  Pre-Perk, we were the Denver Nuggets...a good team, but not really a serious contender.  Post-Perk, we've been in the Western Conference finals twice and the NBA championship once.  That probably wouldn't have happened if we were still playing Nenad at center and Uncle Jeff at PF.

----------


## Bellaboo

BTW, ZBo was fined $25,000 for the Perkins incident after they were ejected the other night. He's living up to his past......

----------


## OKCisOK4me

^^^That's .25 cents in my pocket.

----------


## Stan Silliman

Two games in a row, Perkins has spent time defending the point guard. In each case, it was sight to behold 
and yet, it did disturb what the PG was trying to do. I doubt he'll accomplish much trying this against Chris 
Paul. But against New Orleans and Golden State, he disrupted their passing lanes. Watch for it.

----------


## Teo9969

> Two games in a row, Perkins has spent time defending the point guard. In each case, it was sight to behold 
> and yet, it did disturb what the PG was trying to do. I doubt he'll accomplish much trying this against Chris 
> Paul. But against New Orleans and Golden State, he disrupted their passing lanes. Watch for it.


The point is that he's a good enough defender to even deal with the idea that he guard a point guard. I'll never forget him begging Tony Parker to come at him at the top of the key in Game 3 of the '12 WCF. He slapped the ball away when Parker advanced and then I think Parker passed it off after corralling the ball.

Perkins is the impetus for the defense on this team, because he brings it mostly in the low-post, but can stretch it to the perimeter if he has to. Sefolosha is a great defender, but he's made even better by having a Perkins/Ibaka tandem in the front-court.

----------


## TaoMaas

> Two games in a row, Perkins has spent time defending the point guard. In each case, it was sight to behold 
> and yet, it did disturb what the PG was trying to do.


Heck, it freaked me out...didn't it, you?  lol  Gotta imagine it had a similar effect on the opposing PG.

----------


## Bill Robertson

> Heck, it freaked me out...didn't it, you?  lol  Gotta imagine it had a similar effect on the opposing PG.


I would have liked a close up face shot of the first PG that saw Perkins waiting for him around half court. I don't remember who it was but I bet he was freaked out.

----------


## Bellaboo

> Heck, it freaked me out...didn't it, you?  lol  Gotta imagine it had a similar effect on the opposing PG.


Perkins says he does that to get him 'fired up'. He says he will only do it when he's playing an opposing center who is not real mobile.

----------


## dankrutka

I'm sorry, but all statistical models show Perkins to be an average center at best. I appreciate his toughness and what he brings, but his offensive game is pretty bad and his defense is often overhyped. The other problem is that Brooks often uses him wrong. Playing Perkins significant minutes in the Finals was a huge mistake. Because the Heat went small, he brought almost nothing to the game as his greatest strength was negated. However, there are not very many true centers anymore so he happens to be about average at the weakest position in the NBA. 

Martin's efficiency has been off the charts this season (much like Harden before leaving). He's definitely benefitting from playing with KD and Russ. He'll never make his teammates better like Harden did, but I'm very happy with what he's bringing. 

My biggest problem right now with the team is Brooks inability to develop young players. While KD, Russ, and Harden all played heavy minutes and grew (through mistakes) as NBA players, all our recent draft picks get no opportunities for growth and seem to gradually lose confidence. Aldrich and Jackson are 2 1st round picks that have never developed, and the same is now happening with Jones III and Lamb. How valuable are the draft picks from the trade if they never play or grow?

----------


## OKCisOK4me

You should go fill out an application KT.  I'm sure they could use your insight on saving them big bucks in the long term.

----------


## dankrutka

> You should go fill out an application KT.  I'm sure they could use your insight on saving them big bucks in the long term.


First, the NBA is littered with terrible contracts. Second, this is a message board. Therefore, it's okay to have an opinion about sports on a message board in the section about sports.

Let me know when you have something of substance to say, not just childish snide remarks.

----------


## TaoMaas

> Aldrich and Jackson are 2 1st round picks that have never developed, and the same is now happening with Jones III and Lamb. How valuable are the draft picks from the trade if they never play or grow?


In order to get significant playing time for Lamb and Jones, somebody has to sit.  Jones is KD's back-up, so do we sit KD more just to develop a rookie?  We could move Lamb or KD to the 4, but that bumps out Collison, unless we move him to center.  But that would bump out Thabeet, who has probably been the most improved player on the roster.  Do we give up significant progress in a #2 pick in order to _maybe_ develop a much lower draft pick?  Then, to get Lamb some minutes, we either have to bump Thabo or Kmart...or shuffle things around, same as with PJIII.  Frankly, I like what Brooks has been doing so far in the season.  He's been finding some time for the rooks (granted...Jones, more than Lamb) in the rotations in comfortable games and giving them (and Reggie) extended minutes in blow-outs.  Cracking the rotations of the Thunder right now is a very tough thing simply because they are one of the 2 or 3 best teams in the NBA.

----------


## Bellaboo

Actually, they do a very good job of development, but it takes time. Very few rookies, especially on a stacked team, get much playing time their first few months of the season. Jackson was unfortunate to be our rookie last season during the lockout and did not have the summer league and only 2 weeks pre-season to develop. I think you'll see Lamb and Jones come along as the season goes along. Harden's rookie year wasn't so great after all either.

Look at Thabeet compared to what he's done the previous 3 years. Last night he looked as if could be somewhat dominant against any teams 2's.

----------


## betts

Darnell Mayberry thinks Maynor is gone and Reggie is our backup point guard of the future.  I have a lot of faith in Darnell's opinions. A draft pick is a lot like an interview. You sometimes can't tell how the person will perform when on the job. If the Thunder don't develop a player, it's likely that circumstances suggest to Presti that the player is ultimately going to be on another team. It's way too early to tell anything about Jones and Lamb however.

----------


## dankrutka

First, PJIII is NOT KD's back up. If he got the 8-10 minutes a game that KD didn't play is I'd be satisfied. He doesn't. Second, I'm not saying that we have to play young guys, but then why make a trade for a bunch of young players?!? There seems to be no point in even getting young players if they'll never play. The staff has done a terrible job of developing young players since the team has been a playoff team. Mullens, Aldrich, and Jackson are 3 first round picks that never even helped the team. It's either awful drafting or terrible development. You shouldn't get nothing out of 3 consecutive 1st round picks (with 2 more doing nothing right now). If you're not going to play young guys then trade them for something else. They're valuable assets before the Thunder kills their value.

----------


## MonkeesFan

Just bought Magic-Thunder ticket for March 15th, I hope Magic will upset the Thunder but I doubt it, the Magic never wins here  :Frown:

----------


## TaoMaas

> First, PJIII is NOT KD's back up.



That's not my determination...that's exactly what Coach Brooks has said.  Doesn't matter what you or I think, but it DOES matter what the guy coaching the game thinks.

----------


## TaoMaas

> Mullens, Aldrich, and Jackson are 3 first round picks that never even helped the team. It's either awful drafting or terrible development. You shouldn't get nothing out of 3 consecutive 1st round picks (with 2 more doing nothing right now). If you're not going to play young guys then trade them for something else. They're valuable assets before the Thunder kills their value.


What makes you think they weren't developed?  Because they didn't play much?  Mullens and Aldrich were trying to replace proven players with championship rings.  Mullens has been playing well for Charlotte, but the Bobcats are no Thunder.  They're the historically worst team in the history of the NBA!  He may have done okay for the Thunder...but  who knows?  And do we want offense or defense from our center?  Mullens has been scoring, but nobody is singing the praises of his defense.  I haven't been following Cole, but I think he was on track for Nazr's job before the trade...so I'm not sure it's safe to say he never made progress.  This year, there's a debate as to whether Reggie ought to be playing instead of Maynor.  I'm a big Maynor fan, so to even being asking the question says a lot about Reggie, to my mind.  Getting minutes with the Thunder is not a good indication of the worth or development of a player.  Anyone who has followed OU football has seen this many, many times before.

----------


## Bellaboo

> *Darnell Mayberry thinks Maynor is gone and Reggie is our backup point guard of the future.*  I have a lot of faith in Darnell's opinions. A draft pick is a lot like an interview. You sometimes can't tell how the person will perform when on the job. If the Thunder don't develop a player, it's likely that circumstances suggest to Presti that the player is ultimately going to be on another team. It's way too early to tell anything about Jones and Lamb however.


It's also a matter of money between Reggie and Eric. Reggie is on the rookie scale for another season while Maynor is an RFA come July 1. Jackson is also more athletic than Maynor, just needs more experience.

----------


## Teo9969

> First, PJIII is NOT KD's back up. If he got the 8-10 minutes a game that KD didn't play is I'd be satisfied. He doesn't. Second, I'm not saying that we have to play young guys, but then why make a trade for a bunch of young players?!? There seems to be no point in even getting young players if they'll never play. The staff has done a terrible job of developing young players since the team has been a playoff team. Mullens, Aldrich, and Jackson are 3 first round picks that never even helped the team. It's either awful drafting or terrible development. You shouldn't get nothing out of 3 consecutive 1st round picks (with 2 more doing nothing right now). If you're not going to play young guys then trade them for something else. They're valuable assets before the Thunder kills their value.


If you didn't use language that suggested that the Thunder staff is doing an awful job, it might be easier to lend your points some credibility.

Here's the problem with the idea that any of these young players contribute: Perkins, Ibaka, Sefolosha, Durant, Westbrook, Martin, Maynor, Collison. Those 8 players right there will routinely count for 225+/240 minutes in any game that really matters. That leaves 15 minutes or less for 4 guys to make contributions.

Those 4 guys are Thabeet, Jones, Lamb, and Jackson. Thabeet is averaging 12.5 minutes/game in every game he's been healthy enough to play in. He's progressing really quickly for a guy who many have already labeled as a bust. Him taking 75%+ of the leftover minutes seems to be good coaching to me, seeings how he's the #1 position at which we need to develop our depth.

In the meantime, this team has seen what amounts to a partial "overhaul" to it's roster bringing in Thabeet and Martin, losing Harden, and reincorporating Maynor into the offense. The team has needed and may still need for a few more weeks to solidify the lineups that Scott is going to run with his 8/9 most important players. Sometime between now and the trade deadline, I would like to see more play from Lamb/Jones/Jackson and even Maynor (who is only averaging only 18 more seconds than Thabeet), but not at the detriment of making sure that Martin is integrated into the team, and that the bigger things that need to be done (like installing an offense) are done effectively, so that the post-season run does not fall on its face.

You lament the development of Lamb/Jones/Jackson but you're not admitting that developing those 3 will stunt the much needed development of Ibaka/Westbrook/Durant, all of whom are no where near where they will eventually be. They need the playing time just as much so that they can gel with Martin, and continue to learn how to play with each other on both sides of the floor.

It's almost as if you want to see 12 guys make significant contributions. That simply not realistic.

----------


## Bellaboo

I've got 2 tickets and a parking pass for Monday night's game against the Charlotte Bobcats for $170, which is the season ticket holder face value for the tickets and parking pass.

Club Level, Section 219, Row G, Seats 11 & 12.

I have other games if interested.

PM me if you are interested.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

Anyone selling tickets for the November 30th game against the Utah Jazz? I would love to attend this game for my 19th birthday

----------


## dankrutka

> That's not my determination...that's exactly what Coach Brooks has said.  Doesn't matter what you or I think, but it DOES matter what the guy coaching the game thinks.


Uh, what?!? Actions speak louder than words. If PJIII is KD's back up then he would play. He doesn't. PJIII is, unfortunately, not in the rotation at all.

----------


## blangtang

I have a used thunder T-shirt, i believe it is sized large, in good condition.  If anyone wants to buy it please PM me. :P :Stick Out Tongue:

----------


## TaoMaas

> Uh, what?!? Actions speak louder than words. If PJIII is KD's back up then he would play. He doesn't. PJIII is, unfortunately, not in the rotation at all.


I see...you don't follow the Thunder that closely.  Jones WAS getting playing time, but was just standing around.  Brooks had told him that he would be judged, not on his actual production, but on how hard he tried.  Perry picked it up some, but obviously not enough.  The answer I gave...about why Jones wasn't getting more playing times...is what Brooks replied.  He said Jones was KD's back-up.  And as such, minutes would be hard to come by.  Jones was given a chance...didn't respond...and Brooks moved on to trying to find combinations that worked.  Just between you and me, I'd love to see Jones and Lamb given more playing time, especially since our 2nd team has been getting it's booty kicked the last few games.  I think there would be some growing pains, but it would eventually pay off.  But, hey...I'm not betting my job (and with it, the lifestyle of my wife and kids) on playing Jones...Brooks is.  It's always easier to gamble with someone else's money.

----------


## Bellaboo

> I have a used thunder T-shirt, i believe it is sized large, in good condition.  If anyone wants to buy it please PM me. :P


Dang, you're so original .....lol

----------


## dankrutka

> I see...you don't follow the Thunder that closely.  Jones WAS getting playing time, but was just standing around.  Brooks had told him that he would be judged, not on his actual production, but on how hard he tried.  Perry picked it up some, but obviously not enough.  The answer I gave...about why Jones wasn't getting more playing times...is what Brooks replied.  He said Jones was KD's back-up.  And as such, minutes would be hard to come by.  Jones was given a chance...didn't respond...and Brooks moved on to trying to find combinations that worked.  Just between you and me, I'd love to see Jones and Lamb given more playing time, especially since our 2nd team has been getting it's booty kicked the last few games.  I think there would be some growing pains, but it would eventually pay off.  But, hey...I'm not betting my job (and with it, the lifestyle of my wife and kids) on playing Jones...Brooks is.  It's always easier to gamble with someone else's money.


PJIII has never recieved real back up minutes. Ever. He's been thrown in a couple times, but that doesn't make you the back up. Insulting my basketball IQ is pointless. Just smake your points. If you're relying on Brooks quotes to explain the Thunder rotation then it's not surprising you believe things that aren't true. Brooks said the back up PG spot was up for grabs between RJ and Maynor, but that was obviously not true. Maynor has been pathetic this year (see Mayberry's article today about how bad he's been) and RJ has not recieved any opportunities. Quit drinking the coachspeak and you'll realize that just because Brooks said he is the back up does not make it so. He actually has to play back up minutes in games for it to be real.

----------


## Bellaboo

> i've got 2 tickets and a parking pass for monday night's game against the charlotte bobcats for $170, which is the season ticket holder face value for the tickets and parking pass.
> 
> Club level, section 219, row g, seats 11 & 12.
> 
> I have other games if interested.
> 
> Pm me if you are interested.


sold

----------


## king183

Post removed by me.

----------


## Teo9969

Not sure if I'm ready for this. Gonna be an emotional game.

I hope Harden is cheered when he comes on the court and proceeds to shoot 0/13 on the night, with 9 Blocks Against and 35 Turnovers.

----------


## dankrutka

> I bet he will be.


I don't know. Getting blocked 35 times seems like a lot...  :Wink:

----------


## king183

> Not sure if I'm ready for this. Gonna be an emotional game.
> 
> I hope Harden is cheered when he comes on the court and proceeds to shoot 0/13 on the night, with 9 Blocks Against and 35 Turnovers.



Haha...you were a lot closer than most expected.  

Harden was 3-16 (one of those baskets was a freebie). had 6 blocked, and 3 turnovers.   He looked terrible out there.  Truly terrible.

----------


## OKCDrummer77

The Thunder have faced a former teammate in each of the last 5 games:

Boston - Jeff Green
Philadelphia - Damien Wilkins
Charlotte - Byron Mullens
Houston - James Harden, Daequan Cook, Cole Aldrich
Utah - Earl Watson

----------


## Stan Silliman

> The Thunder have faced a former teammate in each of the last 5 games:
> 
> Boston - Jeff Green
> Philadelphia - Damien Wilkins
> Charlotte - Byron Mullens
> Houston - James Harden, Daequan Cook, Cole Aldrich
> Utah - Earl Watson


And now Dallas has signed D. Fisher. Such is life in the NBA.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> And now Dallas has signed D. Fisher. Such is life in the NBA.


Derek Fisher left? I thought he was doing a decent job last year and I thought he would stay 2 more years until he retires

----------


## Hawk405359

> Derek Fisher left? I thought he was doing a decent job last year and I thought he would stay 2 more years until he retires


He was only on the team because of Maynor's injury.  He provided second team guidance, but was never a long-term solution

Good win tonight against the Nets.  Even though they were without Brook Lopez, it was a tough game.

----------


## Bellaboo

Durant Missed the Dunk last night against the Nets, but WOW did he elevate.


DurantDunkedOff - YouTube

----------


## Bill Robertson

> Durant Missed the Dunk last night against the Nets, but WOW did he elevate.
> 
> 
> DurantDunkedOff - YouTube


Yes he did! And since there was a blocking foul and KD made both it all turned out good.

----------


## Teo9969

Something I thought about as I played around with the below linked chart...

When we got this team, we knew they sucked. When they played the first chunk of that 2008 season, we knew they really sucked. But we were all so glad to have a sports team.

I remember listening to the Sports Animal and they talked about what would be reasonable hopes/expectations for the team: 2008 - win 10 games, get a good draft pick. 2009 - win 25 games and start showing signs of potential. 2010 - be near .500 and start vying for a playoff position. 2011 - Make the playoffs...Just make them. 2012 - Just make the playoffs for a 2nd year in a row.

...So when we first got this team in 2008, 2011 was to be our first real opportunity to make the playoffs...We ended up in the Finals. This season, or maybe next season, was the first time I think anyone expected that we might win a playoff series against the likes of the Lakers/Mavericks/Spurs. 

Instead, this year, I think we can rationally say that we are favorites to win our conference for the second year in a row, and that we have a chance to compete even further into the NBA finals, and maybe bring home the trophy.

It's truly remarkable what this team has done in such a short amount of time...and it's amazing how much they've just blown any expectations out of the water.

So glad to have the Thunder in Oklahoma City.

Oklahoma City Thunder Trended NBA Power Rankings - ESPN

----------


## Bill Robertson

Right on Teo!

----------


## blangtang

Anyone seen the Kendrick Perkins local jewelry store commercial, that cracked me up! :O)

----------


## ljbab728

I also like Kendrick's car commercial.  His deadpan scowl is just right for certain ads.

----------


## Mel

KP's scowl is world class. Makes me jealous.

----------


## Stan Silliman

> KP's scowl is world class. Makes me jealous.


Put him in a face off with Eddie Sutton.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

I know its still early in the season but is there anyone else watching the standings like a hawk this week? Memphis lost a couple nights ago, which now gives the Spurs the #1 spot in the west, but Thunder is still staying afloat with San Antonio, hopefully we will be #1 after we beat the Spurs on Monday, and I dont know if anyone noticed but this is the first time the Thunder has ever been on an 8 game winning streak  :Smile:

----------


## Jim Kyle

Sshhhhhh, don't jinx us!

----------


## OKCisOK4me

Yeah my mom is going to her first Thunder game ever Wednesday night and it'd be crap if the lowly Hornets beat us at home!

----------


## Bellaboo

> Yeah my mom is going to her first Thunder game ever Wednesday night and it'd be crap if the lowly Hornets beat us at home!


I sold my tickets to a lady at work who is going to her first Thunder game tonight......are her initials  M.H.   ???


And we're going to kick the Hornets/Pelicans butts.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

No, these tickets are from my uncle and I'm going with my mom...but her first name is Mary ;-)

----------


## SoonerBoy18

Well sorry for that semi jinx. Lol

----------


## Jim Kyle

'Twere a real nail-biter!!!

----------


## OKCDrummer77

We had a 9 game winning streak back in February 2010, our second season.  It took us to another level - from "We're kinda good" to "Hey, we might make the Playoffs" - which, of course, we did.

----------


## OSUMom

That was an ugly, ugly game.  But a win is a win.

----------


## ljbab728

> That was an ugly, ugly game.  But a win is a win.


You're absolutely right.  I'm sure that Miami would have been pleased with an ugly win tonight instead of an ugly loss at home against the Warriors.  All that matters in the NBA is wins and losses.  San Antonio could change their game tonight around in the second half but they are trailing at Utah at half.  The Thunder could be alone with the best record in the NBA after tonight. (Memphis lost again)

----------


## ljbab728

In a very entertaining game the Jazz beat the Spurs by 3 points with a 3 point shot at the buzzer.  The Thunder are on top for now anyway.

----------


## Anonymous.

Don't discount the Warriors... They can be for real come playoff time.

Nice to see the Spurs get sunk by a buzzer. Feels good after Parker man handled us (mostly RW) in Game #1 this season.

----------


## dankrutka

I'll go ahead and discount the Warriors. They've made nice strides this year, but they're not ready to make a serious run. Come playoff time I see them as the 7th or 8th best team in the west at best. I fully expect all the teams ahead of them already innthe standings and the Mavs (Dirk will be back) and Lakers (no way they're this bad all season... see the Heat two years ago) to be bigger threats come the end of the season.

----------


## Stan Silliman

> I'll go ahead and discount the Warriors. They've made nice strides this year, but they're not ready to make a serious run. Come playoff time I see them as the 7th or 8th best team in the west at best. I fully expect all the teams ahead of them already innthe standings and the Mavs (Dirk will be back) and Lakers (no way they're this bad all season... see the Heat two years ago) to be bigger threats come the end of the season.


You said it. The Mavs have learned to play without Dirk and have a prescription for scoring while 
he's resting. When the Lakers get Nash back, they'll be 20 % better and I'm guessing Pau Gasal 
will be a factor with Nash around. 

Can the Grizzlies get through the season without injuries? Right now they're overloading Marc 
Gasal's and Zack's minutes. That can take a toll late in the season. 

I expect, at the end, it'll be the Spurs and the Thunder fighting for 1st in the West. With neither
team having the winning percentage it had last year.

----------


## dankrutka

> Can the Grizzlies get through the season without injuries? Right now they're overloading Marc 
> Gasal's and Zack's minutes. That can take a toll late in the season.


Huh? Neither of them are in the top 20 minutes played per game. On the other hand, KD plays the 3rd most minutes in the NBA: 2012-13 Regular Season NBA Player Stats and League Leaders - Minutes - National Basketball Association - ESPN.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> I'll go ahead and discount the Warriors. They've made nice strides this year, but they're not ready to make a serious run. Come playoff time I see them as the 7th or 8th best team in the west at best. I fully expect all the teams ahead of them already innthe standings and the Mavs (Dirk will be back) and Lakers (no way they're this bad all season... see the Heat two years ago) to be bigger threats come the end of the season.


I won't discount the Warriors.  They've started a road streak 5-0 for the first time since 78-79.  I was born in 78...so that's a looooooong time.  Best thing is to not discount any team in this league.  It's happened to the Heat twice now--losing to Golden State and recently lost against the Wizards!  Russell Westbrook recently said you gotta have your game face on at all times cause any team can win at any time.  It's the NBA.  Our boys luckily didn't end up like the other big boys last night.

----------


## dankrutka

Anyone can win in the NBA on any night.... In the regular season. The playoffs are actually much more predictable. 

Playoffs are different than the regular season. I don't see the Warriors as having much of a chance of beating the Thunder, Spurs, Grizzlies, Clippers, and probably even the Mavs and Lakers by the end of the season. They'll very likely be a 5-8 seed in the playoffs. I don't see them beating any of those top 4 teams without home court (or even if they had it). They have no playoff experience and they're the type of team that will struggle with the more physical playoffs. They're a great story, but they have first round exit written all over them. Again, we'll see how it plays out, but I'm confident that they won't be a serious threat come playoff time.

----------


## Teo9969

The Thunder are definitely the favorite out of the west. From there, if Memphis can make some moves to shore up their bench, they would be #2 (with a great chance to knock off any team because of how great their front court is). San Antonio and the Clippers round out the Top 4. From there, there is a drop off and I don't think any team is going to beat one of those 4 teams in the first round. 

Dallas and LA will be threats, but LA is going to struggle just to make the playoffs (I'm guessing they'll be 4 games under .500 going into the all-star break if not worse). Dallas, even with Nowitzki, doesn't really seem like a team that is going to make a serious run. They could maybe beat the Clippers in the first round, but I don't see them beating any of the other big 4.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

Yeah, we'll find out on Tuesday morning how big of a favorite the Thunder are for the west.  We're 1/2 a game up on San Antonio, unless they've played and won since their loss at Utah.  We play them at home on Monday and the guys will be more fired up for that one than this last game and the one tonight.  SA can't win that game as those wins will go in their pocket for a better chance at home court advantage come post season.  We have to win on Monday.

----------


## BrettM2

> Yeah, we'll find out on Tuesday morning how big of a favorite the Thunder are for the west.  We're 1/2 a game up on San Antonio, unless they've played and won since their loss at Utah.  We play them at home on Monday and the guys will be more fired up for that one than this last game and the one tonight.  SA can't win that game as those wins will go in their pocket for a better chance at home court advantage come post season.  We have to win on Monday.


Lost to Portland last night.  Big deal for us is that we can't have a let down tonight because it is only the Kings when we play SA on Monday.  If our guys can stay focused, we have a good shot to beat the Spurs and keep this streak going.

----------


## Bellaboo

Dup post, so I deleted.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> Lost to Portland last night.  Big deal for us is that we can't have a let down tonight because it is only the Kings when we play SA on Monday.  If our guys can stay focused, we have a good shot to beat the Spurs and keep this streak going.


Well, heck, that sucks for SA, but I ain't hurting, lol.  I think they (our guys) kinda had their let down against the Pelicans.  That game was just abysmal in the first half.  I think (knocking on wood) that they'll be on point tonight.

----------


## BrettM2

> Well, heck, that sucks for SA, but I ain't hurting, lol.  I think they (our guys) kinda had their let down against the Pelicans.  That game was just abysmal in the first half.  I think (knocking on wood) that they'll be on point tonight.


I hope you're right.  Our guys don't generally have off nights two games in a row, so hopefully they'll come out hungry.  I'd like to see Martin with 20 by half and RW0 with double digit assists, but no one plays in the 4th quarter.

----------


## king183

I have two tickets for tonight's game against the Kings I cannot use and will be selling.  If anyone from OKCtalk is interested, PM me.  They're in Section 212. I'm selling for $100 total, which is below face value. They also come with a parking pass. 

Update: Sold.

----------


## Anonymous.

Although the term is overused, tonight is definitely a "trap game". Kings will play their best ball, meanwhile Thunder may be looking ahead to Monday night.

Spurs are finally showing some signs of ability to lose. OKC has revenge on their minds for the first game of the season. Especially on Russell to pester the crap out of Tony.


We traded our tickets for tonights game for some different tickets on Monday. So tonight we will be couch cheering.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

Well, it looks like they're going to score more points this first half than on Wednesday so that's a good sign!

----------


## dankrutka

You all should remember that (a) the Thunder have had an easy schedule up to now, (b) the Spurs have had a tough schedule, and (c) regular season record does not mean a team will advance furthest in the playoffs. For example, Chicago finished with the best record two years ago and there was zero chance they were beating the Heat. Last year, the Spurs were #1 and we know what happened. It's fun to analyze who the "best" team is now, but it matters way more how teams are playing in April and what they're capable of overall.

----------


## blangtang

Here's something new I came across, about the Harden trade options apparently:

Wizards owner Ted Leonsis refuted a recent report that he refused to trade for then-Thunder G James Harden because Harden's contract demands would have put the team in the luxury tax.

*The reported trade would have sent Bradley Beal and Chris Singleton to OKC for Harden*, who eventually landed in Houston and signed a five-year, $80 million contract. Leonsis took to his own blog after the report surfaced, writing, "That is simply not true. First, we would not have gone into the luxury tax – that is simple math. Second, economics were not a factor." Leonsis, also owner of the NHL's Capitals, cited their financials and previous big Wizards contracts as proof of his willingness to spend money. Gilbert Arenas wholeheartedly agrees with that last part.
Source: TedsTake.com
Dec 15 - 9:38 AM

K-Mart seems to be fitting okay into the Harden role of last year, but I'm not too familiar with how Beal and Singleton play.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

Our next 4 are tough! San Antonio, @ Atlanta (who would have thought, but they have won the last 2 meetings with us), @ Minnesota, and @ Miami

----------


## dankrutka

> K-Mart seems to be fitting okay into the Harden role of last year, but I'm not too familiar with how Beal and Singleton play.


This would have been a far worse trade. I don't think Presti would have done it. There would have been some other asset involved. NBA GMs discuss trades all the time, and sometimes talks are very informal. I bet that's what this was. Just preliminary talks that never went far...

----------


## dankrutka

> Our next 4 are tough! San Antonio, @ Atlanta (who would have thought, but they have won the last 2 meetings with us), @ Minnesota, and @ Miami


Yep. This will be a good early season test to see where the team is right now.

----------


## Bellaboo

KD is so fast executing his part of the lob from Russell it's hard for anyone to stop. Man is he quick for a big guy.

Enjoy -

Russell Westbrook Kevin Durant backdoor lob - YouTube

----------


## BoulderSooner

> Here's something new I came across, about the Harden trade options apparently:
> 
> Wizards owner Ted Leonsis refuted a recent report that he refused to trade for then-Thunder G James Harden because Harden's contract demands would have put the team in the luxury tax.
> 
> *The reported trade would have sent Bradley Beal and Chris Singleton to OKC for Harden*, who eventually landed in Houston and signed a five-year, $80 million contract. Leonsis took to his own blog after the report surfaced, writing, "That is simply not true. First, we would not have gone into the luxury tax – that is simple math. Second, economics were not a factor." Leonsis, also owner of the NHL's Capitals, cited their financials and previous big Wizards contracts as proof of his willingness to spend money. Gilbert Arenas wholeheartedly agrees with that last part.
> Source: TedsTake.com
> Dec 15 - 9:38 AM
> 
> K-Mart seems to be fitting okay into the Harden role of last year, but I'm not too familiar with how Beal and Singleton play.


the odds of this trade are 0 and the story is note even accurate ..

----------


## Teo9969

So, if OKC pulls off the next two (@ATL, @MIN), which will be no easy task mind you, then they will be headed into a Christmas Day battle @Miami with a chance to tie the longest winning streak in franchise history. Not that the game needs any more hype than it will get...but that's just one more byline to be had.

----------


## Bellaboo

We lost to ATL in the third game of the year. They were short Josh Smith and we were not playing together at all early in the year. I hope we play well tonight and beat them by 10. It's also a 6:30 pm CST start time.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

Yep.  Will be interesting to see how the game goes tonight.  Working til 8 though so I'll be listening to it on the radio.

----------


## Bill Robertson

> Our next 4 are tough! San Antonio, @ Atlanta (who would have thought, but they have won the last 2 meetings with us), @ Minnesota, and @ Miami





> Yep. This will be a good early season test to see where the team is right now.


I agree it is a good test. And halfway through I would say the Thunder are passing with flying colors!

----------


## OKCisOK4me

As noted on the radio broadcast last night, we've won 12 straight against Minnesota and we're sitting on 12 consecutive victories.  Do we go 13 for 13 tonight?

----------


## Teo9969

I mean, on paper we should. The Thunder choose to win or to lose this game...it's not really up to Minnesota. Considering that they have 4 days rest between the end of the game and @Miami, I think they play as hard as they need to to win. Let's just hope the shots are falling.

(As an aside, KD is shooting more efficiently on the road than he is at home...by a noticeable margin).

----------


## OKCisOK4me

Too bad we have these games back to back.  I'd rather they play on Friday and then have 3 days off.  So many days off could ruin their momentum.

----------


## Bellaboo

It's My F'n House !

Yes, KD, it is....................

Kevin Durant stuffs Josh Smith and then draws and-1 dunk on him - YouTube

----------


## SoonerBoy18

Nothing gets better than when we are playing on TNT, or ABC, I am so eager to see what Earnie, Kenny, Shaq, and Charles Barkley has to say about our 12 game win streak on Inside the NBA tonight =)

----------


## OKCisOK4me

Wonderful jinx...cause they won't be mentioning a thing about it after we lose this game.  We'll be looking to start fresh off in Miami!

----------


## SoonerBoy18

Now I done lost count at how many games Thunder done started off slow! It all started when they let Sacramento comeback with 5, What is happening??!

----------


## ljbab728

They "done" started off with a 22 - 6  record is what's happening.  In the NBA the wins and losses are all that matter.

----------


## Dustin

This was a fun one to watch!   That OT buzzer beater will haunt me for the rest of my life...

----------


## dankrutka

> Now I done lost count at how many games Thunder done started off slow! It all started when they let Sacramento comeback with 5, What is happening??!


The starting lineup, while improved this season, is not that good as a unit. Brooks need to get more efficient line-ups out there more instead of playing Perkins AND Ibaka to finish the Heat game. It's ridiculous he hasn't figured out that we can't stay big when they go small. It doesn't work.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

Wasn't it about this time last year when the talk about our team was this:

What are the chances we will reach 30 wins before 10 losses???

----------


## Teo9969

> The starting lineup, while improved this season, is not that good as a unit. Brooks need to get more efficient line-ups out there more instead of playing Perkins AND Ibaka to finish the Heat game. It's ridiculous he hasn't figured out that we can't stay big when they go small. It doesn't work.


The starting lineup is +51 on the season or the 10th best +/- 5 man lineup in the NBA. Only three of those lineups ahead of OKC have spent more than 300 minutes on the floor together (Thunder with the second most at 483).

And we don't do well against them playing small because Lebron and Bosh eat us alive. We can't play the matchup game with Miami. We have to find a way to get our bigs more involved on the offensive end. If we are going to beat Miami in a 7 game series, at least 2 of them need to look like this:

Miami Heat vs. Oklahoma City Thunder - Box Score - March 25, 2012 - ESPN

----------


## Teo9969

> Wasn't it about this time last year when the talk about our team was this:
> 
> What are the chances we will reach 30 wins before 10 losses???


That's reasonable to think. We were at 22 - 6 Last year, 28 games in. We're now 23-6 compared to 22-7 last year.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> That's reasonable to think. We were at 22 - 6 Last year, 28 games in. We're now 23-6 compared to 22-7 last year.


Our next 11 games are 

Phoenix (win)
Brooklyn (winnable)
Philadelphia (win)
@ Toronto (winnable)
@ Washington (winnable)
Minnesota (not a guaranteed win lol)
@ Lakers (probably a loss since they're playing better now)
@ Portland (winnable)
@ Phoenix (winnable)
Denver (win)
@ Dallas (probably a regulation win for Cuban's Contenders)

So based on my opinion, I see us having a solid chance of winning 3 games based on the competition and the fact that they're home games.  The others are all toss-ups because we haven't seen our guys play much on the road, other than against inferior teams and even inferior teams have beaten us on the road.  If they play like they did against Houston last night, then they'll get to 30 wins easily.

My guess after this 11 game stretch....30 wins with 9 losses... That game in Dallas will be their 10th loss.

----------


## Bellaboo

Dallas sucks................that's an easy win for us.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

Oh yeah cause we barely beat them at home lol

----------


## ljbab728

> The starting lineup is +51 on the season or the 10th best +/- 5 man lineup in the NBA. Only three of those lineups ahead of OKC have spent more than 300 minutes on the floor together (Thunder with the second most at 483).
> 
> And we don't do well against them playing small because Lebron and Bosh eat us alive. We can't play the matchup game with Miami. We have to find a way to get our bigs more involved on the offensive end. If we are going to beat Miami in a 7 game series, at least 2 of them need to look like this:
> 
> Miami Heat vs. Oklahoma City Thunder - Box Score - March 25, 2012 - ESPN


Detroit and Milwaukee seemed to figure out the key to success against Miami fairly well in their last two games.

----------


## Teo9969

> Detroit and Milwaukee seemed to figure out the key to success against Miami fairly well in their last two games.


I mean, sure, they beat Miami...they didn't really find keys to success against the Playoffs Miami Heat. The Christmas Eve game was important to Miami. I'm sure both OKC and Miami used it as the major measuring stick for where they are at for the first 3rd of the season. It looked like playoff basketball. I'm also pretty sure Miami was not concerned at all for Detroit and Milwaukee.

I don't think that Miami cares about having home court, tbh.

----------


## Teo9969

> Our next 11 games are 
> 
> Phoenix (win)
> Brooklyn (winnable)
> Philadelphia (win)
> @ Toronto (winnable)
> @ Washington (winnable)
> Minnesota (not a guaranteed win lol)
> @ Lakers (probably a loss since they're playing better now)
> ...


I'd say the Denver game is less guaranteed than all of the "winnable" games save for Brooklyn. But I agree, 3 losses, end the stretch 31-9.

----------


## ljbab728

> I'm also pretty sure Miami was not concerned at all for Detroit and Milwaukee.


Right.  A team like Miami should be able to beat Detroit and Milwaukee (19 point loss) without being concerned about them.  Is that why OKC lost to Minneapolis?

----------


## Teo9969

> Right.  *A team like Miami should be able to beat Detroit and Milwaukee (19 point loss) without being concerned about them.*  Is that why OKC lost to Minneapolis?


I don't know that I can really agree to that. The margin for error is not high in any top professional league. In fact, I don't think the spectrum for level of play is very long at all for professional teams.  If you don't take your opponent seriously (a luxury you can afford in 80+ game leagues), your odds for winning are not great. 

When I say "not concerned about" I mean that the level of focus is not particularly intense. I don't think it's often that a professional team wholesale takes a night off.

----------


## Bellaboo

> Oh yeah cause we barely beat them at home lol


That's why we'll play that game differently the next time. Dallas Sucks !

----------


## Dustin

Downtown is going to be hoppin' tonight!  Thunder game, Barons game, then New Years Celebrations!

----------


## Teo9969

Didn't get to watch the game, but it seems like Reggie Jackson is really starting to figure it out. If he keeps this up through January, then I think we're seeing the last days of Maynor in a Thunder uniform.

----------


## Bellaboo

> Didn't get to watch the game, but it seems like Reggie Jackson is really starting to figure it out. If he keeps this up through January, then I think we're seeing the last days of Maynor in a Thunder uniform.


I second this, Maynor is not the same player as before the injury, this is his contract year and there obviously was a reason Prestigiocomo didn't offer him a new contract.

----------


## Anonymous.

Clippers finally lose, OKC best record in the league once again.

----------


## Jake

Pretty cool:

Media notebook: Oklahoma City Thunder ranks No. 1 in NBA in local TV ratings

----------


## blangtang

These black and white jerseys-I have trouble telling which player is which.  Maybe I need a bigger TV!

----------


## Anonymous.

Thunder lose to the worst team in the league in DC, for the second season in a row. Something about Washington that has OKC's number.


Granted it was a one handed buzzer beater. But being in that position, the loss is on OKC.

----------


## Teo9969

They beat Miami fairly frequently too.

Sometimes it's just not your night...when you miss 16 straight shots, not a whole lot you can do to win the game. That OKC was even in the game after not scoring for nearly an entire quarter is impressive.

----------


## Jake

The Thunder are awful when it comes to perimeter defense, and to an extent, defense in general. It's somewhat concerning. 

I don't want the Thunder to be the D'Antoni Suns.

----------


## Anonymous.

If the team would stop jumping around like goofballs @ every pump fake, things would improve. I think the team gets so amped up on defense, they start soaring all over the court trying to block shots and end up having to avoid hitting the person to commit a foul and then get out of position, or like Russell tonight, hit the guy and he makes it.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

Based on my earlier prognosis of the next 11 games...they're going to get to 10 losses before 30 wins easily. At least San Antonio lost at New Orleans tonight!

----------


## Teo9969

> The Thunder are awful when it comes to perimeter defense, and to an extent, defense in general. It's somewhat concerning. 
> 
> I don't want the Thunder to be the D'Antoni Suns.


Awful?

Hollinger's NBA Team Stats - ESPN Insider - National Basketball Association - ESPN

Hardly awful. They've had a bad couple games because honestly, for whatever reason, they seem to be coasting through this stretch. Perkins not playing well defensively is probably driving the lack of great defense...but hey, it's the regular season. They're still a Top 10 team in terms of efficiency. The team, and particularly the defense, will be fine come mid-April.

Also, the lack of perimeter defense has as much to do with bench guards knowing when to help and when not to...Far more often than not, I feel like they are trying to help when they don't need to. Martin is still learning and I still catch him helping inside way too much, but not near as bad as I remember the beginning of the year. 

And for all the hell Brooks has caught for not changing up lineups he has done exactly the opposite throughout major stretches of the season. The lineups where Thabo and Russ are on the floor at the same time without KD always seem to be defensive struggles because nobody really knows where to be...Thabo playing the 4 is definitely not something he's used to, and incredibly unlikely to occur come playoff time. However, I don't mind him playing it because it will only enhance his understanding of the defense in the long run.

----------


## Jake

When you give up 101 points to the statistically worst offensive team in the NBA without their 2 best offensive players, your defense was awful.

I don't really think the Thunder will be the D'Antoni Suns, it's just annoying that the Thunder don't play good defense sometimes when all of their players except Martin have the ability to be at least decent defenders. Obviously the team will have off nights, but the perimeter defense has seemed extremely poor this season. I've watched just about every Thunder game this year and I always seem to hear Brian Davis saying, "And (random opposing shooting guard) with his highest scoring night this season." 

Their defensive assignments seem out of whack. Luckily, it's something that's very fixable and most likely will be come playoff time. Hopefully.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> Based on my earlier prognosis of the next 11 games...they're going to get to 10 losses before 30 wins easily. At least San Antonio lost at New Orleans tonight!


Yes thats why I'll give thunder loss a pass tonight lol

----------


## SoonerBoy18

Thats 2 consecutive losses to Wizards. Embarrassing.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

Those two posts totally contradict...

----------


## ljbab728

> Based on my earlier prognosis of the next 11 games...they're going to get to 10 losses before 30 wins easily. At least San Antonio lost at New Orleans tonight!


Let me be the first to tell you that you were wrong.  Easily.  LOL

----------


## dankrutka

> Based on my earlier prognosis of the next 11 games...they're going to get to 10 losses before 30 wins easily. At least San Antonio lost at New Orleans tonight!


Wow. You're really smart.  :Wink: 

30-8

----------


## dankrutka

Just reading this thread and some people need to learn a little more about the NBA before they talk. The Thunder are a top 10 defensive team. Liggins is only helping that with his playing time the last 2 games. 

The NBA season is long and every team has a ton of talent. Every team has bad games and bad stretches. Every team will have a Wizards-like loss or two. Don't overreact to individual games, but focus on long-term trends if you want to gauge the state of the team.

----------


## Teo9969

How about Perkins the last 2 games? 12 and 13 rebounds each game. I think it shows how intelligent of a player Perkins really is. He knows Ibaka is not out there, so he gets in there to do the work that Ibaka would otherwise be doing. 

Perkins catches a crap ton of flak throughout the season because of his poor offense and his lack of a stat sheet, but this little trend with Ibaka not suiting up should be very encouraging to the Perkins haters. I just hope they realize that as soon as Ibaka comes back, those numbers will start looking crappy again.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> Wow. You're really smart. 
> 
> 30-8


Wow, like totally.  Like, during the first season, I predicted their final record....like Oh My Gawd.  It was totally tubular.  And I, like, won an autographed ball because I like kinda follow basketball...

Dudes, you can't get em all right, lol.

----------


## ljbab728

> Wow, like totally.  Like, during the first season, I predicted their final record....like Oh My Gawd.  It was totally tubular.  And I, like, won an autographed ball because I like kinda follow basketball...
> 
> Dudes, you can't get em all right, lol.


That's why I rarely make any specific predictions.  LOL
We can hardly resist gigging someone who is brave enough to do that though when they're wrong.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

Hell, I'm glad they got to 30 wins before 10 losses.  The whole point of it is that when it was the same timing last year, I'm pretty sure we got to 10 losses before 30 wins.  Them being where they are now is a good sign.  With the stretch of road games we're in, it bodes well for our team.  Also, I think Liggens starting the other night and Collison starting two games in a row, just tells you how deep our team is.  It may not be the usual rotation but it worked.  That's a valuable asset.

----------


## dankrutka

> How about Perkins the last 2 games? 12 and 13 rebounds each game. I think it shows how intelligent of a player Perkins really is. He knows Ibaka is not out there, so he gets in there to do the work that Ibaka would otherwise be doing. 
> 
> Perkins catches a crap ton of flak throughout the season because of his poor offense and his lack of a stat sheet, but this little trend with Ibaka not suiting up should be very encouraging to the Perkins haters. I just hope they realize that as soon as Ibaka comes back, those numbers will start looking crappy again.


It is encouraging, but Perkins has needed to rebound more for a while. I hope he continues with better numbers (of course not this high though) when Ibaka returns.

----------


## dankrutka

> Hell, I'm glad they got to 30 wins before 10 losses.  The whole point of it is that when it was the same timing last year, I'm pretty sure we got to 10 losses before 30 wins.  Them being where they are now is a good sign.  With the stretch of road games we're in, it bodes well for our team.  Also, I think Liggens starting the other night and Collison starting two games in a row, just tells you how deep our team is.  It may not be the usual rotation but it worked.  That's a valuable asset.


It's been fun seeing Liggins and Collison get some run, but the bench is one of my biggest concerns with this team. Reggie won't keep his minutes in the playoffs with this play (maybe we'll make a move or give Maynor another shot). I am excited about the development of Liggins though. We can only hope he turns into the next Tony Allen...

----------


## Teo9969

> It's been fun seeing Liggins and Collison get some run, but the bench is one of my biggest concerns with this team. Reggie won't keep his minutes in the playoffs with this play (maybe we'll make a move or give Maynor another shot). I am excited about the development of Liggins though. We can only hope he turns into the next Tony Allen...


Honestly, I think the biggest problem with the bench is minutes played. They are never going to be cohesive if they don't get minutes together. Reggie has seemingly tapered off since his initial takeover, but he's shown some great flash too, particularly on the defensive end where he seems to be playing with more energy and physicality than Maynor. I'm still not thrilled with our depth at the 1 or the 5, but I do think it's adequate to win a Championship, if they play up to their demonstrated high level. I think Reggie will suffice for the rest of the year. We can make a move in the off-season after we know what will become of Kevin Martin's future.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> It's been fun seeing Liggins and Collison get some run, but the bench is one of my biggest concerns with this team. Reggie won't keep his minutes in the playoffs with this play (maybe we'll make a move or give Maynor another shot). I am excited about the development of Liggins though. We can only hope he turns into the next Tony Allen...


Have you been listening to the sports animal?  I like the idea of getting JJ Barea on our team.  Maynor is a great guy but he's shell shocked.  We need a backup point guard that can handle his load.  JJ has that.

----------


## dankrutka

> Honestly, I think the biggest problem with the bench is minutes played. They are never going to be cohesive if they don't get minutes together. Reggie has seemingly tapered off since his initial takeover, but he's shown some great flash too, particularly on the defensive end where he seems to be playing with more energy and physicality than Maynor. I'm still not thrilled with our depth at the 1 or the 5, but I do think it's adequate to win a Championship, if they play up to their demonstrated high level. I think Reggie will suffice for the rest of the year. We can make a move in the off-season after we know what will become of Kevin Martin's future.


Unless Reggie improves his play dramatically, he won't be getting minutes in the playoffs. We'll trade for a back up PG rental (not that hard to come by) or the bench will shrink... Same goes for Thabeet (fouling way too much). There are only 2 bench players that are guaranteed to stay in the playoffs rotation at this point IMHO: Collison and Martin. Everyone else will have to earn it.

----------


## dankrutka

> Have you been listening to the sports animal?  I like the idea of getting JJ Barea on our team.  Maynor is a great guy but he's shell shocked.  We need a backup point guard that can handle his load.  JJ has that.


No, but I read Tramel's article though. I wouldn't mind Barea. There are some other PGs (e.g., Jrue Holiday) that could work too. I just don't see any of our young guards earning Brooks trust by playoff time. We'll see... Lot of ball to be played still.

----------


## BoulderSooner

> Unless Reggie improves his play dramatically, he won't be getting minutes in the playoffs. We'll trade for a back up PG rental (not that hard to come by) or the bench will shrink... Same goes for Thabeet (fouling way too much). There are only 2 bench players that are guaranteed to stay in the playoffs rotation at this point IMHO: Collison and Martin. Everyone else will have to earn it.


jackson has been playing well this season ... he plays good D ... and either way no backup point is going to play much in the playoffs ... russ will average 42+  so a back up will play less than 6 min a game

----------


## Bellaboo

We may be able to throw Liggins into the playoff minutes also. I just wish he was 6' 8" so he could hound LBJ.

----------


## Teo9969

> No, but I read Tramel's article though. I wouldn't mind Barea. There are some other PGs (e.g., Jrue Holiday) that could work too. I just don't see any of our young guards earning Brooks trust by playoff time. We'll see... Lot of ball to be played still.


No way we could afford Jrue.

I'm going to go ahead and say that Reggie sees 3 to 6 minutes of game time in the playoffs (depending on how close it is, how well he plays, etc.)...it will look something like this:

35: ~44
0: ~42
9: ~36
23: ~33
2: ~30
5: ~24
4: ~22
15: ~6
34: ~3

Obviously that will fluctuate a lot based on match-ups.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

31-8

----------


## Praedura

> 31-8


 :Smile:

----------


## OKCisOK4me

It'll be interesting to see what comes out of this six game road streak.  I told a friend last month that there were only 5 home games in January and he couldn't believe it.  Next home game on the 31st!

----------


## SoonerBoy18

..And its against Memphis...... A team I'm 100% sure Thunder team, staff, fans despise.

----------


## dankrutka

> jackson has been playing well this season ... he plays good D ... and either way no backup point is going to play much in the playoffs ... russ will average 42+  so a back up will play less than 6 min a game


Tell Barea and the 2011 Mavs that. The playoffs aren't a week long. They can be up to 28 games long at the end of a long season. No one should be playing 42 mins regularly. Russ averaged 38 mins in the playoffs last year and that's probably too much for how hard he plays. 

Reggie is playing okay defense, but he's still too hesitant as a playmaker. For a title contending team he's not cutting it (yet). In the NBA playoffs you can't just try to get by with Reggie's play because the margin for error is too thin. If he doesn't show improvement I think Maynor will get another look and/or the Thunder will look for something at the deadline. Liggins might be playing himself into playoff minutes, but we still need another ball handler unless the coaches come up with something real creative.

----------


## dankrutka

> No way we could afford Jrue.
> 
> I'm going to go ahead and say that Reggie sees 3 to 6 minutes of game time in the playoffs (depending on how close it is, how well he plays, etc.)...it will look something like this:
> 
> 35: ~44
> 0: ~42
> 9: ~36
> 23: ~33
> 2: ~30
> ...


These numbers are ridiculous. You can't play KD and Russ that many minutes. You'll wear them out.

----------


## Just the facts

Why all the trade talk when the Thunder has the best record in the NBA?

----------


## onthestrip

Because our bench has regressed from last year, specifically our backup point guard play is suspect and probably not one that would help us win a title.

----------


## Bill Robertson

> Why all the trade talk when the Thunder has the best record in the NBA?


1. You can always get better. 2. We really need a second point guard. Jackson could get there but probably not this year. Maynors' lack of pretty much any playing time looks like his days are numbered in a Thunder jersey. If a trade with Maynor and a draft pick or ? could get a Barea like guard without costing an arm and a leg then go for it.

----------


## Anonymous.

Brooks was quoted last night in regards to Maynor. "He wants to be out there and play, he still works and still looking for an opportunity, and usually it comes around."

I think we may see Maynor return before the playoffs, this looks like Reggie's time to shine. 


Now I have a theory... Perhaps the Thunder is lowering Maynor's value by not showing what he has to offer other teams, and they can keep him for less $ after this season. 


At the same time, watching the games, Maynor is always sitting next to the coaches and is actually doing some of the coaching himself. I know Maynor is still young and it is early in his career, but he could be a great assistant coach/head coach someday. I just hope his injury hasn't shortened his NBA player career.

----------


## dankrutka

> I love winning a game so well with our bench that Perry is what everyone is talking about.  Our 1st unit had a great game but since we were winning so handedly, it's almost like the 4th quarter was a game unto itself.  Loved watching it.


I love watching the young guys play! I think Liggins has a shot to stick with the team long term. If he could become a Tony Allen type player (defense first guard) then he is a great addition. Reggie could still improve, but I'm just not seeing it. Lamb and Jones are unknowns still, but I still believe Jones has great potential. He needs regular touches. I think he could be goof for 6-10 points a game off the bench...

----------


## Praedura

Heads Up, America: Kevin Durant Is Having One of the Greatest Offensive Seasons Ever - The Triangle Blog - Grantland

Major love for KD and the Thunder.

Article quote:



> ...they are on pace to finish as one of the greatest offenses in modern NBA history


Oy! Such positive coverage. Probably means we're about to drop a couple of games.  :Frown: 

Or maybe not.  :Smile:

----------


## Teo9969

> These numbers are ridiculous. You can't play KD and Russ that many minutes. You'll wear them out.


Ok, I did say "these will fluctuate a lot". But when push comes to shove, minutes will look like that. It's not likely push will come to shove in the first round and depending on the matchup, possibly not frequently in the second. If Liggins plays himself.

So let me rephrase I bet we stick with Reggie, and I bet he averages 4 to 8 minutes of game time in any series where we do not play 2 bigs for major stretches (So if we play Memphis, he probably averages 2 to 4). He'll play as often as much as Cook did (averaged 6.8 minutes in the playoffs).

This also depends on how well Liggins develops over the second half of the season.

I think Brooks is (getting) comfortable enough with his combinations of the core roster (Starters + Martin/Collison) that we'll get to see a lot more use of Jackson/Maynor, Thabeet, Liggins, and maybe even some Jackson and Lamb. I'll probably revise these numbers, but I'd wager that there will be no trades made that are made for this season alone. If we make any trades, they are for mid to long term pieces. (We may trade Maynor for like a future 2nd round pick to clear cap space if we're bringing in a vet point guard for the minimum). Presti will not go into the luxury tax this season.

----------


## ljbab728

Only 52 for KD tonight.  A new career high while the Thunder nip Dallas in overnight.  They have now won 5 of their 6 road games in January with four more left in what was supposed to be a challenging month.

----------


## Teo9969

Is it just me or every time OKC plays DAL/SAS/MIA do they not revert to their 2011/2012 offense? Seems like tonight we slipped into that KD/RW offense with very little regard for KMart or Ibaka down the stretch. Obviously we want the ball in KD/RW's hands, but to essentially ignore the other 3 players on the court, though we really have that luxury when Russ is shooting well, is not the ideal situation to have for an entire 15 minutes of play. For the last 2 maybe 3 minutes sure...but way back at the 8 minute mark, I feel like it's important to keep especially Ibaka involved. KMart, if he is shooting well, is a great kick out option. But if KD/RW ignore Ibaka then they're just making their own job harder as the defense can be lax with Ibaka.

----------


## ljbab728

Could be, but all that counts in the NBA is a win and that's what they got.

----------


## dankrutka

> Could be, but all that counts in the NBA is a win and that's what they got.


I disagree. The team needs good habits for the playoffs. That's all that really matters for this team.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

I've seen them pass the ball a 1,000 more times this year than all of last season.  That's a marked improvement!

----------


## Teo9969

> I've seen them pass the ball a 1,000 more times this year than all of last season.  That's a marked improvement!


I've seen marked improvement too, but if what else I'm seeing is indeed true, that's cause for concern. It's one thing to have great ball movement against Sacramento and Orlando...it's another thing to move the ball and still be effective against teams with good defense and against teams that know your tendencies. We've played Dallas 15 times in the last 21 months. We've played SAS a lot, We've played MIA a lot.

If we decide when we play familiar teams that we're going back to our iso offense, then I think we'll struggle to make it to the WCF. That offense is not dependable for 20 minutes without James Harden. We have to move the ball in the 4th quarter.

In the 4th everyone not named Westbrook and Durant combined for 5 total shots out of 19. Durant counted for 11 of those shots and made 2 of them, only 1 in the final 6 minutes.

Now, I'm not saying that I want to see the ball in someone else's hands, and I'm not saying that I want Durant or Westbrook deferring to anyone else (and I'd prefer RW defer to KD)...but they HAVE to make use of Ibaka and Martin on occasion, in close games against good competition so that the threat is there: Double team Durant at the peril of an Ibaka dunk or a wide-open Martin 3.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

James Harden played worse and worse the farther we got into the playoffs...

----------


## ljbab728

> I disagree. The team needs good habits for the playoffs. That's all that really matters for this team.


And you totally missed my point.  I absolutely was not saying that how they play doesn't matter, I was saying that how they play means nothing in the standings.  This isn't a beauty contest like college football.

----------


## MDot

Anyway, the Thunder are doing good this year no matter how many things they can change. It's never enough, but they're a pretty darn good team.

----------


## ljbab728

You're right, MDot.  As much as we like to complain, they are winning close games now that they would have lost a couple of years ago.  Of course there are things they can do better but they will never be a perfect team just as no other team in the NBA will ever be perfect.

----------


## Just the facts

> Anyway, the Thunder are doing good this year no matter how many things they can change. It's never enough, but they're a pretty darn good team.


I agree 100%.  They have the best record in the league and they are better than last years team which went to the finals.  If that gets translated into 'crappy bench play", then bring on more crappy bench play.

----------


## dankrutka

> I agree 100%.  They have the best record in the league and they are better than last years team which went to the finals.  If that gets translated into 'crappy bench play", then bring on more crappy bench play.


I think you all are missing my point. I am very appreciative of the success we're having. I don't take it for granted and I always remember how lucky we are to have a contender. Some cities (e.g., Milwaukee, Toronto) haven't had a serious contender for 20 years. 

Having said that, I critique the team based on the hopes we can win a championship. The margin of error for title teams is tiny. A bad bench can lose you a series. Miami's bench completely outplayed ours last year and it was a huge reason they won a title and we didn't. Right now our bench only has 2 players (Martin, Collison) I'm comfortable getting playoff minutes. Some of these young guys need to improve, especially the guards, or the Thunder should make a move. 

The playoffs are NOT the same as the regular season. Saying we're better than last year is very premature. This team will be judged by what it does in the playoffs... Overall improvement/development is just as important as our record. We still need to improve in some areas to solidify our chances. That's why I am both very happy with team, but also concerned about our weaknesses.

----------


## Jake

Good teams can always get better.

Having another solid bench piece couldn't hurt.

----------


## Teo9969

> I think you all are missing my point. I am very appreciative of the success we're having. I don't take it for granted and I always remember how lucky we are to have a contender. Some cities (e.g., Milwaukee, Toronto) haven't had a serious contender for 20 years. 
> 
> Having said that, I critique the team based on the hopes we can win a championship. The margin of error for title teams is tiny. A bad bench can lose you a series. Miami's bench completely outplayed ours last year and it was a huge reason they won a title and we didn't. Right now our bench only has 2 players (Martin, Collison) I'm comfortable getting playoff minutes. Some of these young guys need to improve, especially the guards, or the Thunder should make a move. 
> 
> The playoffs are NOT the same as the regular season. Saying we're better than last year is very premature. This team will be judged by what it does in the playoffs... Overall improvement/development is just as important as our record. We still need to improve in some areas to solidify our chances. That's why I am both very happy with team, but also concerned about our weaknesses.


How much more comfortable are you with Daequan Cook and Nazr Mohammed getting minutes than Jackson and Thabeet? I mean, I'm definitely on the boat that Mohammed is easily a better have than Thabeet...but I honestly think Jackson (and Liggins for that matter) is capable of same/better defense than Cook. I also think Jackson brings more to the table offensively in terms of variety. He can penetrate and shoot from the outside.

The bigger issue I see with bringing in a piece, is that there is nobody out there to grab for the minimum, and that's really all we have recourse for. We have no real wiggle room to stay out of the luxury tax this season, and I can't see Presti breaking into the tax this year, without a full season to work someone else into the lineup.

I think the real answer to the Thunder's guard woes is to let KMart play the point for ~5 possessions per game.

----------


## dankrutka

I wasn't comfortable with Nazr and Cook just like I'm not comfortable with Thabeet (fouls far too much) and Jackson. That's my point. Our bench wasn't, and isn't, where it needs to be. The situation is similar to last season. Cook has 8 huge points in San Antonio, but contributed almost nothing else (including the Finals). Nazr and Hasheem are a wash to me. 

Maynor pre-ACL injury was solid and we really haven't replaced his contributions since...

----------


## Teo9969

In my opinion, the lack of bench play deep in the playoffs last season had far more to do with our offensive system (or lack thereof). It's why it bothers me that Westbrook and Durant, of late, are going back to this isolation offense. Seems like since the Martin injury that sidelined him a couple of games and the couple of losses around the same time, Durant and Westbrook have taken on a little bit of that "put the team on our backs" mentality. That's great for the last 3 minutes or during overtime...but the entire 4th quarter? That's unhealthy.

I don't think the issue is talent...I think the issue is usage:

#3	Westbrook		30.5
#8	KD			27.3
#139	Martin		18.7
#153	Maynor		18.0
#173	Reggie		17.1
#203	Ibaka			16.4
#299	Collison		11.8
#314	Sef			10.1
#318	Perk			9.9
#321	Thabeet		9.6

Hard to develop consistency and dependability when you never get the opportunity.

----------


## Just the facts

> The playoffs are NOT the same as the regular season. Saying we're better than last year is very premature. This team will be judged by what it does in the playoffs... Overall improvement/development is just as important as our record. We still need to improve in some areas to solidify our chances. That's why I am both very happy with team, but also concerned about our weaknesses.


That is what I am saying.  You are down on the bench, or at least see areas for improvement, but things in the playoffs are different.  Maybe we have a 'playoff' bench and you are only seeing them in the regular season.  Every team gets better in the playoffs, even the Thunder.

----------


## dankrutka

> That is what I am saying.  You are down on the bench, or at least see areas for improvement, but things in the playoffs are different.  Maybe we have a 'playoff' bench and you are only seeing them in the regular season.  Every team gets better in the playoffs, even the Thunder.


I'm sorry, but this doesn't make sense to me. Our bench is magically going to get better? What on earth is a "playoff bench?" 

The playoffs is when weaknesses get exposed. Rarely do weaknesses turn into strengths. We need to find a way to improve our bench. Jackson has not shown any improvement with his playing time. He was awful at Denver. He just does nothing. He doesn't make shots, create for others, anything. Unless Jackson shows dramatic improvement he won't be part of a  "playoff bench" because he won't be playing at all.

----------


## Bellaboo

*[QUOTE=KilgoreTrout;611767]I'm sorry, but this doesn't make sense to me. Our bench is magically going to get better? What on earth is a "playoff bench?"* 



What happens is that they notoriously go to a smaller rotation. Instead of a nine or ten man, they cut it back to a seven or eight come playoff time. Some guys who barely see time will not see time at all, unless a game ends up a blowout.

----------


## dankrutka

I agree that our rotations will likely cut back to 8-9 players, but we still will have to figure out what to do when Russ is out of the game...

----------


## Just the facts

> I'm sorry, but this doesn't make sense to me. Our bench is magically going to get better? What on earth is a "playoff bench?" 
> 
> The playoffs is when weaknesses get exposed. Rarely do weaknesses turn into strengths. We need to find a way to improve our bench. Jackson has not shown any improvement with his playing time. He was awful at Denver. He just does nothing. He doesn't make shots, create for others, anything. Unless Jackson shows dramatic improvement he won't be part of a  "playoff bench" because he won't be playing at all.


Why is every team going to get better in the playoffs except for OKC?

----------


## Teo9969

> Why is every team going to get better in the playoffs except for OKC?


Because Most teams are not already playing their roster near playoff minutes.

OKC is really only using a 9-man rotation throughout the year (in part, because we have 2 rookies, and 2 second year guys).

Jackson/Maynor and Thabeet average ~21 MPG. Collison, the 3rd least played man in a 9 man rotation averaged 19.4...

Echoing a sentiment from earlier: We need another ball-handler so that Russ doesn't have to average 42 minutes through 4 playoff series. I genuinely believe the answer to that question for *this* season, is to put the ball in Kevin Martin's hands for 5ish possessions so that Reggie only has about 5ish himself. I do not think it's a good idea to play Reggie more than about 8 minutes in the playoffs. Thabeet really needs to improve quickly if he's to be trusted with even 5 minutes of playoff time.

I am thinking that Scott is holding off on using Collison more because he is 32 now. I think he'll average more minutes in the playoffs and I think he'll be more effective. So I'm thinking that we'll not quite see the best this bench has to offer until the playoffs or shortly before that.

----------


## Just the facts

> So I'm thinking that we'll not quite see the best this bench has to offer until the playoffs or shortly before that.


Isn't that what I said?

----------


## ljbab728

What a great road win for the Thunder tonight against the Clippers.  I know Chris Paul wasn't playing but the standings and possible pecking order in the playoffs don't care.  Before tonight the biggest home loss for the Clippers was by 7 points.

----------


## Teo9969

> Isn't that what I said?


Right, but I suspect it's going to be on the back of Collison and not Jackson/Thabeet. As it stand right now, no matter how much extra time Collison gets, this bench is going to look much worse in the playoffs if Jackson/Thabeet combine for more than about 12 minutes game. Right now they're combining for about 22...Where are you going to send those extra 10 minutes, when everyone else is playing close to playoff minutes already aside from probably Collison.

And just because I don't think we've seen the best the bench has to offer (because Collison is down on minutes) doesn't mean I'm saying that the best will be a routine showing come playoffs. Collison is the only proven commodity we have on the bench come playoff time. Nobody really knows how Martin will perform in the playoffs because he's never really been in them. Jackson and Thabeet are sure to be liabilities.

----------


## BoulderSooner

also 11 very solid min for reggie jackson .. last night ..

----------


## dankrutka

> Why is every team going to get better in the playoffs except for OKC?


Where did you come up with the silly notion that every team improves in the playoffs? A lot of teams look awful in the playoffs and are quickly gone.

----------


## Just the facts

I guess I am confused then.  We have the best record in the NBA and just handed the Clippers a beat-down on their home court.  I'm not saying they should just hand us the trophy now but come on - if they were as bad as you seem to think they are we should be happy to get that last playoff spot.

----------


## dankrutka

I've stated this several times, but I'll say it again. My analysis is based on this tram'schances for a title. There's always critique when this is the standard because the margin for error is so small. Besides, we've been winning in spite of our bench. That can come back to bite you in the long run.

Having said that, the bench played well last night and is playing decently right now. I hope they can sustain it.

----------


## Anonymous.

December 13.




> Don't discount the Warriors... They can be for real come playoff time.







> I'll go ahead and discount the Warriors. They've made nice strides this year, but they're not ready to make a serious run. Come playoff time I see them as the 7th or 8th best team in the west at best. I fully expect all the teams ahead of them already innthe standings and the Mavs (Dirk will be back) and Lakers (no way they're this bad all season... see the Heat two years ago) to be bigger threats come the end of the season.



How's this prediction goin? lol

Warriors just cleaned off the top 2 teams in the league this week. They are about to pass MEM for the #4 spot.

----------


## Stan Silliman

> I've stated this several times, but I'll say it again. My analysis is based on this tram'schances for a title. There's always critique when this is the standard because the margin for error is so small. Besides, we've been winning in spite of our bench. That can come back to bite you in the long run.
> 
> Having said that, the bench played well last night and is playing decently right now. I hope they can sustain it.


Here's the way I see it: we're a few players shorter than last year's bench which had Fisher, Nazr, Collison, Harden, Cook and Reggie as reliable options. I don't count Aldridge but he was getting similar to Thabeet minutes. Is Thabeet better, not appreciably, but he still may develop. 
We're two less bodies at longer minutes and it could wear on Durant and Westbrook to be logging playoff minutes mid-season. 

Just like last night against the Warriors, Durant played almost a perfect three quarters but that followed lots of minutes in the Clippers game and by game end time on a back-to-back, the double teams, etc had caused him to lose a lot of his pop.

The only way to prevent season end wear down is to be extending the minutes for Reggie and Liggins add Maynor or Lambert for spot duty, plus, as he becomes more of an offensive threat, up the minutes for Sefalosha. I also think Perkins is getting healthier and may be also ready to pull longer minutes.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> December 13.
> 
> How's this prediction goin? lol
> 
> Warriors just cleaned off the top 2 teams in the league this week. They are about to pass MEM for the #4 spot.


KT must be without internet access...or he's eating crow...lol.

----------


## ljbab728

We're only half way through the season so anything could happen, but, it's starting to look more like just a race between the Thunder and the Spurs in the West again.  The Clippers are starting to fade with four losses in a row.

----------


## dankrutka

> December 13.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Since the playoffs haven't started there is no way to know. I still think they do not win a playoff series.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

We was not suppose to lose to the lakers!!! I am so pissed! =(

----------


## ljbab728

> We was not suppose to lose to the lakers!!! I am so pissed! =(


Better than losing to the Wizards.  That was the one you should have been upset about.  This is the NBA and any team can beat any team on a given day.  Overall, 3 and 3 on the 6 game road trip could have been better but it wasn't disastrous.

----------


## KayneMo

According to Forbes, the Thunder are now worth $475 million (12th most valuable in the NBA), up 36.5% from last year. The Thunder also had a profit of $30 million (4th in the league), only behind the Knicks ($83M), the Lakers ($48M), and the Bulls ($34M).

#12 Oklahoma City Thunder - The Most Valuable NBA Teams - Forbes

----------


## OKCisOK4me

Get it while it's hot...

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> Get it while it's hot...


Its gonna remain hot, even if we have a season like the Lakers...

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> Its gonna remain hot, even if we have a season like the Lakers...


Sooner basketball was once a hot commodity as well...

----------


## Teo9969

> Its gonna remain hot, even if we have a season like the Lakers...


No.

OKC makes an unholy amount of money off of #35. The Odds are so unbelievably slim that we ever have another player in a Thunder uniform of his caliber. Ever.

----------


## dankrutka

It will be interesting to see how OKC does if/when they sink to irrelevance ala the Bobcats or Raptors. Fortunately, barring major injuries, OKC has a chance to be a perennial playoff team if they can keep KD and RW after their current contracts. If OKC wins a championship during their current contracts I think they both stay. If not then it's a lot riskier IMHO.

Even if OKC loses KD and RW I think OKC will probably do decently in attendance. Most towns with only a NBA team (e.g., Utah, Portland) seem to always have good fans...

----------


## OKCisOK4me

Today on the sports animal, BBJ was talking to Sam Presti and he actually asked him if there were any trades in the works for OKC.  I mean, I know you gotta ask, but dude, it's not like Sam is gonna spill the beans on the sports animal, lol.

----------


## Teo9969

> It will be interesting to see how OKC does if/when they sink to irrelevance ala the Bobcats or Raptors. Fortunately, barring major injuries, OKC has a chance to be a perennial playoff team if they can keep KD and RW after their current contracts. If OKC wins a championship during their current contracts I think they both stay. If not then it's a lot riskier IMHO.
> 
> Even if OKC loses KD and RW I think OKC will probably do decently in attendance. Most towns with only a NBA team (e.g., Utah, Portland) seem to always have good fans...


The Thunder will probably always be profitable as long as good market sense is employed RE our investment in pro sports teams (i.e. if we bring in an NHL team, we better have more people and a stronger economy). 

...But OKC will not be the 4th most profitable team in the league once KD is gone. Think of the Markets we beat out: BOSTON, MIAMI, Dallas, Houston, LA (Clippers), NY/NJ (Nets), Philadelphia...I mean, to beat out the Boston freaking Celtics and the LBJ Miami Heat is truly spectacular.

Hard to know what to say of slipping into a 20 year slump after the KD era (that era starting likely no less than 10 years from now) because OKC will be so much further as a city by then (Hopefully a Top 35 MSA) and the small market issue won't be as big of a deal.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

Man, the future's so bright, I gotta wear shades!

----------


## s00nr1

Reports Rudy Gay is headed to Toronto. Two big implications here:

1. To me this takes Memphis out of any western conference title consideration.

2. Absolutely hurts the Thunder by reducing the chances of Toronto's lottery pick being a top 6 pick (acquired by OKC).

----------


## dankrutka

> Reports Rudy Gay is headed to Toronto. Two big implications here:
> 
> 1. To me this takes Memphis out of any western conference title consideration.
> 
> 2. Absolutely hurts the Thunder by reducing the chances of Toronto's lottery pick being a top 6 pick (acquired by OKC).


The Griz were better when Gay was injured. Ed Davis is the real deal. And they get a savvy vet in Prince. I don't think this improves Toronto or Memphis' regular season records much. The Griz got rid of Gay b/c they don't need him to be successful.

----------


## Bellaboo

> The Griz were better when Gay was injured. Ed Davis is the real deal. And they get a savvy vet in Prince. I don't think this improves Toronto or Memphis' regular season records much. *The Griz got rid of Gay b/c they don't need him to be successful.*




Because of the salary he is making - over 16m for the next 2 years, otherwise Memphis has luxury tax problems.

----------


## BoulderSooner

> Reports Rudy Gay is headed to Toronto. Two big implications here:
> 
> 1. To me this takes Memphis out of any western conference title consideration.
> 
> 2. Absolutely hurts the Thunder by reducing the chances of Toronto's lottery pick being a top 6 pick (acquired by OKC).




very much disagree ... this makes Memphis better ... davis and prince ..     and makes Toronto the same  or worse unless gay plays much much better then he has all year

----------


## Anonymous.

Tonights game is on TNT @ 7pm CST.

No Gay playing tonight, he killed us earlier in the season when the Grizz dominated us.

----------


## Matt

That reminds me.  Just curious:  When a game's being double-covered by by Fox Sports Oklahoma and either ESPN or TNT, what do you guys do?  Stick with FSOK, watch the nationals, or flip between the two?

I always watch the national coverage when possible.  It's nice to get a break from Brian Davis and the corny local ads that run five times each during a game.  And I especially like the Inside the NBA show on TNT.  Those guys are hilarious.

----------


## TaoMaas

> When a game's being double-covered by by Fox Sports Oklahoma and either ESPN or TNT, what do you guys do?


I watch the game on Fox because the other networks run their crowd mics too high and it makes it hard to hear the announcers.  I do like the Inside the NBA crew on TNT, though, so I'll watch them at half-time.

----------


## BoulderSooner

> That reminds me.  Just curious:  When a game's being double-covered by by Fox Sports Oklahoma and either ESPN or TNT, what do you guys do?  Stick with FSOK, watch the nationals, or flip between the two?
> 
> I always watch the national coverage when possible.  It's nice to get a break from Brian Davis and the corny local ads that run five times each during a game.  And I especially like the Inside the NBA show on TNT.  Those guys are hilarious.


always the national because of how bad BD and grant are

----------


## dankrutka

I watch the national just for a change of pace. I definitely won't miss the TNT crew's pre/half/post-game discussions. Love those guys. I also wouldn't say BD and GL are bad. They're pretty typical for homer announcers. I'm fine with them. I've certainly heard worse from other teams' announcers...

----------


## Anonymous.

National, I like to hear non biased perspectives and this is what the rest of the country will be watching/hearing - so it is a good feel for non homer-vision broadcasting.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> National, I like to hear non biased perspectives and this is what the rest of the country will be watching/hearing - so it is a good feel for non homer-vision broadcasting.


You took the words right outta my mouth! Lol

----------


## SoonerBoy18

ESPN and TNT not just because of the national coverage but because I love hearing the NBA theme songs it adds to the hype. the nba theme on Fox Sports drives me insane

----------


## OKCJapan

Tough Loss for the Thunder against Irving and the Cavaliers.  It seems that during the recent road woes, the Thunder are having a real tough time making shots at the end of the game and not getting the stops needed to close out those games.  They have got to find ways to turn it around on the road or they are in fear of slipping from the top of the WC and the NW division. They have shrunk to a five game lead over the Nuggets.

----------


## venture

> Tough Loss for the Thunder against Irving and the Cavaliers.  It seems that during the recent road woes, the Thunder are having a real tough time making shots at the end of the game and not getting the stops needed to close out those games.  They have got to find ways to turn it around on the road or they are in fear of slipping from the top of the WC and the NW division. They have shrunk to a five game lead over the Nuggets.


They haven't been the #1 team in the west for about a week or so now. Spurs have been controlling that now.

----------


## s00nr1

I think we can officially say the Thunder are struggling on the road -- especially defensively. The turnovers (as usual) and lack of defensive intensity away from home are somewhat worrisome.

----------


## s00nr1

> very much disagree ... this makes Memphis better ... davis and prince .. and makes Toronto the same or worse unless gay plays much much better then he has all year


Totally disagree with this statement. If you don't think Toronto is going to be better adding Rudy Gay to the 3 with DeRozan at the 2 you're in fairy tale land. They have a very solid Amir Johnson to replace Ed Davis at the 4 and they are playing pretty well (if you call beating the Clips by 25 "pretty well") without Bargnani. 

Let's also not forget that the Griz had Shane Battier to help bring together that 2011 team during their playoff run.

----------


## Praedura

Since no one has mentioned it...

Thunder destroyed the Mavs last night. That is all.
 :Smile:

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> Since no one has mentioned it...
> 
> Thunder destroyed the Mavs last night. That is all.


And ever since Dallas beat us in the 2011 west finals, we have gone 10-1 against them!  :Smile:

----------


## ljbab728

Now if the Thunder could just figure out a way to beat the Wizards.  LOL

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> Now if the Thunder could just figure out a way to beat the Wizards.  LOL


Be good to focus on Golden State tomorrow night.  I'd like to see a whoopin' of 'em!

----------


## BoulderSooner

> Totally disagree with this statement. If you don't think Toronto is going to be better adding Rudy Gay to the 3 with DeRozan at the 2 you're in fairy tale land. They have a very solid Amir Johnson to replace Ed Davis at the 4 and they are playing pretty well (if you call beating the Clips by 25 "pretty well") without Bargnani. 
> 
> Let's also not forget that the Griz had Shane Battier to help bring together that 2011 team during their playoff run.


they won't be better unless like i said gay plays much metter than he has this season .. 

Davis was the most efficient player in the trade .... if gay plays better they could be better ..

----------


## s00nr1

Have to say Reggie looks to be playing with an increased level of confidence and efficiency the past few games.....Brooks has even had him on the floor with RW on a couple occasions. Hopefully he continues to show signs of improvement.

----------


## ljbab728

> Be good to focus on Golden State tomorrow night.  I'd like to see a whoopin' of 'em!


I think they were focused and you got exactly what you wanted.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> I think they were focused and you got exactly what you wanted.


Yes I know.  I listened.  But thank you for telling me anyway ;-)

----------


## SoonerDave

Haven't looked at a schedule, but was wondering if anyone knew offhand how many more times OKC plays the Spurs the rest of the way out?

Can't begin to tell ya how fun it is to see the Lakers 3+/- games out of the playoffs right now... LOL

----------


## Anonymous.

> Haven't looked at a schedule, but was wondering if anyone knew offhand how many more times OKC plays the Spurs the rest of the way out?
> 
> Can't begin to tell ya how fun it is to see the Lakers 3+/- games out of the playoffs right now... LOL




@ SA on 3/11/13


EDIT: Boulder is right, we play them on April 4 also.





Should be a pair of easy wins this weekend both against the Suns.

----------


## BoulderSooner

> Haven't looked at a schedule, but was wondering if anyone knew offhand how many more times OKC plays the Spurs the rest of the way out?
> 
> Can't begin to tell ya how fun it is to see the Lakers 3+/- games out of the playoffs right now... LOL


Mar 11 @ San antonio 
Apr 4 @ home

----------


## Teo9969

We sure are struggling at home lately...

----------


## Praedura

> We sure are struggling at home lately...


21...21...31...

 :Smile:

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> We sure are struggling at home lately...


Yeah, a lot of those seats are empty...

----------


## Teo9969

> Yeah, a lot of those seats are empty...


I heard CHK employees now have to buy their tickets if they want to go to the game.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

Yeah, but that's not what I was referring to, lol.

----------


## OKCJapan

Anybody else concerned about the Thunder's poor showing on the road recently?  Last night at Utah.  Kmart did not play well and that meant loss on the road against a team that they should have beat.  Shaq said one of the keys for the Thunder to stay near the top of the West and make another run at the finals, was that they  must beat the teams they are supposed to beat. Still not too worried, however, I don't think the Thunder can afford to slip to 3rd or 4th in the West.

----------


## G.Walker

Not really, we have always had problems with teams above .500 on the road. Looking back at last night's performance we actually shot the ball better from the field percentage wise. The problem is we were only 56.5% from the free throw line on 23 attempts, and we had 20 turnovers. We also got out rebounded 38 to 26, not good, the Thunder need to step it up..and play better defense...allowing a team like Utah to score 109 points is unacceptable.

----------


## OKCJapan

> Not really, we have always had problems with teams above .500 on the road. Looking back at last night's performance we actually shot the ball better from the field percentage wise. The problem is we were only 56.5% from the free throw line on 23 attempts, and we had 20 turnovers. We also got out rebounded 38 to 26, not good, the Thunder need to step it up..and play better defense...allowing a team like Utah to score 109 points is unacceptable.


I hear ya on that.  I did not see the game nor did I look at the stat sheet that closely.  However, Last season, even with 20 turns, The Thunder were able to overcome them were able to win about half of those poor performance games.  Usually it was because Harden chipped in 15 or more points.  The thunder have proven that they are good without Harden and Kmart has proved to be a good fit, however, He has to be more consistent.

----------


## TaoMaas

> ...Kmart has proved to be a good fit, however, He has to be more consistent.


I don't know if you saw it, but Kmart missed Sunday's game with flu-like symptoms.  He may not have been feeling that great last night.

----------


## Jim Kyle

I was amazed to see him in the game at all; it usually takes at least a week to get through such an illness.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

Yeah, at the half last night, it was stated that they shot something like 63% from the field but due to our turnovers, Utah was able to capitalize and score 17 points.  Turnovers were big early in the season and they're starting to factor back in.

Also, they showed where Perk got T'd up.  I didn't see him do a thing.  But whatever...

----------


## Easy180

> Also, they showed where Perk got T'd up.  I didn't see him do a thing.  But whatever...


Guess you weren't paying attention then...He got T'd up for excessive sweating

----------


## ljbab728

Should be an interesting show on OETA Thursday night.  It's too bad they airing it at the same time that the Miami game is on.

OETA | #1404 "Thunder BOOM"

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> Guess you weren't paying attention then...He got T'd up for excessive sweating


I know right?  Watching on a Vizio 47" 1080p TV too!

----------


## Anonymous.

Anyone going to the game tonight?

Downtown should be great with a lot of valentine goers and thunder fans. Temperatures in the upper 40s. 


Hopefully it looks nice on TNT.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

Hopefully TNT doesn't use year old stock footage except for their close up shot of the arena.

----------


## Praedura

Anticipating a hard fought, exciting battle tonight.

Oh, and Heat... don't make Durant mad... or you'll reget it!

----------


## SoonerBoy18

I really dont see beating the Heat this year in the finals, I never expected us to lose the way that we did. =( maybe it was refs and I am never the type of fan thats quick to blame the refs but...

----------


## Jake

Wasn't the refs. The only thing keeping the Thunder "in the game" were free throws.

----------


## Anonymous.

Really bad game by Thunder (exception KD [2nd half] and somewhat Russ).

And just a stellar game by MIA... I mean they had their perfect point spread over all of their key players. They are most likely the best team in the league at the moment. They seemed to be cruising by.




Maybe the All-Star break will be good for everyone on the team, including Brooks.

----------


## SoonerDave

At some point, I think its reasonable to just admit that MIA is better. In most any other era, the Thunder would be the talk of the league, but this is the Era of Lebron, and OKC has that as a glass ceiling. Doesn't mean OKC isn't a great team; MIA is just, well, greater. I'm not sure what piecemeal approach you might take to the Thunder that would make them more competitive - at some point, its not the schemes or alignments (as they say in football) its the schemers and alignees. Pretty hard to overcome a generational talent like Lebron James.

----------


## Praedura

*THUD*

That was the sound of my championship aspirations for the Thunder this season crashing to the ground.
 :Frown:

----------


## Anonymous.

> *THUD*
> 
> That was the sound of my championship aspirations for the Thunder this season crashing to the ground.





I wouldn't go that far, the team definitely turns it up for playoff time.

However, I think we may not cruise through the first couple rounds as easily as 2012.

----------


## Praedura

> I wouldn't go that far, the team definitely turns it up for playoff time.
> 
> However, I think we may not cruise through the first couple rounds as easily as 2012.


They can turn it up all they want. I just don't see the team, as currently constructed, beating the Heat in a series.

I think our only hope is Presti pulling off some great trade and bringing a valuable veteran in for the late season/playoff run. I'm not enough of a basketball nerd to know who that might be.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

All that JJ Barea talk really went off a cliff for the last week and a half or so.  I'm sold on a trade.  I think there is a dynamic of the team that can be changed and it would need to be a perimeter change.  Stay the same and we lose in the WCF, if not game 7 of a second round series.

----------


## BoulderSooner

> All that JJ Barea talk really went off a cliff for the last week and a half or so.  I'm sold on a trade.  I think there is a dynamic of the team that can be changed and it would need to be a perimeter change.  Stay the same and we lose in the WCF, if not game 7 of a second round series.


JJ barea doesn't change much against miami       as long as brooks plays 2 bigs against miami's 1 big the thunder won't win against them     the add that would help against miami is a back to the basket scorer  to make them pay when they go small

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> JJ barea doesn't change much against miami       as long as brooks plays 2 bigs against miami's 1 big the thunder won't win against them     the add that would help against miami is a back to the basket scorer  to make them pay when they go small


So what we'd really need and he's not available is a Marc Gasol type player.

----------


## BoulderSooner

> So what we'd really need and he's not available is a Marc Gasol type player.


millsap is on the trade block .. he would be a great get as he can play inside and out  he makes 7 mil

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> millsap is on the trade block .. he would be a great get as he can play inside and out  he makes 7 mil


Now that's a definite possiblity.  He always gives us trouble.  I could enjoy him being a trouble maker for us!

----------


## dcsooner

> At some point, I think its reasonable to just admit that MIA is better. In most any other era, the Thunder would be the talk of the league, but this is the Era of Lebron, and OKC has that as a glass ceiling. Doesn't mean OKC isn't a great team; MIA is just, well, greater. I'm not sure what piecemeal approach you might take to the Thunder that would make them more competitive - at some point, its not the schemes or alignments (as they say in football) its the schemers and alignees. Pretty hard to overcome a generational talent like Lebron James.


There have been several instances in sports where great individual athletes or teams have failed to win a championship because at that time in history another athlete or team was on the scene and was just better/ Reads like the current Thunder vs Miami.

----------


## Mississippi Blues

I agree that Miami is just better. I believe the Thunder are a close second, but Miami is simply better.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

After noticing how much bigger the Toyota Center is in Houston, talking in terms of square footage, I would be extremely nervous if Oklahoma City were to ever hosten an All Star game

----------


## ljbab728

> After noticing how much bigger the Toyota Center is in Houston, talking in terms of square footage, I would be extremely nervous if Oklahoma City were to ever hosten an All Star game


I don't think there will be any cause for you to be nervous.  OKC won't be hosten an All Star game any time soon.

----------


## adaniel

A lot of what you are seeing is in the George R. Brown convention center across the street. The Toyota Center and CHK Arena are about the same size.

But yes I agree it will be a long time before OKC hosts an all star game.

----------


## dcsooner

> After noticing how much bigger the Toyota Center is in Houston, talking in terms of square footage, I would be extremely nervous if Oklahoma City were to ever hosten an All Star game


No need to worry, OKC is not now or even the foreseeable future in line to host an NBA all star game.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> No need to worry, OKC is not now or even the foreseeable future in line to host an NBA all star game.


Did I say nervous?... I meant embaressed lol. And I just wish our arena could hold at least 1,000 more people even though its impossible to get an all star game here.

----------


## ljbab728

> Did I say nervous?... I meant embaressed lol. And I just wish our arena could hold at least 1,000 more people even though its impossible to get an all star game here.


Why in the world would you be embarassed?

----------


## Jake

Considering Houston's crowd was absolutely awful during All-Star week, you shouldn't feel too embarrassed.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> Why in the world would you be embarassed?


Because of the size of the arena.. I wish more seats were added and perhaps more spacious so people wouldn't have to stand while someone's trying to get to their seat.

----------


## Teo9969

Lebron is the better player, but I'm not convinced that Miami is the better team. I think OKC can get to 4 wins first in a best of 7...they just need to do it.

Thunder vs. Heat: Why Oklahoma City's offense didn't function correctly - SBNation.com

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> Lebron is the better player, but I'm not convinced that Miami is the better team. I think OKC can get to 4 wins first in a best of 7...they just need to do it.
> 
> Thunder vs. Heat: Why Oklahoma City's offense didn't function correctly - SBNation.com


I'm not convinced that OKC will make it to the WCF, but that's just me.

----------


## Easy180

> I'm not convinced that OKC will make it to the WCF, but that's just me.


Will be tougher this year for sure especially since our bench is weaker this year with only Martin and Collison playing worth a damn

----------


## ljbab728

> Because of the size of the arena.. I wish more seats were added and perhaps more spacious so people wouldn't have to stand while someone's trying to get to their seat.


You may not be happy about it but it's certainly nothing to be embarrassed about.  It's far from being the worst NBA arena.

----------


## Teo9969

> I'm not convinced that OKC will make it to the WCF, but that's just me.


It would be in OKC's best interest to win the West before the playoffs, not so much for Home Court, but so that the Clips and Spurs have to fight it out in the western conference semis. Otherwise, OKC will likely have to go through both teams.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

If the season ended today, we'd be playing the Jazz...Think about that for a second...

----------


## Anonymous.

Surprised no one here has mentioned it. But rumor/trade mill is turning - OKC is shopping Eric Maynor and the asking price is high.

Deadline is 2pm Thursday to deal.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

Mark Rogers mentioned a couple of websites to go to for rumor mill type stuff but I forgot em already.  I think one was hoopsrumors.com or something like that.

----------


## okc_bel_air

New rumors I saw today...

Perkins to Phoenix
Maynor to Utah
Kevin Garnett to OKC....but for who??

----------


## Anonymous.

Perkins and Lamb for Gortat and Tucker... I would do this trade for sure.

Though I think Lamb has the potential to be very Rudy Gay-esque

----------


## BoulderSooner

> New rumors I saw today...
> 
> Perkins to Phoenix
> Maynor to Utah
> Kevin Garnett to OKC....but for who??


one garnett rumor is KG to okc perkins maynor jones and the toronto pick to boston ..

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> If the season ended today, we'd be playing the Jazz...Think about that for a second...


Nooooo not the Jazz!  .........................  -_- give me a break. It will be 4-1 at least.

----------


## okc_bel_air

Interesting....Perkins is not playing tonite.  They say a knee sprain is to blame.  Could this be a cover so they can announce his trade tomorrow????

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> Interesting....Perkins is not playing tonite.  They say a knee sprain is to blame.  Could this be a cover so they can announce his trade tomorrow????


Listening to WWLS, Traber received a message from a reliable source saying he really did injure his knee, but you never know, cause if the source is within the organization then, yeah, I'd say it's a cover up.  

A coworker at one of our other stores said he heard (and remember, this is total speculation/rumor) Jermain O'Neal, Marcus Teague, and Gortat for Lamb, Maynor, Perkins and our first round draft pick.  I like it more than I don't like it if it's true.

----------


## blangtang

> Listening to WWLS, Traber received a message from a reliable source saying he really did injure his knee, but you never know, cause if the source is within the organization then, yeah, I'd say it's a cover up.  
> 
> A coworker at one of our other stores said he heard (and remember, this is total speculation/rumor) Jermain O'Neal, Marcus Teague, and Gortat for Lamb, Maynor, Perkins and our first round draft pick.  I like it more than I don't like it if it's true.



I like Perk, and I hope he stays.  

Demarcus Cousins is the only center I would want on the team if they are doing any trades-there's always a lot of talk about how OKC needs a big down low that is consistent offensively.  But DMC is a headcase and we'd probably have to trade Ibaka to get him.

Would they trade Thabo for someone who puts up more offense?  

I don't know what the trade will be, but it seems like they usually make some trade each year.

Its been brutal not having any games on this last week!

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> Marcus Teague


Marquis Teague??

----------


## Teo9969

> I like Perk, and I hope he stays.  
> 
> Demarcus Cousins is the only center I would want on the team if they are doing any trades-there's always a lot of talk about how OKC needs a big down low that is consistent offensively.  But DMC is a headcase and we'd probably have to trade Ibaka to get him.
> 
> Would they trade Thabo for someone who puts up more offense?  
> 
> *I don't know what the trade will be, but it seems like they usually make some trade each year.*
> 
> Its been brutal not having any games on this last week!


We already made the trade...We gave Harden to the Rockets for a treasure-chest of assets.

And we didn't make a trade last year...We picked Fisher up off a waiver, I believe, after the trade deadline.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> Marquis Teague??


Regardless of how you spell it--never heard of the kid

----------


## OKCJapan

Once again, The thunder cannot finish out a team.  They were up 10 with 6min to go and during that stretch, they scored 8 points.  5 of them from the foul line.  This team has got some real issues.  This is 3 losses in a row.  The Thunder have picked one of the worst times to let down.  Hope for better things next game though.

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> Regardless of how you spell it--never heard of the kid


He's Jeff Teague's (Atlanta Hawks) younger brother. He plays for the Bulls so I'm not sure how his name comes into play.

----------


## Mississippi Blues

I'm watching this Celtics-Lakers game and this dude is screaming "KEVIN, KEVIN , KEVIN..... KEVIN!!!!" at Kevin Garnett like KG just stole his fudge pop and ran with it.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> Once again, The thunder cannot finish out a team.  They were up 10 with 6min to go and during that stretch, they scored 8 points.  5 of them from the foul line.  This team has got some real issues.  This is 3 losses in a row.  The Thunder have picked one of the worst times to let down.  Hope for better things next game though.


I have watched this team grow every season, we are fine, We are going to the NBA Finals!

----------


## venture

> I have watched this team grow every season, we are fine, We are going to the NBA Finals!


Being in the stands doesn't count.  :Wink:

----------


## Jake

The team's defense needs some work. It's terrible.

----------


## sgt. pepper

> I have watched this team grow every season, we are fine, We are going to the NBA Finals!


OKC will not come CLOSE to being in the finals, get real. No doubt they are a good team, but OKC will get knocked out in the first round. This team is terrible compared to years past, so inconsistent it is pathetic....all year.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> OKC will not come CLOSE to being in the finals, get real. No doubt they are a good team, but OKC will get knocked out in the first round. This team is terrible compared to years past, so inconsistent it is pathetic....all year.


By who?? Utah?? Are you kidding me?!!! Because we have a rare 3 game losing streak and every body wants to throw in the towel. Its post all star break and every team ahead of the Lakers wants to win and make sure they dont go to the playoffs.

----------


## Anonymous.

All the critics will dissapear once playoff time comes. I would rather hit a slump now than at the end of the reg season - into playoffs.

Thabo was great last night, I really wonder about he and Russ's relationship. I think it is strictly professional and nothing more - therefore I fear Thabo is prevented a lot of touches during the game as he tends to play with Russ in rotation.

----------


## G.Walker

They have to make some adjustments...three L's in a row is unacceptable...Durant and Westbrook don't have any help....Sefalosha doesn't play like that every night...They had a 10 point lead with down the stretch and they blew it...they just let Harden go off...that was amazing...I bet Presti is scratching his head on letting Harden get away...

----------


## Anonymous.

> They have to make some adjustments...three L's in a row is unacceptable...Durant and Westbrook don't have any help....Sefalosha doesn't play like that every night...They had a 10 point lead with down the stretch and they blew it...they just let Harden go off...that was amazing...*I bet Presti is scratching his head on letting Harden get away.*..



Why do people think Presti _wanted_ to ditch Harden? He did everything he could to keep him, in fact he waited until the last minute essentially.

Harden said he would sacrifice more money to stay in OKC - but when it came to putting ink on paper, Harden and his agent turned away. Presti did the only thing he could, he had to trade Harden's value or else he would have just left for his max contract anyways. Harden and his agent removed himself from OKC - not the other way around.




Our "need a basket" plays are too predictable, RW or KD charging into lane flailing to get a call, or one of them chunks up a three ball.

They are both double teamed so many times in these situations, why they don't pass to an open Martin or Sefolosha is very frustrating. [last night, Russ did pass to an open Thabo in this situation, he just missed]


Also Reggie showed his youngster status last night by fouling on purpose when it was unecessary.

----------


## G.Walker

We could have kept Harden for the remainder of the season, and made a run for a title...now its not looking to good. They need to sacrifice some players to get a good player to help K-Mart score off the bench. We need a shooter, somebody like a J.J. Barrea (Timberwolves), Aaron Affalo (Magic), or Danny Green (Spurs), somebody who can just flat out shoot...jeez

----------


## G.Walker

My trade: Perry Jones, Maynor, and 1st rd pick for Danny Green (Spurs). I would have Danny Green come off the bench with K-Mart...talk about 3pt show...wow...

----------


## Anonymous.

Good thing you're not our GM. Letting Harden ride on the Thunder for this season would have meant he can go to whatever team he wants for his max $$ - and the Thunder get NOTHING.

Trading his value was the whole point of the ultimatum given to him by Presti. You don't simply let an all-star leave your team for free - you get something in return. NBA is a business.



Martin needs to be more assertive in getting touches, IMO.

----------


## G.Walker

Over the last 5 games Danny Green has shot 17-33 from 3pt range, 52%, wow.....

----------


## Anonymous.

Maynor has been traded to Portland for a 'trade exception' in return.

----------


## Mississippi Blues

The Thunder traded a future second-round pick to New York in exchange for Ronnie Brewer. I wish we would've picked up Iman Shumpert instead of Brewer, but o'well.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

This trade has prevented me from going off on some thunder fans.. Its just very agrivating that hardley anyone gives Kevin Martin credit.

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> Well, Brewer is exactly the kind of players I was asking for in my post above.  I hope he works out. Great at getting rebounds and shutting down 2nd chance points and seems to handle the ball really well (low turnovers). 
> 
> I can't wait to see him play.


He's not the greatest shooter -- he's probably a worse shooter than Sefalosha -- but he can flat out play defense. A solid defender to throw at LeBron and/or Wade if we get back to the Finals. 

Liggins has become a stud as well, so we're set on perimeter defenders IMO.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> This trade has prevented me from going off on some thunder fans.. Its just very agrivating that hardley anyone gives Kevin Martin credit.


Who do you know that is not giving K-Mart credit??  Don't go off on them.  Obviously they're stupid enough that if you did, it'd go in one ear and out the other...

----------


## Teo9969

> My trade: Perry Jones, Maynor, and 1st rd pick for Danny Green (Spurs). I would have Danny Green come off the bench with K-Mart...talk about 3pt show...wow...


No way I take that if I'm San Antonio...not even for the TOR pick

----------


## SoonerBoy18

3 Game losing streak is now history! It has been 366 games since the Thunder had their last 3 game losing streak not counting the NBA Finals.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

The Thunder just suffocated the Bulls tonight, a team who plays hard EVERY night. The Bulls shot 29% which is the lowest of any team this season, the next lowest was the Bobcats with 29.11%..... Against the Thunder... Now how do you like THEM apples?!

----------


## Teo9969

Sounds like we're re-signing Derek Fisher.

Gonna guess that PJIII, Lamb, and Orton get left off the playoff roster.

----------


## Bill Robertson

> Sounds like we're re-signing Derek Fisher.
> 
> Gonna guess that PJIII, Lamb, and Orton get left off the playoff roster.


According to Yahoo sports he'll sign today. If true I like it. He played a part in the Thunder stretch run and playoff run last season. Hopefully we'll see the same this time around.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

The second coming of D Fish!

----------


## Praedura

> The second coming of D Fish!


Looks like it!

Derick Fisher reportedly to re-sign with Oklahoma City Thunder | The Point Forward - SI.com

Guess he's still hunting for that sixth ring!

----------


## Praedura

Will he wear #38 now, in keeping with the number=age tradition he set last season?  :Tongue:

----------


## kevinpate

This news ... does not make me sad.  Not at all.

----------


## Praedura

> This news ... does not make me sad.  Not at all.


Agree. With Maynor gone, we could use another solid option at the point. Reggie plays well at times, but is uneven.

But really, more than anything, it's that steadying veteran influence. The team has had flashes of brilliance this season, but seems to have trouble with focus from time to time. I think Derek had a calming and encouraging affect on the team last season, and I think he can again. This definitely bodes well for a title run.

----------


## Bill Robertson

> Agree. With Maynor gone, we could use another solid option at the point. Reggie plays well at times, but is uneven.
> 
> But really, more than anything, it's that steadying veteran influence. The team has had flashes of brilliance this season, but seems to have trouble with focus from time to time. I think Derek had a calming and encouraging affect on the team last season, and I think he can again. This definitely bodes well for a title run.


Absolutely. Fisher's effect went way beyond his stats. The same should happen again. Also, Brewer is supposed to be active for the Hornets game. I'm anxious to see just how they work him into playing minutes.

----------


## OSUMom

I would love to see Fisher eventually take a coaching position somewhere.  I think he helped us out off the court as much as on last year.  Maybe more.

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> I would love to see Fisher eventually take a coaching position somewhere.  I think he helped us out off the court as much as on last year.  Maybe more.


Fish would definitely make a great coach.

----------


## MonkeesFan

I am not a Thunder fan but what is the point of signing Fisher? I doubt he is going to help the Thunder in anything

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> I am not a Thunder fan but what is the point of signing Fisher? I doubt he is going to help the Thunder in anything


They needed a solid PG. Plus he's a big time leader. Sheesh dude.  :Smile:

----------


## Teo9969

Veteran leadership is always an asset for a young team in the playoffs.

He's not a BAD player by any means. This move would be worrisome if Reggie was really sucking it up and *this* was our answer. However, Reggie looks pretty good so far, and I think Fisher will be more of a 3rd string PG.

In a massively reduced role, a player the caliber of Fisher quickly becomes a wonderful asset on and off the court:

1. We can count on him to handle the ball well (and we really have needed one more ball handler for 5 to 10 possessions/game)
2. We can count on him to not make stupid mistakes
3. We can count on him to lead the team in a positive manner, and to provide good advice to Westbrook and more importantly at this point, Reggie.
4. We have proven, reliable depth at the PG position should Reggie show major issues in the playoffs.
5. Russ and Reggie are both SGs playing the PG position...occasionally, it is nice to have a real PG run the offense and free up KD/Russ/Reggie to exploit other areas on the court.


This isn't the missing piece to win it all, but it's depth for that 11th/12th roster spot that is better than relying on unproven rookies like Lamb or PJIII.

If OKC keeps his minutes to 8 or less under normal circumstances, then I think this is a sensible, savvy, beneficial move to make. If Brooks plays him 20 minutes...well, I'll be happy to just make the WCF, let alone win them.

----------


## BoulderSooner

> Veteran leadership is always an asset for a young team in the playoffs.
> 
> He's not a BAD player by any means. This move would be worrisome if Reggie was really sucking it up and *this* was our answer. However, Reggie looks pretty good so far, and I think Fisher will be more of a 3rd string PG.
> 
> In a massively reduced role, a player the caliber of Fisher quickly becomes a wonderful asset on and off the court:
> 
> 1. We can count on him to handle the ball well (and we really have needed one more ball handler for 5 to 10 possessions/game)
> 2. We can count on him to not make stupid mistakes
> 3. We can count on him to lead the team in a positive manner, and to provide good advice to Westbrook and more importantly at this point, Reggie.
> ...


neither Russ or Reggie are SG   they are both PG    and russ is one of the top 3 in the NBA

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> neither Russ or Reggie are SG   they are both PG    and russ is one of the top 3 in the NBA


It's no secret that Russel Westbrook is a SG that is playing & has even adapted to being a PG. I don't know about Reggie.

----------


## BoulderSooner

> It's no secret that Russel Westbrook is a SG that is playing & has even adapted to being a PG. I don't know about Reggie.


just because some people say it doesn't make it true ... russ is a PG   and a great one at that

for those that say he is a SG    they must think Derrik Rose is also not a pg  because Russ and Rose have pretty much been the exact same player in the nba

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> just because some people say it doesn't make it true ... russ is a PG   and a great one at that
> 
> for those that say he is a SG    they must think Derrik Rose is also not a pg  because Russ and Rose have pretty much been the exact same player in the nba


That's your argument? He played SG at UCLA bro. Nobody has compared him to Derrick Rose. Derrick Rose has always been a PG, Russ was never a PG till he started playing for the Thunder. He is a great PG, but that's not his natural position.

----------


## ABryant

Russ was a raw player at UCLA. Shooting guard fit him well. In the NBA his size and athleticism work best at Point guard. He has done a good job at adapting.

----------


## BoulderSooner

> That's your argument? He played SG at UCLA bro. Nobody has compared him to Derrick Rose. Derrick Rose has always been a PG, Russ was never a PG till he started playing for the Thunder. He is a great PG, but that's not his natural position.


he was a combo guard at UCLA   just like derron williams was at illinois ....      and you should compare him to derrick rose   they are and have been statistically the same player 

he is a pg

----------


## AP

> he was a combo guard at UCLA   just like derron williams was at illinois ....      and you should compare him to derrick rose   they are and have been statistically the same player 
> 
> he is a pg


I don't think he is debating wether he is a point guard now. But, I think his skill set was probably better suited for the 2 guard like he was at UCLA in his early years in OKC. He had a difficult time transitioning to pg. Now he's a pretty versatile player, but that wasn't always the case, as we all know.

----------


## BoulderSooner

> I don't think he is debating wether he is a point guard now. But, I think his skill set was probably better suited for the 2 guard like he was at UCLA in his early years in OKC. He had a difficult time transitioning to pg. Now he's a pretty versatile player, but that wasn't always the case, as we all know.


see 




> 5. Russ and Reggie are both SGs playing the PG position...occasionally, it is nice to have a real PG run the offense and free up KD/Russ/Reggie to exploit other areas on the court.


Russ is a real PG    and one of the best in the NBA

----------


## Teo9969

Russ is a SG who happens to play the Point better than all but maybe 7 players in the NBA (Rondo, LBJ, Paul, and maybe Nash, Rubio, D. Williams, Parker).

I don't know why you're arguing that a player who takes more shots than any other player on the team is not a shooting guard...

----------


## Teo9969

15 Surprising Athletes Who Have Made An Insane Amount Of Money | ThePostGame

Wow...just...wow.

Surely we can get this guy to re-sign with us for <$8M/year.

----------


## AP

> Russ is a real PG and one of the best in the NBA


My point was that Russ isn't a real PG. He's done a good job at playing the position, and because of his athleticism is one of the better ones in the league, but at heart he is more suited for SG. With the exception of Derrick Rose, he plays the position completely different than any other PG in the league.

----------


## Anonymous.

> 15 Surprising Athletes Who Have Made An Insane Amount Of Money | ThePostGame
> 
> Wow...just...wow.
> 
> Surely we can get this guy to re-sign with us for <$8M/year.




I honestly think he will re-sign. He has had his money-man fun [unlike Harden]. Martin was super excited when he heard the news he was traded to the Thunder. He knows Houston has no chance of a championship within probably the next 5-6 years.

Martin knows that he is now in prime position to rack up rings to set next to his racks of money. Something Harden will understand in the distant future when he sees his buddies back @ OKC continuously playing deep in the playoffs.

----------


## AP

> I honestly think he will re-sign.


I agree. I think he likes it here and fits our system pretty well.

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> he was a combo guard at UCLA   just like derron williams was at illinois ....      and you should compare him to derrick rose   they are and have been statistically the same player 
> 
> he is a pg


I'm not debating if he's a PG or not. I know what position he plays even though that's not his natural position. I'm not comparing his stats to Derrick Rose. Im not saying he isn't a PG because of his stats. Know what I'm saying before you get defensive & pretty much run in circles, no disrespect intended.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> I am not a Thunder fan but what is the point of signing Fisher? I doubt he is going to help the Thunder in anything


You obvioulsy didnt watch him before he came here. Keep it moving.

----------


## BoulderSooner

> I'm not debating if he's a PG or not. I know what position he plays even though that's not his natural position. I'm not comparing his stats to Derrick Rose. Im not saying he isn't a PG because of his stats. Know what I'm saying before you get defensive & pretty much run in circles, no disrespect intended.


no disrespect taken ... i just disagree    pg is his natural position ....

----------


## Teo9969

> 15 Surprising Athletes Who Have Made An Insane Amount Of Money | ThePostGame
> 
> Wow...just...wow.
> 
> Surely we can get this guy to re-sign with us for <$8M/year.


Ha! Apparently they mixed up Kevin Martin with Kenyon Martin. It is Kenyon Martin who has made that much money.

Kevin has made about half that amount between 50-60 total. That's still a lot of money, but there's enough of a difference between 55 and 110 that I could still see him refusing to play for substantially less than market value.

Still would like to see him sign for <$8, but if he proves to be a great asset in the playoffs, then a 2-year $18M is probably manageable. I'd for sure give him no better than a 3-year, $25M contract.

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> no disrespect taken ... i just disagree    pg is his natural position ....


Well I respect your opinion as we all have one. We can both agree that he's a great PG & player in general & he makes the Thunder a better team than if we didn't have him.

----------


## BoulderSooner

> Well I respect your opinion as we all have one. We can both agree that he's a great PG & player in general & he makes the Thunder a better team than if we didn't have him.


no doubt

----------


## SoonerBoy18

Lost at Denver... Come on people start crying about how think the excitement level is down. *sarcasm

----------


## OKCisOK4me

The thing that stuck out to me was on the pregame show on wwls. ..they said efficiency wise, Nuggets were the 4th best team in the NBA right now. That struck a cord with me. We may be playing down right now but they gonna have to be on point come playoffs time.

----------


## OKCJapan

The Thunder have a couple of real problems at the moment,  First, They do not have a consistent 3rd or 4th scorer for road games.  Martin has not been good on the road during the second half of this season.  Ibaka is improving offensively but he sometimes has off nights as well.  I think we are witnessing right now how important Harden was to this team.  Now we cannot put any blame on Presti because we all know the economics were not going to work.  The facts are, the Thunder have lost 6 of the past 7 on the road.  We needed this game to avoid another back to back loss.  I don't know if we can beat the Clippers who are on a role right now Unless everyone who is counted on puts up early season averaging numbers.  7 of our last 13 games on the road are against playoff teams which would put us at a possible mark of 23-19 on the road at the end of the season.  That is off the mark from the past 2 seasons marks of 21-12 and 25-16.  What is the remedy? Maybe martin is not getting enough shots or looks, in that case we could put the blame on coach Brooks.  However, this is not the only problem.
The other issue is with the turnovers, Early in the season is seemed like the TO were lower.  Now, the are like last years average.  However, the difference was, we had Harden.  The Thunder cannot afford to fall to fourth in the WC.  Well we can still hope for the best.

----------


## Teo9969

Harden was important to the offense. I can honestly say I don't think we miss him defensively.

But Harden is not the answer for this team. Sure, playing the brand of basketball we're playing, we'd be better...but that brand of basketball (Iso-heavy) is not going to win us a Championship as long that path goes through Miami (and that's at least this year and next).

...It's disheartening because when they play with poor ball movement, Presti looks like a fool for not just eating the money and signing Harden to a ridiculous deal and trading him off if it didn't work. But when we play with consistent, crisp ball-movement (and I say crisp because there are games we play competitively, have tons of assists but look like crap doing it) Presti looks like the best GM of all time.

~60 games into the season I really hoped we would see the offense come together. The fact that it hasn't leaves holes on the defensive end in transition (which is what killed us tonight in the 2nd quarter). It also requires more effort which leads to less focus on the defensive side of the court. 

I'm certainly not counting the Thunder out of even winning a Title this year: The defense will lock-down come playoffs and that alone gives me great hope...but it just doesn't look like they're ready overall.

----------


## Easy180

Pretty obvious at this point in the season the Heat are heavy favorites to repeat but we will see...Just thankful we get to enjoy watching winning basketball with two stars in KD and Westbrook...Sure would be ecstatic with a title but more than satisfied with what is representing OKC

----------


## betts

> Pretty obvious at this point in the season the Heat are heavy favorites to repeat but we will see...Just thankful we get to enjoy watching winning basketball with two stars in KD and Westbrook...Sure would be ecstatic with a title but more than satisfied with what is representing OKC


I have to agree.  Some of the entertainment has to be anticipating the post season, but if we're short sighted enough to not enjoy watching some of the best basketball players ever on a regular basis, we're missing half the fun of sports.  Only one team can win a title.  Fans of the rest need to learn to enjoy the skill level of the players, the excellent passing, amazing shots, etc.  Even in losses, all but the last minute or so of a game is usually really enjoyable.  That was value for your entertainment dollar.  It sure bets watching reruns of most of the shows on television.


OKC Thunder Fans - Oklahoma City NBA

----------


## BoulderSooner

> Harden was important to the offense. I can honestly say I don't think we miss him defensively.
> 
> But Harden is not the answer for this team. Sure, playing the brand of basketball we're playing, we'd be better...but that brand of basketball (Iso-heavy) is not going to win us a Championship as long that path goes through Miami (and that's at least this year and next).
> 
> ...It's disheartening because when they play with poor ball movement, Presti looks like a fool for not just eating the money and signing Harden to a ridiculous deal and trading him off if it didn't work. But when we play with consistent, crisp ball-movement (and I say crisp because there are games we play competitively, have tons of assists but look like crap doing it) Presti looks like the best GM of all time.
> 
> ~60 games into the season I really hoped we would see the offense come together. The fact that it hasn't leaves holes on the defensive end in transition (which is what killed us tonight in the 2nd quarter). It also requires more effort which leads to less focus on the defensive side of the court. 
> 
> I'm certainly not counting the Thunder out of even winning a Title this year: The defense will lock-down come playoffs and that alone gives me great hope...but it just doesn't look like they're ready overall.


we are the highest scoring team in the NBA .. O is not and will not be the problem

----------


## Teo9969

> we are the highest scoring team in the NBA .. O is not and will not be the problem


We're the second behind Miami in pts/100 possessions. But I get what you're trying to say.

That's great and all for the first 40 to 44 minutes, but simply put: Our offense looks like crap in crunch time.

I'll say it again, we're working really hard on the offensive end and putting ourselves in bad positions for transition defense. We're also forcing KD and RW to exert more energy in isolation heavy offense and it's hampering their ability to defend as well as they are able.

----------


## Anonymous.

3 or so games this year we lose @ buzzer? I'll take that.

----------


## Anonymous.

Big win over the Clippers last night. Moving us closer to the #1 spot. We must take advantage of the Spur's MVP being down. 

Home court advantage will be a huge advantage for the Thunder in the West. (Harden bailed us out of SA last year).

----------


## adaniel

Good win indeed, although it would have been better had Serge Ibaka not swatted Blake Griffin in his junk. Our best scenario is that he only sits out one game, because he is almost certainly going to get suspended.

And while yes, the Pistons stink, the Spurs performance last night shows they are not going to fall apart without a few weeks of Parker. We gotta be on our A game if we want the #1 seed.

----------


## BoulderSooner

> Good win indeed, although it would have been better had Serge Ibaka not swatted Blake Griffin in his junk. Our best scenario is that he only sits out one game, because he is almost certainly going to get suspended.
> 
> And while yes, the Pistons stink, the Spurs performance last night shows they are not going to fall apart without a few weeks of Parker. We gotta be on our A game if we want the #1 seed.


very unlikely he gets suspended

----------


## Of Sound Mind

> very unlikely he gets suspended


It would seem that you hold a starkly minority viewpoint on that based on much of the commentary in the sports world.

----------


## Bellaboo

> Good win indeed, although it would have been better had Serge Ibaka not swatted Blake Griffin in his junk. Our best scenario is that he only sits out one game, because he is almost certainly going to get suspended.
> 
> And while yes, the Pistons stink, the Spurs performance last night shows they are *not going to fall apart without a few weeks of Parker.* We gotta be on our A game if we want the #1 seed.


It's going around that Parker may have some kind of tear, that it may be worse than anticipated.

----------


## adaniel

^
Interesting, I haven't heard it but it wouldn't surprise me after watching the way his ankle bent.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> Good win indeed, although it would have been better had Serge Ibaka not swatted Blake Griffin in his junk. Our best scenario is that he only sits out one game, because he is almost certainly going to get suspended.
> 
> And while yes, the Pistons stink, the Spurs performance last night shows they are not going to fall apart without a few weeks of Parker. We gotta be on our A game if we want the #1 seed.


Blake Griffin was playing like a donkey and a half yesterday.  If you look at that replay over and over again, Blake has a fist full of Ibaka's jersey and he's stretching it to the moon.  Serge was trying to loosen his grip by swinging at him and the whole time he's looking up for the rebound not paying attention to where his swing lands.  It was an inadvertent blow to Blake who played it off with a lovely little flop.  Blake did so much crap yesterday that was similar to one Ron Artest that it wasn't even funny.  If Serge gets suspended, it's well worth it...just bad timing.

----------


## Teo9969

Serge likely won't get suspended. Possibly fined, but even that's doubtful.

When you have a ridiculous wing span, there's not much room for error. About the time that Serge prepared to swing, Griffin's arm was extended pretty high up. He then contracted a little bit, bent his elbow, and by the time Serge's arm hit Blake's arm, it was hit w/ Serge's upper arm (rather than the forearm or elbow he probably intended). From there, you realize the length of Ibaka's arm is the culprit as much as the intent. Things happened way too fast to be sure that he was trying to take a cheap shot, and basked on Ibaka's history, I would doubt that a cheap shot was his goal. He was still pretty focused on the play at hand as evidenced by his looking up at the rim.

Agree though that he should have jumped and drawn the foul. Would have negated the 3-pointer and kept the Thunder in the lead. Good to see him calm down and finish the game on 2 major plays.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

Yes, to keep his composure and finish with a rejection and an and-1 was great for Serge.  No doubt in my mind that it was inadvertent.

----------


## Anonymous.

Griffin is a dirty player. _Most_ of his "posters" are offensive fouls. He is like the lightweight version of Lebron. Large player that bowls through people near the rim yet doesn't get any fouls called on them.

I am just glad that it looks like OKC has figured out the Clips, there was a time the last couple seasons where facing the Clips meant surely an L was to be added. Now it is the other way around. I want to crush them in the playoffs. Chris Paul and Blake Griffin's flop-city routine is a joke to the league.


Tonight against LAL will be a good one, 8:30 on ESPN.

----------


## Mississippi Blues

BS was right. Serge didn't get suspended but was fined $25,000 instead.

----------


## Teo9969

2 Turnovers tonight against the Lakers. Franchise low.

That's really quite ridiculous...

----------


## ljbab728

> 2 Turnovers tonight against the Lakers. Franchise low.
> 
> That's really quite ridiculous...


That's not only a franchise low, it ties the NBA low.

----------


## Mississippi Blues

The team that always has people up in arms over how bad they are at keeping possession is the team that is tied for the all-time low in turnovers during a single game. How ironic.

----------


## Anonymous.

The botched call on Russell traveling in the 3rd or maybe early 4th basically prevented OKC from claiming the record.

----------


## Bellaboo

> The botched call on Russell traveling in the 3rd or maybe early 4th basically prevented OKC from claiming the record.


The call where Brewer passed to Collison and it went out of bounds, they both emphatically claimed it was tipped by a Laker........  could have been a zero turnover game.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

It wasn't a botched call.  He really did travel, lol.

----------


## Anonymous.

Another big W last night in NY.

We are in the lolcat's house tonight. Celtics @ noon Sunday then fly out to San Antonio for Monday night's game.

----------


## adaniel

> Another big W last night in NY.
> 
> We are in the *lolcat's house* tonight. Celtics @ noon Sunday then fly out to San Antonio for Monday night's game.


Win. 

Of course, who deserves the LOL if we lose to them...and yes, we do tend to sleepwalk through what should be easy games (cough cough Wizards cough)

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> Win. 
> 
> Of course, who deserves the LOL if we lose to them...and yes, we do tend to sleepwalk through what should be easy games (cough cough Wizards cough)


We do, but the Bobcats just suck. We won our last game against them by 45 points & had a 50+ point lead a few times in the game.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

All I know is that the radio feed sounds like a high school game.  I can hear the cheerleaders, lol...

----------


## Praedura

Jeff Green's first game in OKC since being traded. I hope the crowd gives him a warm welcome.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> Jeff Green's first game in OKC since being traded. I hope the crowd gives him a warm welcome.


Not sure if its the boring PA announcer not being loud enough or if its the fans who dont really care because all season the fans inside the arena have been giving poor standing ovations. They did poor against Martin, Harden, Fisher, Brewer and Now Green.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

Huh?  I must be reading your post wrong...

----------


## Teo9969

He's saying we're not giving standing ovations to players that deserve standing ovations.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> Not sure if its the boring PA announcer not being loud enough or if its the fans who dont really care because all season the fans inside the arena have been giving poor standing ovations. They did poor against Martin, Harden, Fisher, Brewer and Now Green.


Only way they get great standing ovations is when they win the championship for them but they did not so they get poor standing ovations

----------


## HOT ROD

why didn't ABC show any city shots during today's Sunday game? Normally, ESPN does a fairly good job showing the city but today there was nothing aside from the outside of the building itself at the very beginning.

Anybody have insight?

----------


## MonkeesFan

> why didn't ABC show any city shots during today's Sunday game? Normally, ESPN does a fairly good job showing the city but today there was nothing aside from the outside of the building itself at the very beginning.
> 
> Anybody have insight?


Because it is not night time, it is prettier at night time so that is why they did not show any city shots

----------


## ljbab728

> Only way they get great standing ovations is when they win the championship for them but they did not so they get poor standing ovations


A warm welcome is nice.  A standing ovation is not required and I see no reason to downgrade the crowd when that doesn't happen.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> He's saying we're not giving standing ovations to players that deserve standing ovations.


I understand that, but this sentence kills it for me:

"They did poor against Martin, Harden, Fisher, Brewer and Now Green."

Is he saying that we should have given Kevin Martin a warm welcome when he played for Houston?  I didn't even know who Kevin Martin was before he was acquired by the Thunder organization.  I think you give a warm welcome, if the player we're welcoming is in the starting line up introductions.  If they're coming into the game, it is what it is.

----------


## Anonymous.

I was at the game and didn't even hear Green's announced check-in.

Either way he played here 3 years ago... Not really deserving of a standing O.

I notice the crowd generally loves Fisher, though. Like everyone freaks out when he hits a 3. I find it odd.

----------


## Teo9969

> I was at the game and didn't even hear Green's announced check-in.
> 
> Either way he played here 3 years ago... Not really deserving of a standing O.
> 
> I notice the crowd generally loves Fisher, though. *Like everyone freaks out when he hits a 3. I find it odd.*


It's always great when you see one of the rarities in sports  :Wink:

----------


## SoonerBoy18

I rest my case.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> "I didn't even know who Kevin Martin was before he was acquired by the Thunder organization.


The typical Thunder fan.

----------


## blangtang

Maynor got traded with little notice, but I noticed he's actually getting a decent amount of playing time and producing in portland..its a bummer that his injury bumped him down on the depth chart, but i'm glad he's having a chance to play again and prove his value...

----------


## Teo9969

If Reggie can continue to develop the way he is, it's probably better to have backup PG like Reggie who is more like a poor-man's RW than he is a true-PG. It ought to help the continuity in the "offense" that OKC runs. 

Been really impressed with Reggie lately, and I think he's playing his way into a decent playoff minutes. He's averaging 15.6 MPG since the All-Star Break and averaged 17.9 in February. I think those minutes have gone a long way in his development.

I predicted 3 to 6 minutes earlier in the season...I think I'll bump that up to 8-12 minutes.

Here are my predictions:




> 35: ~44
> 0: ~42
> 9: ~36
> 23: ~33
> 2: ~30
> 5: ~24
> 4: ~22
> 15: ~6
> 34: ~3


New Predictions

Player: MPG (+/- previous prediction) +/- from regular season averages

35: ~41 (-3)		+2.4
0: ~39 (-3)			+3.5
9: ~35 (-1)			+4.3
23: ~32 (-1)		+3.4
2: ~30			+1.4
5: ~23 (-1)			-1.9
4: ~21			+1.8
15: ~10 (+4)		-2.5
6: ~5 (+5)			[-9.7]
34: ~3 			-8.6

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> The typical Thunder fan.


The typical d-bag...

----------


## Bellaboo

> I was at the game and didn't even hear Green's announced check-in.
> 
> Either way he played here 3 years ago... Not really deserving of a standing O.
> 
> I notice the crowd generally loves Fisher, though. Like everyone freaks out when he hits a 3. I find it odd.


I was at the game too, and Green was announced the same time as Nick Collison, they both came into the game at the same time, and the fans gave both a nice ovation, but not a standing ovation, which is totally not necessary.

----------


## Easy180

Spurs take down the Thunder then get throttled (currently down 25 in the 4th) to the T-Wolves?.....ok

----------


## OKCDrummer77

> Spurs take down the Thunder then get throttled (currently down 25 in the 4th) to the T-Wolves?.....ok


And the Celtics lost to the Bobcats by 26.  Kind of a backwards night in the NBA.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

I guess those second nights in a row really whoop everyone...

----------


## ryanosu

> Spurs take down the Thunder then get throttled (currently down 25 in the 4th) to the T-Wolves?.....ok


Watched this on LP...they didn't bring Duncan or Kawhi Leonard on the trip. Plus Gary Neal barely played...and Ginobili & Splitter were awful.

Plus Minnesota shot lights out & Rubio got a triple double.

----------


## Buffalo Bill

Where is the best place to get Thunder tickets?  It seems that Stubhub, Thunder ticket exchange, Craigslist, et al. have everything at 2x face value for just about every game.  Do these prices drop as game time nears?  Is it best to just go buy outside the arena prior to the game? 

Haven't been in this position in a few years.  Any help is welcome.

----------


## BrettM2

> Where is the best place to get Thunder tickets?  It seems that Stubhub, Thunder ticket exchange, Craigslist, et al. have everything at 2x face value for just about every game.  Do these prices drop as game time nears?  Is it best to just go buy outside the arena prior to the game? 
> 
> Haven't been in this position in a few years.  Any help is welcome.


Stubhub dropped for me, right before game time.  It was the Phoenix game a few Fridays ago.  Tickets were selling for $35+ for the $10 seats, picked one up at $14 just 30 minutes before tip off.  The Courtyard next to the arena lets you print them off if you tried to get tickets at the arena but failed (definitely try their lottery, worth a shot).

----------


## BoulderSooner

> Where is the best place to get Thunder tickets?  It seems that Stubhub, Thunder ticket exchange, Craigslist, et al. have everything at 2x face value for just about every game.  Do these prices drop as game time nears?  Is it best to just go buy outside the arena prior to the game? 
> 
> Haven't been in this position in a few years.  Any help is welcome.


if you are willing to wcan get tickait until after tip you ets for at or below face value  for all but the big match ups .. for those you are going to pay over face unitil 20 or 30 min after tip

----------


## Buffalo Bill

> Stubhub dropped for me, right before game time.  It was the Phoenix game a few Fridays ago.  Tickets were selling for $35+ for the $10 seats, picked one up at $14 just 30 minutes before tip off.  The Courtyard next to the arena lets you print them off if you tried to get tickets at the arena but failed (definitely try their lottery, worth a shot).


I forgot about the lottery.  I'll give that a try, too.

----------


## Anonymous.

Guy next to our seats sells his big game tickets usually.

He got $80 per ticket for the LAL game last week and he owns probably 12 tickets in that area. He pays $10 for each of these tickets. Rough times for season ticket holders, I tell ya!

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> Where is the best place to get Thunder tickets?  It seems that Stubhub, Thunder ticket exchange, Craigslist, et al. have everything at 2x face value for just about every game.  Do these prices drop as game time nears?  Is it best to just go buy outside the arena prior to the game? 
> 
> Haven't been in this position in a few years.  Any help is welcome.


Other than those, this will be your most legit site:

NBA.com - NBA Tickets

----------


## Soonerman

Thunder hold the Jazz to 9 points in the 2nd qtr.

----------


## Anonymous.

Jazz gets blown out tonight.

Heat still haven't lost.

Lakers lose to Hawks.

----------


## Bellaboo

> Guy next to our seats sells his big game tickets usually.
> 
> He got $80 per ticket for the LAL game last week and he owns probably 12 tickets in that area. He pays $10 for each of these tickets. Rough times for season ticket holders, I tell ya!


I pay 80 a ticket in the Club level. I sold the Heat game for $600 for both. I could not get close to that with the lakers, so we went. I think it was because it was an 8:30 game.

----------


## Bellaboo

> Jazz gets blown out tonight.
> 
> Heat still haven't lost.
> 
> Lakers lose to Hawks.


And Kobe turned his ankle and is out indefinately.

----------


## MonkeesFan

Magic fan here, I can not wait to go to the game tomorrow and see the Magic kick their butts! :Big Grin:

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> Magic fan here, I can not wait to go to the game tomorrow and see the Magic kick their butts!


Not going to happen lol

----------


## SoonerBoy18

Spurs are showing signs of big losses coming their way, Dallas ALMOST got em in SA tonight, Thunder still have a chance to take over number 1

----------


## MonkeesFan

> Not going to happen lol


It is going to happen, you will see! The Thunder is due for a bad game and a loss at home!  :Tongue:

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> It is going to happen, you will see! The Thunder is due for a bad game and a loss at home!


That already happened lol

----------


## MonkeesFan

> That already happened lol


I know but they are due for another one!

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> I know but they are due for another one!


Yeah, you're silly...but I'll eat crow if it comes to fruition.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> Yeah, you're silly...but I'll eat crow if it comes to fruition.


Haha, I will be back after the game either to say congratulations good game if the Magic lost or Magic wins, great game! Haha!

----------


## Bellaboo

> It is going to happen, you will see! The Thunder is due for a bad game and a loss at home!


Do you know how many games the Magic have won this year ?   They'll be lucky not to get stomped by 30 by the Thunder.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> Do you know how many games the Magic have won this year ?   They'll be lucky not to get stomped by 30 by the Thunder.


Of course I know, I am a Magic fan so I should know how many games the Magic won! I am sure it will be a close game, they did play the Heat tough twice last week and lost by 1 point and 2 points so it could happen that the Magic will play tough against the Thunder and keep it close tonight

----------


## Bellaboo

> Of course I know, I am a Magic fan so I should know how many games the Magic won! I am sure it will be a close game, they did play the Heat tough last week and lost by 1 point so it could happen that the Magic will play tough against the Thunder and keep it close tonight


I always say it's the NBA, anything can happen on a given day.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> I always say it's the NBA, anything can happen on a given day.


Exactly!

----------


## OKCisOK4me

Tonight is not a given day

----------


## MonkeesFan

> Tonight is not a given day


We will see!

----------


## OSUMom

It almost was.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> It almost was.


Yup! Congratulations guys, nice comeback for my Magic but I knew their defense would blow it at the end! See you all next Friday in Orlando!

----------


## dankrutka

> Spurs are showing signs of big losses coming their way, Dallas ALMOST got em in SA tonight, Thunder still have a chance to take over number 1


At this point I'm more concerned with avoiding the Lakers. If the Lakers are the 8 seed then I'd rather be the 2 and face the Warriors or Rockets. The Lakers have started to turn the corner and they'll challenge whoever they play (if they're healthy) in the 1st round.

----------


## Easy180

Looks like the Thunder have won the last nine against the Mavs so the ole rivalry is getting a little one sided...Should make it 10 especially if Dirk doesn't play

----------


## Jim Kyle

Bummer! Went to watch on DirecTV at 679-1 and found the game is blacked out!!!

----------


## ThomPaine

Watching the game on tv down in Dallas.  The Mav's tv announcers on Fox Sports are the worst homers I have heard!  (I'm sure any Mav's fans in OKC are saying the same thing.)

----------


## Anonymous.

I think enough people in OKC called and complained to DirectTV. The game was on blackout for the first half and by the start of the 3rd - Fox Sports was displaying the Dallas feed.

----------


## Jim Kyle

Channel 676 is the Dallas feed; ours is 679-1 (for HD display). For some reason DTV's 679 and 679-1 were SNAFU tonight. I hope they get things fixed by Tuesday night!

I did send a complaint to Thunder HQ via their web site; I hope they can get DTV to do better by them...

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> I think enough people in OKC called and complained to DirectTV. The game was on blackout for the first half and by the start of the 3rd - Fox Sports was displaying the Dallas feed.


Yessir!  I was at Henry Hudson's on Memorial exclusively to watch the game and it was blacked out.  I called Fox and Hound and they couldn't get the game either.  Anyone that has Cox Cable was good to go, but DirecTV customers....not so much....   We heard at half time that a lot'o'customers had complained big time and the game was on from halftime on.  That's awesome!  We (no I didn't call..but I'll still say "we") got the game on and that's all that matters!

----------


## SoonerBoy18

Did anybody notice there were more loud cheers for Thunder players scoring than Dallas players? Lol. Its always fun when Thunder and Dallas meet, its like a rivalry between two cities, states, sports, etc.

----------


## G.Walker

Can we get Jeff Green back? Lol... Dude is ballin in Boston....

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> Did anybody notice there were more loud cheers for Thunder players scoring than Dallas players? Lol. Its always fun when Thunder and Dallas meet, its like a rivalry between two cities, states, sports, etc.


Funny that you mention that because it's mentioned in this:

FLCeltsFan's Celtic Thunder: Comments from the Other Side -Mavs 3/17

Which is always a good read, lol.

----------


## Anonymous.

Nugs are on a 12-game win streak. Thunder gotta bring their A game tonight.

Heat pulled the W out in Boston. Streak is now 2nd best ever in NBA.

Lakers lost to PHX last night.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> Can we get Jeff Green back? Lol... Dude is ballin in Boston....


You want him back just because he scored 43 points? He will go back to sucking the next game

----------


## onthestrip

> You want him back just because he scored 43 points? He will go back to sucking the next game


Did you not see him doing about as good as anyone has this season in defending Lebron? Id take Jeff back.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> Did you not see him doing about as good as anyone has this season in defending Lebron? Id take Jeff back.


If Jeff defended Lebron good then Boston would have won the game but Jeff did not so Jeff sucks at defending Lebron

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> Did you not see him doing about as good as anyone has this season in defending Lebron? Id take Jeff back.


My buddy has a man crush on Green like you.  I'm sure Boston would love to get Perk back as well.

----------


## onthestrip

> My buddy has a man crush on Green like you.  I'm sure Boston would love to get Perk back as well.


Hardly a crush. I mean I havent seen Green play but a few times all year. Has good shooting percentages, versatile and stuff but wouldnt want to undo the Perk/Green trade. We needed Perk more than Green. Its just funny that they guy we traded away might turn out to be the best Lebron defender. Something that we needed last year, this year and in the coming years.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

I always thought Tony Allen would have been good for us.  Guess he wasn't available..  Obviously I'm biased cause I'm an oSu fan, but not only does he play great defense, but he can score.  Only place I've seen Brewer play defense is on the bench.

----------


## Anonymous.

Nugs are good. But I gotta put some blame on Brooks for tonight. The stubborn lineup rotation destroyed us late 3rd into 4th. 

Fisher has zero value in this matchup and was a huge liability.

----------


## Richard at Remax

Fisher brings ZERO value anymore. I watched over and over at the game last night him get torched on defense and throw up bricks. Id rather see lamb in there cause he can't do much worse, will get more experience, and is way more athletic.

Also still trying to figure out why Martin starts off hot but goes AWOL in the last half of the game.

And you are right about the rotation. Why westbrook didn't start the 4th gets all over me. Sometimes you have to toss your standard minutes aside and make better adjustments. When westbrook came back in for fisher the speed and urgency picked up, but it was too little too late. 

On a side note, Jesse Jackson was sitting right in front of us last night. Not a fan of him but still cool to see

----------


## dankrutka

Brooks' misuse of the rotation is a huge liability for this team. It's well documented that Perk is often misused and overplayed when the matchups aren't there. The Finals was the best example. But giving Fisher significant minutes is just ridiculous. Reggie is our future and he's better in about every way. Ugh.

----------


## Bellaboo

Over on DailyThunder, they rag all over Brooks on his rotations. I watched Fisher get torched, just too slow, but blame Brooks for having him out there. You'd think he'd learn by now it's okay to play him against the older slow teams, but not the younger faster more athletic ones.

----------


## Anonymous.

He was playing Fisher as a SG, too. And if you watch the 'tape', Fisher's man scored on the other end almost every single time. He is a joke on D and we needed stops after that blown open run by the Nugs.


Keeping Russ on the bench to come in at traditional 8 minute mark was absurd. I like Brooks, but the stubborness of rotation made me want to shove that pom-pom they gave out at the game last night, down my throat. Why not have Reggie run the point and Russell be the SG, or even Lamb as others have said. 

It just really pisses me off that Fisher is back on this team, and why the fans love him I have no idea. He came out and stated the only reason he is here is to win #6.... So he is just coat tail riding the Thunder to get himself another ring. Don't start with the "blah blah veteran leadership, blah blah blah". Yea that really helped last year, too. Brooks loves Fisher and that is a problem for everyone. When does someone step up and tell Brooks to alter his rotations and lineups based on the ever changing conditions???

----------


## OKCisOK4me

I think that the NBA is so fluid when it comes to gauging talent levels and who may have it and who may still not have it based on our biased feelings toward those players when it comes to game time.  I think when someone who doesn't analyze the NBA to a T views it and says, "oh man, I remember when Kendrick Perkins was a beast on the Celtics squad".  They say 'I remember' and 'was' but they don't transition that into the present.  So you've got Scotty, the head coach, who should know better but still plays guys like Perk & Fisher in rotations that they don't belong in.  I get stuck with the past, without thinking of the future sometimes too.  I love Derek, but I think it's time for him to move on after this season and look at an internal position with a team/franchise or just look at becoming a head coach in the college ranks.

D Fish will always be one of my favorites (even when he was with the Lakers).

----------


## Jake

The Thunder have some serious, fundamental issues that need to be fixed. Badly. 

This years playoffs will be interesting. An early round exit is a real possibility.

----------


## Anonymous.

Thunder get burned in MEM. Pretty much worstcase scenarios kept occurring into the final seconds where of course Bayless hits a 3 to force overtime. Then embarassing possessions ensue on OKC offense and we lose on a tip in. 

Sums up the Thunder's momentum right now. 



I just hope this means we peak into the playoffs.

----------


## ljbab728

> Thunder get burned in MEM. Pretty much worstcase scenarios kept occurring into the final seconds where of course Bayless hits a 3 to force overtime. Then embarassing possessions ensue on OKC offense and we lose on a tip in. 
> 
> Sums up the Thunder's momentum right now. 
> 
> 
> 
> I just hope this means we peak into the playoffs.


I don't know how many people remember the Thunder's late season swoon during the regular season last year but they had 8 wins and 7 loses in the last 15 games before the playoffs.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

I dont about you but once they hit the game winning shot, My head exploded I had some choice words that I dont say on this site. That loss hurt! ='( now Denver and Memphis thinking they all big and bad ='(

----------


## OKCJapan

Once again, the Thunder cannot finish close games on the road.  At the current rate, with 4 more games on the road against teams that are biding for playoff spots, I could see the Thunder realistically going 59-23.  Dropping to 4th maybe 5th in the west.  In that case, I could see an 1st round exit.  If that were to happen, I think there would half to be a some major changes to the bench roster.  Some have blamed Brooks for his rotations.  While Martin had a good game, he is too inconsistent for carry the bench scoring.  I think Brooks needs to work Lamb and Jones III into the rotation to see if they can bring some additional offense to this team.  

If you compare, the Thunder schedule to Memphis, Clippers and Denver, The difficult part of their schedules were early in their seasons and they racked up several losses.  Now they are riding the easy roads into the playoffs. It is just the opposite for the Thunder. 

Even if the Thunder do not make it back to the WCF this season, at this point, I have chalked it up as a transition year, which is difficult for any team.

----------


## venture

Yeah, the team seemed to be on the right progression each season getting towards the title, but this year it just isn't happening. I agree they very well could be knocked out in the first round. It is what it is. The Thunder are a good team, but they are not a very good team like they were last year.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

I'm still solid with a Western Conference semifinals bow out...

----------


## Teo9969

OKC will remain the #2 seed, win Round 1 in 4/5 games, win Round 2 in 6 and in the WCF either lose to San Antonio in 7 or beat the Grizz in 6.

If they make it to the Finals, they'll lose in 6 to Miami

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> OKC will remain the #2 seed, win Round 1 in 4/5 games, win Round 2 in 6 and in the WCF either lose to San Antonio in 7 or beat the Grizz in 6.
> 
> If they make it to the Finals, they'll lose in 6 to Miami


Will I ever be a millionare?.....

----------


## Teo9969

> Will I ever be a millionare?.....


Probably...It's called inflation

----------


## MonkeesFan

Here is to a good game and a Magic win/loss

Either way is good with me

Win=Beat a good team and avoid sweep
Loss=Better chance of getting #1 draft pick

----------


## OKCisOK4me

The way the Thunder has been playing, Orlando will win.

----------


## Bill Robertson

> The way the Thunder has been playing, Orlando will win.


You make it sound like the Thunder are working to stay out of last place. Get real! For those who don't remember the Thunder lost 7 of the last 15 games last year and made the finals. They do seem to have some issues with rotation, making adjustments and the top players not putting their best on the floor right now but that doesn't justify jumping off the bandwagon.

----------


## Anonymous.

Hopefully we will peak right as the playoffs get going. Right now I feel as if the Heat and Nugs are definitely at their peaks. Both riding on great basketball and good luck. Thunder riding on the opposite.

Teams don't stay hot for forever (See Spurs last two seasons into the playoffs).

----------


## SoonerBoy18

I think the pressure will not be on us in the finals, it will be on Miami which gives Thunder a great advantage

----------


## MonkeesFan

That was a great and entertaining game to watch! I am very proud of the Magic for playing the Thunder a tough game! Congratulations on the win!

----------


## MonkeesFan

> The way the Thunder has been playing, Orlando will win.


You were close to being right

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> You were close to being right


Haha.  I wore the Durant jersey out tonight since he said it was a "must win game".  If we hadn't, I woulda worn the alternate navy/white Westbrook jersey for the rest of the season!

----------


## MonkeesFan

> Haha.  I wore the Durant jersey out tonight since he said it was a "must win game".  If we hadn't, I woulda worn the alternate navy/white Westbrook jersey for the rest of the season!


Durant had a nice game tonight, he killed the Magic in the 4th quarter

Westbrook also had a nice game too

----------


## OKCisOK4me

Yeah, I watched the game at Lumpys on North May.  Hard to pay attention with all the NCAA games going on!  Good for KD.  Hope they can continue the 1 game winning streak, lol!

----------


## Anonymous.

Thunder beat Portland last night. Maynor looked really good out there. Luckily Reggie is also good and getting better.


One thing, Fisher needs to GTFO. Why Brooks loves him is beyond me, but the guy is trash on defense and offense. Brooks brings him in as a shooting guard... WTF is that? At least we saw a glimpse of Liggins last night, everyone has forgotten he is on our team since Fisher appeared.


The tweets last night about Fisher being 0-14 the last week and thunder fans being 2-6 from halfcourt were hilarious.


Fan hit the $20,000 half court shot last night and Durant imitated Lebron which was funny.


Tonight is the season ticket member party @ the 'Peake.

----------


## dankrutka

Brooks love for Fisher and Perkins could cost this team a series and end their season. Brooks is paid like top 5 coach and he's one if the worst game managers in the NBA. He needs to play Reggie more and go with small lineups more often. Stats should make this an easy decision. Fisher and Perkins' can contribute their intangibles from the bench.

----------


## Anonymous.

Wizards in OKC tonight. Thunder have not beaten the Wizards in 2 seasons.

Heat are @ the Bulls tonight.

Nuggets are @ Spurs tonight.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

Wouldn't it be nice if Thunder reclaims the #1 spot and the Mavs faught their way to the 8th, thats what I am hoping for because the series will be that much more exciting, I have a feeling this is about to be one hard boring playoff series for the Thunder since Houston is struggling right now.

----------


## dankrutka

I actually think an OKC-Houston series is the most exciting 1st round possibility save the Lakers.

----------


## Anonymous.

Heat finally lose.


Thunder stomp the Wizards.


Nuggets can't pull it off in SAS, Spurs still 1.5 games ahead of Thunder.


Playing either Houston or Golden State in the first round is somewhat scary. But so is playing the Jazz.

I think we destroy either Lakers or Mavericks.

----------


## Bellaboo

> Heat finally lose.
> 
> 
> Thunder stomp the Wizards.
> 
> 
> Nuggets can't pull it off in SAS, Spurs still 1.5 games ahead of Thunder.
> 
> 
> ...



I think the next 3 games for the Spurs is against the Clippers, Heat and Grizzlies....... these will be tough for them. And then next Thursday they play us at the Peake.

----------


## Teo9969

> Heat finally lose.
> 
> 
> Thunder stomp the Wizards.
> 
> 
> Nuggets can't pull it off in SAS, Spurs still 1.5 games ahead of Thunder.
> 
> 
> ...


You're scared of Houston and Golden State? Houston will/would be over in 4 and Golden State in 5.

----------


## Easy180

> You're scared of Houston and Golden State? Houston will/would be over in 4 and Golden State in 5.


And neither one of em has a guy named Kobe

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> Playing either Houston or Golden State in the first round is somewhat scary. But so is playing the Jazz.


Are you kidding me?....

----------


## Mississippi Blues

I agree with Anonymous. Those teams can light it up fast if given the opportunity, & it's more intimidating if the Thunder go on one of their cold streaks while Houston or Golden State are lighting it up. I still think we would win the series against either team, but you just never know.

----------


## Teo9969

> I agree with Anonymous. *Those teams can light it up fast if given the opportunity*, & it's more intimidating if the Thunder go on one of their cold streaks while Houston or Golden State are lighting it up. I still think we would win the series against either team, but you just never know.


Against playoff defense both of these teams are going to wilt like spinach in a saut pan.

----------


## Teo9969

> I agree with Anonymous. *Those teams can light it up fast if given the opportunity*, & it's more intimidating if the Thunder go on one of their cold streaks while Houston or Golden State are lighting it up. I still think we would win the series against either team, but you just never know.


Against playoff defense both of these teams are going to wilt like spinach in a saut pan.

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> Against playoff defense both of these teams are going to wilt like spinach in a saut pan.


I'm gonna wait till after game 1 of the playoffs to make any predictions on how bad they'll do, but I don't expect them to make much noise. There's still no sense in turning a deaf ear to either team though. Plenty of teams that weren't expected to get anywhere knocked off top teams. Memphis & Golden State are the teams I'm thinking of from recent history.

Edit: I also would like to give you props for that analogy. I haven't heard that one till just now.

----------


## OKCJapan

As far as the playoffs go,  I think that if this team does not get back to the WCF, then the season has been a failure. The reason, I don't think it will be because of the Harden trade. Many blog opinions as well as  the last couple of Thunder Thursdays from the Oklahoman are starting to blame Scott Brooks and his rotations.  I am starting to agree with their opinions. Some have gone even far as to say that if the Thunder do not make it to the WCF, then, unless his contract states otherwise, he will be gone next season.

----------


## Jake

Derek Fisher is awful. There is absolutely no excuse for him to be playing so many minutes. 

Scott Brooks doesn't know how to create proper lineups. Bad coach.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> Derek Fisher is awful. There is absolutely no excuse for him to be playing so many minutes. 
> 
> Scott Brooks doesn't know how to create proper lineups. Bad coach.


And Kendrick Perkins...smh

----------


## Anonymous.

Perkins and Fisher are holding this team back. Thus, Brooks is holding this team back. He is playing these two guys regardless of the situation or matchup. Brooks has his minute rotations and is stubborn to change them. Why would Fisher ever play as shooting guard? It makes no sense, if anything he should run the point. I would put money on Lamb taking those threes EVER SINGLE TIME over Fisher. And lamb can at least play defense on taller players than Fisher can. This is too frustrating to watch anymore.* I hope the role players turn up the dial when it comes to Playoffs, because they are playing against Brooks and their opponents.
*

If we make it to the finals again, it will be on sheer drive and talent by the players, Brooks has obviously not tried to change anything.




This is like the movie Moneyball, when the coach doesn't play the acquired players as they are designed.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

I dont know what Scott Brooks said during that time out when Milwaukee was up by 5 with 8 minutes left in the 4th but what ever it was, hopefully he keeps it up. Very  "Gregg Popovich Like".

----------


## dankrutka

> I dont know what Scott Brooks said during that time out when Milwaukee was up by 5 with 8 minutes left in the 4th but what ever it was, hopefully he keeps it up. Very  "Gregg Popovich Like".


What was "Greg Popovich like?" Talking to his team during a timeout? I think Pop is the best coach in the NBA, but he gets credit for breathing these days. Brooks  (incredibly) out coached him in the WCFs last year...

----------


## Anonymous.

I feel like Harden and Thabo are the only reason we beat the Spurs last playoffs.

----------


## dankrutka

> I feel like Harden and Thabo are the only reason we beat the Spurs last playoffs.


Well, I'd argue that Kevin Durant played a large role. Lol. 

I just can't help but think that if we still had Harden we'd be very similar to Miami right now instead of one of many teams that could win the west. I was always in favor of keeping Harden this season and next (with a max contract), we'd have to pay the luxury tax next season (which we should be able to afford with the gigantic profits the team has taken in with cheap contracts in recent seasons), and then trade Harden when his value would be sky high after next season. I just don't think this team can beat the Heat in a series. 

The playoffs will determine whether the trade was successful.

----------


## Teo9969

> Well, I'd argue that Kevin Durant played a large role. Lol. 
> 
> I just can't help but think that if we still had Harden we'd be very similar to Miami right now instead of one of many teams that could win the west. I was always in favor of keeping Harden this season and next (with a max contract), we'd have to pay the luxury tax next season (which we should be able to afford with the gigantic profits the team has taken in with cheap contracts in recent seasons), and then trade Harden when his value would be sky high after next season. I just don't think this team can beat the Heat in a series. 
> 
> *The playoffs will determine whether the trade was successful.*


No.

The next 5 years will determine whether the trade was successful.

----------


## dankrutka

> No.
> 
> The next 5 years will determine whether the trade was successful.


Well, I don't totally disagree, but if we tank out early in this playoffs then it will appear that we gave up a legitimate title shot THIS season. Real shots at titles don't come around every year.

----------


## Teo9969

> Well, I don't totally disagree, but if we tank out early in this playoffs then it will appear that we gave up a legitimate title shot THIS season. Real shots at titles don't come around every year.


OKC is for sure not going to lose the 1st round.

Memphis and San Antonio are the only 2 teams that one could reasonably expect to beat OKC out of the West, and I think even Memphis would fail to pull it out over the course of a series. But OKC may well not even draw Memphis in their "bracket".

Come the playoffs, I expect OKC to simply out talent everyone except for the Spurs and Miami. And I even expect them to out talent the Spurs...it's just the Spurs play so well within their system that OKC will have to really play well within their own to pull out a W.

If OKC makes it back to the WCF this year, and I think they will, I'd consider this season successful enough.

----------


## Anonymous.

OKC has a good chance at taking the #1 spot on Thursday. Spurs lost last night to the Heat at home.

Spurs play in Memphis tonight, then fly to Orlando to play the Magic on Wednesday and finish the back-to-back Thursday night here in OKC.


I feel like we need HCA way more this season than last, Harden took over game 5 in San Antonio last season. I know we can beat them, but being at home would sure be a good help.

----------


## Anonymous.

Grizzlies helped us out tonight. Spurs now just 1 game ahead of OKC. Thursday is a MUST win... We have had 4 days of rest and Spurs will be on game 4 in 5 nights.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> Grizzlies helped us out tonight. Spurs now just 1 game ahead of OKC. Thursday is a MUST win... We have had 4 days of rest and Spurs will be on game 4 in 5 nights.


But its pretty stupid how the schedule makers made the schedule because The Spurs will win against Orlando the night before they come to Okla.City I wish we could have at least played one weak team before we played the Spurs so it can be all tied right before we face off for the final time in the reg. season

----------


## ljbab728

> But its pretty stupid how the schedule makers made the schedule because The Spurs will win against Orlando the night before they come to Okla.City I wish we could have at least played one weak team before we played the Spurs so it can be all tied right before we face off for the final time in the reg. season


Obviously the schedule makers knew before the season how this would work out just to frustrate the Thunder.  LOL

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> Obviously the schedule makers knew before the season how this would work out just to frustrate the Thunder.  LOL


 :Tongue:

----------


## dankrutka

> OKC is for sure not going to lose the 1st round.


Just to clarify, I didn't say 1st round. But 2nd round against Memphis, the Clippers, or Nuggets is not a sure thing. We'll see...

----------


## dankrutka

> Obviously the schedule makers knew before the season how this would work out just to frustrate the Thunder.  LOL


Don't understand what you're saying. Not sure why playing an easy team would help anything.

----------


## ljbab728

> Don't understand what you're saying. Not sure why playing an easy team would help anything.


I didn't say that at all.  I was making light of SoonerBoy's theory.  I have no problems with the schedule.

----------


## Anonymous.

Honestly the Thunder should be any amount of scared of is the Grizzlies, Spurs, and Nugs.

Theories:


[if we get #1 and win round 1] Clippers and Grizzlies have had epic battles in round 1, they will destroy each other. If the Clips end up beating the Griz (like they did last season) Then we stomp the Clips easy. If we have to play MEM, we better hope they are worn down. 

Thunder stomps Lakers or Dallas; slightly more difficult vs Jazz (they match against us well). 

I think our worst chances are against a Houston or Golden State sleeper team [This is another reason why I want #1 seed]. 

Another scenario to ponder, if we are #1 and the Lakers somehow pull it off to get the 8 spot, I have an underlying fear of conspiracy officiating pushing the Lakers past us.


I don't know about you guys, but if the standings stay like they are and we end up the #2 seed - I think we are going to have trouble in round 2 - because that means we are playing Nuggets or Warriors, and Nuggets have our number as of late.

----------


## Teo9969

Kilgore, I knew you were talking about a 2nd round exit.

Glad that we get the Spurs in a similar situation to what they were given when we played them in SA last month (we were playing 4th game in 5 nights and the 2nd night of a back to back...on the road).

For those of you taking them seriously, here's why I'm not scared of Denver: Who do they have that will absolutely take over a game against playoff defense? It's the thing people just forget about when watching the regular season, but every single team's defense rises to whole new levels when the post-season starts. Think back to last year's playoffs: How many unreal shots do you see on a regular basis from the KD's, LBJ's, Tony Parker's, Nowitzki's of the world? There are so many of them that it becomes common place to think they are going in, but it's the only thing that really separates these teams from the Indianas, Golden States, and Denvers of the NBA. I mean, seriously, I seen exactly 1 game this year where Collison has played like he plays in the playoffs, and that was the other night against Memphis...Teams are going to have to beat a Collison, Sefolosha, and Ibaka that are all playing their hardest and have plenty of time to scout the other team's offense.

Scout Kevin Durant all you want, but if his shot is falling, there is no defender on the planet that can stop him.

Ty Lawson is their best shot at that kind of offensive player...that's not good odds for them.

----------


## dankrutka

> I didn't say that at all.  I was making light of SoonerBoy's theory.  I have no problems with the schedule.


Apologies. I meant to respond to his comment, not yours.

----------


## dankrutka

I agree that I'm skeptical of the Nuggets until they do it, but I'm not writing them off either. They remind me of the 2004 Pistons team which didn't have a superstar either. If you put a gun to my head if say the Thunder will make the Dinals again, but I don't have a ton of confidence.

I actually want Utah in the 1st round. They don't scare me.

----------


## Bill Robertson

> But its pretty stupid how the schedule makers made the schedule because The Spurs will win against Orlando the night before they come to Okla.City I wish we could have at least played one weak team before we played the Spurs so it can be all tied right before we face off for the final time in the reg. season


One weak team? The Thunder haven't played a team that's above .500 since Memphis on March 20th. 5 games against pretty weak teams since then.

----------


## SoonerDave

> Grizzlies helped us out tonight. Spurs now just 1 game ahead of OKC. Thursday is a MUST win... We have had 4 days of rest and Spurs will be on game 4 in 5 nights.


And Ginobli's hamstring appears poised to send him to an extended absence that may creep all the way into the playoffs. This is a *monstrous* break for the Thunder. We *must* take advantage of it. 

My biggest concerns overall for the Thunder overall this postseason? 1. Miami. Don't know if anyone can win 4 out of 7 against them. 2. Bench. Thunder bench is a shadow of last year's, IMHO. Trying not to say the "H-word," but you know how that is...  :Smile:

----------


## Anonymous.

One thing we know for sure, you can't do much worse than Harden did in the Finals. I Think Martin is way less emotional and thus will be able to take over parts of the game with his icy cold daggers.

I like it when Reggie runs the point with Martin on the floor, Russell does not do a very good job finding Martin.


But this conversation is still a few months down the road  :Big Grin:

----------


## dankrutka

> One thing we know for sure, you can't do much worse than Harden did in the Finals. I Think Martin is way less emotional and thus will be able to take over parts of the game with his icy cold daggers.
> 
> I like it when Reggie runs the point with Martin on the floor, Russell does not do a very good job finding Martin.
> 
> But this conversation is still a few months down the road


Yeah, but we wouldn't have made the Finals without Harden. He's a considerably better player than Martin.

Our bench would be vastly improved if Reggie took all of Fisher's minutes. Fisher might be the worst player in the NBA that gets minutes for a contender. If Brooks continues to play him it could cost us. It's even more ridiculous considering how well Reggie is playing now. Brooks could be OKC's biggest liability in the playoffs.

----------


## Anonymous.

Yup, it boggles my mind that Brooks sat Maynor only 2 months into the season after performing mediocre, now Maynor is playing quite well considering he is recovering for Portland.

Now you simply replace Fisher into Maynor's spot and now it makes no sense. Fisher has done ZERO things for the last 3 weeks, he had that one week where he was hitting some shots. But now he does nothing.


At no point should Fisher ever be out there unless Reggie or Russell are injured. Playing Fisher as a shooting guard (which is what Brooks is doing) is INCORRECT! Lamb is a shooting guard, why not play him in this position?! What ever happened to Liggins!?

Yea yea, I keep repeating the same thing every time we speak of Fisher, but it is astronomically frustrating.


I feel like Presti signed Fisher on, as a backup just in case something happened to one of our PGs... I don't think he realized Brooks would give the useless SOB 15 minutes per game.. Ridiculous.

----------


## Bill Robertson

I think Fisher did make a difference last year and was happy to see him come back. That has since changed. I have to agree with everyone that he has brought nothing this year. Reggie needs to be on the floor those minutes.

About Maynor. I don't know if Brooks gave him enough time or not. I do know there are players in every pro sport that play really well for one team and then go to another and do nothing. And vice versa.

----------


## Anonymous.

Well Dallas pretty much lost their playoff hopes last night. Lakers blew them out in LA.

So basically the Lakers and Jazz are tied for 8th seed right now.



This is setting the stage for several things:

Scenario 1: We beat Spurs Thursday night (great chance @ #1 seed)

We then play Lakers or Jazz.


Scenario 2: We lose to the Spurs Thursday or lose some of the easier games remaining on OKC schedule (Knicks and Pacers are statistical hardest opponents remaining)

We then _most likely_ play Houston.


I think (no, I KNOW) we want the first scenario, Harden can take over games and the Rockets have shown strength versus the Spurs. So we have a good shot at having Spurs knocked out early, and if not - at least we don't have to deal with the Rockets.

I still go back to a fear in my head that if the Lakers make the 8 spot, whoever is #1 is going to be playing against some really bad officiating.

----------


## BoulderSooner

> Well Dallas pretty much lost their playoff hopes last night. Lakers blew them out in LA.
> 
> So basically the Lakers and Jazz are tied for 8th seed right now.
> 
> 
> 
> This is setting the stage for several things:
> 
> Scenario 1: We beat Spurs Thursday night (great chance @ #1 seed)
> ...


the thunder would beat the rockets in 4 or 5 games

----------


## Bellaboo

> I think Fisher did make a difference last year and was happy to see him come back. That has since changed. I have to agree with everyone that he has brought nothing this year. Reggie needs to be on the floor those minutes.
> 
> About Maynor. I don't know if Brooks gave him enough time or not. I do know there are players in every pro sport that play really well for one team and then go to another and do nothing. And vice versa.


I think Fisher is just cheap insurance as a point guard in case (God Forbid) we lost Russell or Reggie....

----------


## Teo9969

> Well Dallas pretty much lost their playoff hopes last night. Lakers blew them out in LA.
> 
> So basically the Lakers and Jazz are tied for 8th seed right now.
> 
> 
> 
> This is setting the stage for several things:
> 
> Scenario 1: We beat Spurs Thursday night (great chance @ #1 seed)
> ...


Memphis is the only team that will knock out either the Spurs or the Thunder in the West...every other team will be disposed of in 6 games or less. Memphis being in the Spurs bracket is our only hope of not having to play San Antonio.

Houston would do well to keep one game with OKC to 2 scores or less. They MAY be able to beat the Spurs one time. Houston's goal should be to win at least 1 game at home...because that's probably their ceiling this post season.

The Lakers are old and can't play defense...I'd rather play LA than Utah here in 3 weeks.

----------


## td25er

> I think Fisher is just cheap insurance as a point guard in case (God Forbid) we lost Russell or Reggie....


You're smoking something very potent if you think Brooks isn't going to play Fisher 15+ minutes in the playoffs.  I'm fairly sure he'll get more minutes than Collison.

----------


## Teo9969

> You're smoking something very potent if you think Brooks isn't going to play Fisher 15+ minutes in the playoffs.  I'm fairly sure he'll get more minutes than Collison.


BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

wait, that was a joke, right? You do realize that Fisher averages less minutes than Reggie Jackson, let alone Nick Collison, right?

----------


## dankrutka

> You're smoking something very potent if you think Brooks isn't going to play Fisher 15+ minutes in the playoffs.  I'm fairly sure he'll get more minutes than Collison.


I hope to god not. What a nightmare that would be, but I don't think it would happen. The team would be much better without every having given Brooks the Fisher option. Big screw up by Presti.

----------


## dankrutka

> Memphis is the only team that will knock out either the Spurs or the Thunder in the West...every other team will be disposed of in 6 games or less. Memphis being in the Spurs bracket is our only hope of not having to play San Antonio.
> 
> Houston would do well to keep one game with OKC to 2 scores or less. They MAY be able to beat the Spurs one time. Houston's goal should be to win at least 1 game at home...because that's probably their ceiling this post season.
> 
> The Lakers are old and can't play defense...I'd rather play LA than Utah here in 3 weeks.


Thanks for enlightening us. Now I don't have to watch the first few rounds of the playoffs.

----------


## Anonymous.

> Memphis is the only team that will knock out either the Spurs or the Thunder in the West...every other team will be disposed of in 6 games or less. Memphis being in the Spurs bracket is our only hope of not having to play San Antonio.


I would rather play San Antonio than Memphis in a WCF.

Plus, the Clippers have the Grizzlies' number. And they are almsot a guarantee first round match for both. The problem with that is, the Spurs have the Clipper's number. So the Spurs will walk through round 2 easy if MEM cannot beat LAC. 


For these reasons and the fact tha OKC probably need HCA m ore this season than last, I say we want #1 undoubtedly.




And if you stop discussing other team's paths through the playoffs, you get to focus on just OKC... Which we have a stubborn coach who doesn't understand changing your rotation based upon the lineups on the floor. It is a sad state, and a wasted year if Brooks costs us this playoff season.

----------


## Teo9969

> Thanks for enlightening us. Now I don't have to watch the first few rounds of the playoffs.


You're welcome.

----------


## Anonymous.

Tonight is the night.

8:30 on TNT, will be a late night for ticket holders as the game is starting late AND it is televised. [I have already decided that being tired @ work on Fridays is okay] 

 :Bedtime:

----------


## Roger S

Yeah, I'm already sleep deprived for the week and I'll be adding to the deficit this evening..... Hoping for a blow out so maybe I can leave the arena early. Probably not going to happen though.

----------


## ljbab728

If the Thunder just stays focused and takes care of business for their last few games they should finish with the number one seed in the West.

----------


## Mississippi Blues

The Thunder win 100-88. More impressive, Derek Fisher went 5-7 from money land (3-point range) and scored 17 points. Kevin Martin scored a wopping 2 (2!!!) points.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> The Thunder win 100-88. More impressive, Derek Fisher went 5-7 from money land (3-point range) and scored 17 points. Kevin Martin scored a wopping 2 (2!!!) points.


Hopefully Derek Fisher stays this hot, I still cant believe the Spurs biggest lead was only one.

----------


## dankrutka

> Hopefully Derek Fisher stays this hot, I still cant believe the Spurs biggest lead was only one.


I'll end the suspense for you... He won't.

----------


## Teo9969

> I'll end the suspense for you... He won't.


LOL!!! ...Truth

Didn't he have a game or two like this shortly before the playoffs started last year?

I'm still not convinced that he'll get much more than 5 to 10 minutes a game during the playoffs, and I lean toward the 5 (unless, of course, OKC is up huge in the 4th).

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> The Thunder win 100-88. More impressive, Derek Fisher went 5-7 from money land (3-point range) and scored 17 points. Kevin Martin scored a wopping 2 (2!!!) points.


Spurs bring the best outta Fisher (.4 3-pointer when he was a Laker).

----------


## OKCJapan

The Thunder have four very tough road games left all against playoff teams battling for position.  The Nuggets have only two.  They are  against Dallas and San Antonio.  I see the Nuggets potentially winning both of those even with Gallinari going down because George Karl is a great coach.  This means that the Thunder can only drop as many as 3 of their last 7 to stay in front of Denver and secure the 2nd spot.  I think the Thunder could win all of  their road games, however, they have to have good bench production and not fold at the end of tight games.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

As confident as I am, I personally believe we will lose ALL remaining road games, maybe we will get lucky @ Portland, but @Indiana, @Golden State, and @Utah... We can forget about being the #1 seed. =(

----------


## Anonymous.

Thunder could lose tonight, they played a very energetic game. However, I still _think_ we are now definitely the #1 in the West from here.

Spurs are in trouble, Ginobli is hurt, Jackson is hurt, and Parker is hurt/sore. All of this just weeks away from playoffs is not a good sign for them. Add the fact that they have lost the last 3 or 4 games and are rather deflated.


If Martin starts showing up we can put together a nice momentum swing into the playoffs.




Side note on Fisher: Are you serious? He is known as a Spurs killer, but last night was just ridiculous. We will see how he does down the stretch here, but for now I am calling FLUKE!

He does zero things for 3 weeks and suddenly drops 19 on our biggest West rival at the moment.

----------


## Teo9969

> As confident as I am, I personally believe we will lose ALL remaining road games, maybe we will get lucky @ Portland, but @Indiana, @Golden State, and @Utah... We can forget about being the #1 seed. =(


Well, we may possibly forget about being the #1 seed, but we can for sure forget about your prediction being correct.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> Well, we may possibly forget about being the #1 seed, but we can for sure forget about your prediction being correct.


Hahaha yeah, I didnt think We could pull it off like that against a team like the Pacers

----------


## Teo9969

> Hahaha yeah, I didnt think We could pull it off like that against a team like the Pacers


Out of curiosity, why?

----------


## Easy180

Almost playoff time when the youngsters have an advantage over the old aching knees veterans 

More worried about Memphis than anyone else

----------


## Dustin

nvm

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> Out of curiosity, why?


Thunder seems to always struggle at their place, won in Overtime two seasons ago and got blown out last season, so I was 100% sure we were going to lose to them again since the Pacers keep getting better

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> Almost playoff time when the youngsters have an advantage over the old aching knees veterans 
> 
> More worried about Memphis than anyone else


We beat Memphis in Game 7 before WITHOUT Rudy Gay, So they are irrelevant to me

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> We beat Memphis in Game 7 before WITHOUT Rudy Gay, So they are irrelevant to me


That was 2 years ago. How in the world can you use a series from 2 years ago as a justification to "I'm not worried about them". The Thunder always have a hard time with the Grizzlies. If you recall, the Thunder played the Grizzlies right after they traded Rudy Gay & the Grizzlies won that game. On a last second tip in, but still. Not saying that means that Memphis has our number, but the fact you're blowing them off because of something from 2 years ago blows my mind.

Here's to hoping I bit the trolls bait & you weren't serious.  :Smiley171:  :Smiley051:

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> Thunder seems to always struggle at their place, won in Overtime two seasons ago and got blown out last season, so I was 100% sure we were going to lose to them again since the Pacers keep getting better


This rationale I can understand. I didn't expect them to win either for similar reasons. I didn't watch the game due to a school event so when I checked it & saw the Thunder had won 97-75, I was pretty happy.

----------


## Soonerman

Huge game today with the Knicks in town.

----------


## Easy180

> We beat Memphis in Game 7 before WITHOUT Rudy Gay, So they are irrelevant to me


If you include the words "game 7" in your post you shouldn't also include the word "irrelevant"

----------


## Praedura

> Huge game today with the Knicks in town.


Gonna kick the Knicks right out of their bockers!
 :Smile:

----------


## Teo9969

> That was 2 years ago. How in the world can you use a series from 2 years ago as a justification to "I'm not worried about them". The Thunder always have a hard time with the Grizzlies. *If you recall, the Thunder played the Grizzlies right after they traded Rudy Gay & the Grizzlies won that game. On a last second tip in, but still.* Not saying that means that Memphis has our number, but the fact you're blowing them off because of something from 2 years ago blows my mind.
> 
> Here's to hoping I bit the trolls bait & you weren't serious.


No.

Memphis Grizzlies vs. Oklahoma City Thunder - Recap - January 31, 2013 - ESPN

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> This rationale I can understand. I didn't expect them to win either for similar reasons. I didn't watch the game due to a school event so when I checked it & saw the Thunder had won 97-75, I was pretty happy.


I didnt watch it either, and I checked the score and was happy as well.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> That was 2 years ago. How in the world can you use a series from 2 years ago as a justification to "I'm not worried about them". The Thunder always have a hard time with the Grizzlies. If you recall, the Thunder played the Grizzlies right after they traded Rudy Gay & the Grizzlies won that game. On a last second tip in, but still. Not saying that means that Memphis has our number, but the fact you're blowing them off because of something from 2 years ago blows my mind.
> 
> 
> Here's to hoping I bit the trolls bait & you weren't serious.


We are #2, Will probably end up #1, and they fell to #5, We DID beat them the night after they traded him, so I am no longer having this conversation with you.

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> We are #2, Will probably end up #1, and they fell to #5, We DID beat them the night after they traded him, so I am no longer having this conversation with you.


Okay, I got the game mixed up. It was March 20th they beat us on a tip-in, which was also AFTER they traded away Rudy Gay. The point is the same other than I got the game mixed up. Like you said, this conversation doesn't need to go any further...

But we won't have to mess with them in the first round anyway, so I won't think much about the Grizzlies until we play them if we do.

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> No.
> 
> Memphis Grizzlies vs. Oklahoma City Thunder - Recap - January 31, 2013 - ESPN


Excuse me. Thank you for the correction. We play the Grizzlies so much it seems, all their games run together in my head.

----------


## Soonerman

Thunder gave up way too many offensive boards today. Good game by the Knicks.

----------


## G.Walker

The last time the Knicks scored at least 125 points in a game was on April 5th, 2011 against Toronto, only the Thunder, unbelievable!

----------


## Teo9969

> Thunder gave up way too many offensive boards today. Good game by the Knicks.


Yep.

Durant in particular sucked on the boards. 3 Rebs in 45 minutes...

----------


## SoonerBoy18

I love Carmelo Anthony. But obviously Thunder would have won with James  Harden. We would be undefeated with him. *Sarcasm

----------


## G.Walker

Even though we lost, we still have a chance to finish #1 in the West, but it won't be easy, we would have to win the rest of our games, and Spurs would have to lose 2 more, because now they have a 1 game lead.

----------


## Teo9969

Spurs only need to lose 1 more...OKC owns the tie-breaker.

----------


## Anonymous.

Yea essentially losing to the Knicks means we no longer control our own fate. Now to get #1, we depend on the Spurs to drop a game before the season is over. Which is pretty likely.

But we need to win-out from here.

----------


## BoulderSooner

> Yea essentially losing to the Knicks means we no longer control our own fate. Now to get #1, we depend on the Spurs to drop a game before the season is over. Which is pretty likely.
> 
> But we need to win-out from here.


the #2 seed is a better draw for the Thunder ..   it puts the spurs lakers clippers and grizz in the other half of the bracket

----------


## warreng88

> the #2 seed is a better draw for the Thunder ..   it puts the spurs lakers clippers and grizz in the other half of the bracket


Yeah, I would rather play the Rockets first round, then the winner of the Denver-Golden State series than Memphis-Clippers.

----------


## dankrutka

> Yeah, I would rather play the Rockets first round, then the winner of the Denver-Golden State series than Memphis-Clippers.


Agreed, this avoids some tough matchups. The West is stacked. No one is getting to the Finals easy this year.

----------


## warreng88

For the people who think we aren't as good as last year, think about this: Our record was 47-19 at a much shortened season of 66 games last year. That is a winning percentage of 71%. For us to get to that same winning percentage this year, we would have to win 58.39 games. As of last night, we were 57-21 with four games left to play. Two of them are on the road against very beatable Warriors and Portland and two at home against the Kings and the Bucks. If we win out, we will have a 74% winning percentage.

----------


## Anonymous.

Thunder only half game back of Spurs now.

Spurs play in Denver tonight, where almost nobody has won but the Nuggets. Next difficult game for the Spurs is playing in LA against the desperate Lakers. 

Right now the Lakers are the 8 spot as we gave the Jazz a loss.



Spurs/Nugs game is on ESPN tonight if you want to check it out, go Nugs!  :Smile:

----------


## dankrutka

Go Spurs. Again, I prefer the 2 seed match ups...

----------


## Anonymous.

I think you will change your mind in a series with the Nuggets...

----------


## warreng88

> I think you will change your mind in a series with the Nuggets...


That's the problem: would you rather have a seven game series against the Nuggets or the Grizzlies/Clippers winner? I guess we have pretty much owned the Clippers (3-0), but have a losing record to the Grizzlies (1-2) and Denver (1-3) this season.

----------


## Bellaboo

> That's the problem: would you rather have a seven game series against the Nuggets or the Grizzlies/Clippers winner? I guess we have pretty much owned the Clippers (3-0), but have a losing record to the Grizzlies (1-2) and Denver (1-3) this season.


But.... Denver lost Gallinaro for the season, he was their second leading scorer. That changes everything for them.

----------


## Anonymous.

The thing is... the Clippers know how to beat the Grizz. We will know better after Saturday (Clippers going to Memphis)

So history says we would play the Clips, and we own them now.



You are right about the Nugs losing Gallinari, except Gallinari is not _that_ good vs OKC. Nuggets are full of weapons that are known as "Thunder killers". See below:

Brewer, Miller, Chandler, even Faried's passion to win is frightening to me.

Look what these players did to us in our matchups with the Nugs and then you will see why Gallinari missing does not have that much of an impact.

----------


## Teo9969

Except OKC never played Denver with any sort of defensive fire this year.

I see no reason to be scared of a perfectly healthy Denver, let alone one that has injury issues.

Literally every West team that is capable of pushing OKC to 6 or 7 games is currently in the top bracket.

----------


## dankrutka

I'm not saying a series with the Nuggets would be easy, but just easier than vs the Clips or Griz. And I wouldn't totally rely on the regular season to predict the playoffs. It's something to look at, but not rely on.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

Okay so why are we all scared of the post season all of a suden??? Where is the excitement going into the playoffs that was here last season?? And the season before that, etc? We all know Thunder turn it up in  the playoffs. And btw, We NEVER Had it easy in playoffs.

----------


## dankrutka

First, who is scared? Just talking about preferable match ups. Second, the Thunder stumbled into the playoffs last year and a lot of people were worried. I think the Thunder can turn it up in the playoffs, but they're not head and shoulders above the field. Nothing is guaranteed. I'm ready for it to start.

----------


## Mississippi Blues

So the Thunder are tied for 1st place after San Antonio's 86-96 loss at Denver tonight.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> So the Thunder are tied for 1st place after San Antonio's 86-96 loss at Denver tonight.


Wouldn't it be so much more exciting to play the Lakers the 1st round and possibly the Clippers the second?

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> Wouldn't it be so much more exciting to play the Lakers the 1st round and possibly the Clippers the second?


It looks like that will end up happening if all goes well. It would definitely be a lot more "exciting" to play those teams.

----------


## adaniel

> Wouldn't it be so much more exciting to play the Lakers the 1st round and possibly the Clippers the second?


I would LOVE for OKC to destroy the Fakers and wipe that smug look off Dwight Howard's face. With that in mind, I don't think the Thunder are sweeping anyone this season, i.e. Dallas last year. The West has a lot of parity this season.

----------


## Teo9969

We've played the Lakers so much in the past 4 years. For OKC fans, I think a Houston matchup would be just as exciting because of the Harden factor. But at the end of the day, the Lakers are still the Lakers, and that matchup will garner lots of attention, and it would be better for the OKC brand in the long run. Same thing with the Clippers over Denver/Golden State.

Here's the order of potential playoff teams from most difficult to least difficult (for OKC) as I see it:

1. Spurs
2. Memphis
3. Clippers
4. Lakers
5. Jazz
6. Denver
7. Golden State
8. Houston

Sucks that all the preferred matchups are likely to end up in the lower bracket with SA if we hold #1 seed. Maybe Harden can do us a favor for walking out on us ;-) .

----------


## betts

Home court advantage is the carrot for the number one seed.  And anyone (hopefully us) who makes it to the finals through that top half of the bracket is battle tested and should be confident.  Personally, I think HCA is worth it.

----------


## Anonymous.

Teo your list like inversed from where I would place teams...

*most difficult for Thunder
Denver
Spurs
Memphis
Houston
Golden State
Clippers
Lakers
Jazz
*least difficult for Thunder


We WANT to be in the top bracket. HCA is a great thing to have, we pulled it off without it last year just barely. 

We own both LA teams, *the only thing that frightens me for an LAL first round, is the officiating.*

----------


## Bellaboo

> So the Thunder are tied for 1st place after San Antonio's 86-96 loss at Denver tonight.


If we tie the Spurs for first, we own the tie breaker so we will be the #1 seed, by virtue of conference wins as the tie breaker.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

Shaq "Can they (Thunder) beat Miami.. I dont know" Charles - "*Rolls Eyes* Well THEY CANT" Thats how we summarize our expectations this post season. Lol

----------


## OKCDrummer77

While Barkley was running OKC into the ground, I was playing "barfed" in Words With Friends.  Seemed appropriate.

----------


## dankrutka

Charles thinks OKC is a "jump shooting team" despite the fact we got to the run more than Miami in the Finaks last year.

----------


## SoonerQueen

FINAL: Oklahoma City blows out Golden State 116-97. Kevin Durant led all scorers with 31, while Kevin Martin scored 23 points off the bench.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

I told my aunt before the 4th quarter started that we would end up scoring 116 points.  She thought we'd score 125 or more.  I revised due to her remark and posted 118 on Facebook.  Damn here...but at the end she was like, "you were right".

----------


## Anonymous.

Another important night for Thunder.


We finish the back-to-back in Portland @ 9pm. (If we win, we clinch Division)

Golden State goes into LA to play the Lakers.

Spurs are hosting the Kings at home.

Jazz hosting Timberwolves.

----------


## betts

I'm definitely rooting for the Jazz.  I think it would be a hoot if the Lakers missed the playoffs.

----------


## OKCDrummer77

> I'm definitely rooting for the Jazz.  I think it would be a hoot if the Lakers missed the playoffs.


I've been rooting for the Lakers to miss the Playoffs ever since Kobe guaranteed they would make it.

----------


## skanaly

...Give the lakers 8, and we'll take 1st. We are now number 1 in our conference, I think it'll stay that way. I have no worries about defeating any team in the west. The Spurs are a great team with great chemistry, but they don't have the endurance to win 3 away games in a row. 
   I believe we have the strength and game to take the west again. Now here where it gets into a debate...the OKC Thunder will not win the playoffs this year. Miami is in their prime and no one will stop them.
   Don't forget to tune in tonight NBATV, Thunder vs. Blazers

----------


## warreng88

I was comfortable with winning out the rest of the season until I heard Perk will be out against Portland tonight. As poorly as Portland is playing lately, it still usually takes a good effort by Perk and Serge to contain Aldridge and Hickson. I am curious how Nick and Thabeet will play against them tonight.

----------


## Anonymous.

> ...Give the lakers 8, and we'll take 1st. We are now number 1 in our conference, I think it'll stay that way. I have no worries about defeating any team in the west. The Spurs are a great team with great chemistry, but they don't have the endurance to win 3 away games in a row. 
>    I believe we have the strength and game to take the west again. Now here where it gets into a debate...the OKC Thunder will not win the playoffs this year. Miami is in their prime and no one will stop them.
>    Don't forget to tune in tonight NBATV, Thunder vs. Blazers



The format of 2-3-2 is only for the Finals, not the Conference finals.

Inter-conference matchups are 2-2-1-1-1 with the Ace match being to the HCA holder.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

So Kevin Durant has been fined $25,000 for a "menacinng gesture" in last nights game, And I was curious where does the money from fines and technicals go?

----------


## Anonymous.

All NBA fines go to charities courtesy of the Player's Union and the League.


For those wondering, Kevin Durant made a throat slashing gesture after a huge dunk.

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> For those wondering, Kevin Durant made a throat slashing gesture after a huge dunk.


I was watching it when he did that & it honestly surprised me. It was a sweet dunk & block that led to his dunk, it's easy to see why he was so pumped up.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

I had us losing all three road games, I am so happy I was wrong. 2 more games then its "Blue Out" time! =)

----------


## dankrutka

It's looking more and more like OKC-Lakers in the 1st round. I don't like it at all. Too much talent on that team to go down quietly. Maybe they'll play like they did all season (i.e., terrible defense), but they just make me nervous. On the bright side, it would be hands down THE series to watch in the 1st round. It would bring a lot of media and attention to OKC.

Edit: Marc Stein just reported that Kobe may have tore his left achilles. If true then the Lakers are done.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> It's looking more and more like OKC-Lakers in the 1st round. I don't like it at all. Too much talent on that team to go down quietly. Maybe they'll play like they did all season (i.e., terrible defense), but they just make me nervous. On the bright side, it would be hands down THE series to watch in the 1st round. It would bring a lot of media and attention to OKC.
> 
> Edit: Marc Stein just reported that Kobe may have tore his left achilles. If true then the Lakers are done.


Thats exactly how I feel, I am excited that it will give us all the media in OKC but I am a little nervous at the same time

----------


## Easy180

Kobe is done for the season but hopefully not his career...Takes a lot of the fun and the spotlight off the matchup....Sucks

----------


## Teo9969

Interesting time for the injury. Obviously this means their season is essentially over....but can they hang on to beat out the Jazz for the last spot.

Jazz has @Minnesota, @Memphis
Lakers have vs. Spurs, vs. Houston

Hard to see the Lakers winning either of those games w/o Kobe. The Jazz should be able to pull out the @MIN game, which would put the jazz in the playoffs.

I want the Lakers to miss the playoffs so that they don't even get their 1st round Draft pick.

----------


## Praedura

Just anxious and excited for the playoffs to start.

Then we can get national TV coverage with shots like this



 :Smile:

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> Just anxious and excited for the playoffs to start.
> 
> Then we can get national TV coverage with shots like this


Lol Yess! And perhaps an Orange out this time around

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> Lol Yess! And perhaps an Orange out this time around


I see you're still on your orange trip. I remember reading through here last year at playoff time & seeing you talk about orange outs at an alarming rate. Lol

I personally just don't think an orange out would work very well. Orange isn't a heavily used color by the Thunder. Who knows, maybe it would be though. I was dying to see an orange alternate jersey, but that didn't happen.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> I see you're still on your orange trip. I remember reading through here last year at playoff time & seeing you talk about orange outs at an alarming rate. Lol
> 
> I personally just don't think an orange out would work very well. Orange isn't a heavily used color by the Thunder. Who knows, maybe it would be though. I was dying to see an orange alternate jersey, but that didn't happen.


Lol I was hoping nobody remembered, I just think it will be good for tv during a finals game when the whole world is watching but I know they wont, I just have to let it stay in my imagination lol.

----------


## Naptown12713

Hopefully, I am in the correct forum.  My question is do anyone know if arena tours of Chesapeake arena is given during non-scheduled events? I am scheduled to have family in town from Indiana during the third week of this month. They are hugh Thunder fans and would love the opportunity to tour the renovated arena.  

Any feedback someone can provide will be greatly appreciated.

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> Lol I was hoping nobody remembered, I just think it will be good for tv during a finals game when the whole world is watching but I know they wont, I just have to let it stay in my imagination lol.


It would definitely be cool because I would really like for them to use orange more, but I doubt they will. We're sorta on the same page as far as orange goes though.

----------


## ljbab728

> Hopefully, I am in the correct forum.  My question is do anyone know if arena tours of Chesapeake arena is given during non-scheduled events? I am scheduled to have family in town from Indiana during the third week of this month. They are hugh Thunder fans and would love the opportunity to tour the renovated arena.  
> 
> Any feedback someone can provide will be greatly appreciated.


I don't believe they have any regularly scheduled tours unless it's for a special occasion.  I would suggest you call or email them in advance.

405-602-8700
info@chesapeakearena.com

----------


## Naptown12713

> I don't believe they have any regularly scheduled tours unless it's for a special occasion.  I would suggest you call or email them in advance.
> 
> 405-602-8700
> info@chesapeakearena.com


I truly appreciate the feedback!  It is greatly appreciated.

----------


## Anonymous.

Tonight Lakers host the Spurs. A win by LAL would almost guarantee a OKC vs LAL round 1.

It's too bad for Kobe, he may have truly played himself into the ground to get his team into the playoffs, and he will not be a part of it.

----------


## dankrutka

It's funny that it is so easy to disregard a team that still has Dwight Howard (remember, he basically took the Magic to a Finals singlehandedly), Pau, and Nash (although his age is a factor). It would still be a fun, albeit less scary, series now. The real question is, who are the Spurs playing/sitting tonight? 

As far as Kobe's injury, I've read a few articles about whether his ridiculously heavy minutes (and the fatigue and wear that come with it) as of late are responsible for his injury and it doesn't seem to be the case, but I'm certainly no expert. Regardless, I think D'Antoni is going to take the blame. It'll be interesting if he's around next year and hilarious if that circus gets yet another coach. They should have just kept Brown in the first place.

----------


## ljbab728

With Lakers win over the Spurs, OKC is now just one win away from the top seed in the West.

----------


## Easy180

> With Lakers win over the Spurs, OKC is now just one win away from the top seed in the West.


But without Harden...lol

----------


## Anonymous.

This looks like almost a perfect setup [for OKC] heading into the playoffs.

Spurs are in trouble, Parker is playing very poorly and Ginobli is still out. Spurs may not make it past Warriors or Rockets.


OKC may not be sweating until the WCF, which may give us some Nuggets to deal with.

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> OKC may not be sweating until the WCF, which may give us some Nuggets to deal with.


While it's hard to see anyone else making it there, let's not make early judgements on who will be playing who.

----------


## Mississippi Blues

Duplicate

----------


## Anonymous.

Speculation is the point of playoff hype. What is the fun in not trying to predict what will happen? Have you ever heard of March Madness?

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> Speculation is the point of playoff hype. What is the fun in not trying to predict what will happen? Have you ever heard of March Madness?


Yes I've heard of March Madness, I'm not an idiot. Speculation is fun & all, but is it really necessary to say the Thunder - Nuggets will be the WCF matchup? Yes it looks that way, but it gets old hearing everyone say what will happen before anything has even started to play out. I also find it fun to sit back & watch the playoffs play out, not just speculate on who may play who. I suppose we find different things fun, huh?

Whatever floats your boat though. I won't gripe anymore about speculation.

----------


## dankrutka

Even before Gaillinari or Ty Lawson's injury problems I wouldn't have pencilled the Nugs into the WCFs. With their injury problems I'd give the edge to the Clippers, Grizzlies, or Spurs.

----------


## Anonymous.

> Even before Gaillinari or Ty Lawson's injury problems I wouldn't have pencilled the Nugs into the WCFs. With their injury problems I'd give the edge to the Clippers or Grizzlies.



wat.


First off, Lawson is back from injury as of last night. 

Secondly, the teams you are talking about are not even in the same bracket.  :Smiley099:

----------


## G.Walker

This is the perfect setup for the Thunder, Lakers (1st Round), Clippers (2nd Round), Denver (WCF). With all the key injuries from Kobe, Gallinari, Faried, we should have no excuse not to make it to Finals again, plus we will have home court through out  the West playoffs. Now if we can get the Knicks to be the Heat, we just might be able to win our first championship! Thunder Up!

----------


## Anonymous.

> This is the perfect setup for the Thunder, Lakers (1st Round), Clippers (2nd Round), Denver (WCF). With all the key injuries from Kobe, Gallinari, Faried, we should have no excuse not to make it to Finals again, plus we will have home court through out  the West playoffs. Now if we can get the Knicks to be the Heat, we just might be able to win our first championship! Thunder Up!




You are inside my head right now. GET OUT!  :Cool:

----------


## adaniel

FUN FACTS!

Only one team with the best record in the last nine seasons went on to win the title. Best record holder right now: Miami Heat.

All 5 teams with a average winning margin of 9.5 or more since 1980 (the three point era) have gone on to win the title. OKC's average winning margin: 9.4.

----------


## dankrutka

> wat.
> 
> 
> First off, Lawson is back from injury as of last night. 
> 
> Secondly, the teams you are talking about are not even in the same bracket.


First, there's a difference from "being back from injury" and being 100% and ready for a playoff run. Ty Lawson is probably the most important player to their team. The fact that he's limping into the playoffs is a red flag. 

Second, the regular season is still ongoing and the Nuggets, Clippers, and Grizzlies are all within a game. The "bracket" isn't even set yet so I'm not sure how you can say they're not in the same one. We don't know who will be the 3, 4, or 5 seed.

----------


## dankrutka

> This is the perfect setup for the Thunder, Lakers (1st Round), Clippers (2nd Round), Denver (WCF). With all the key injuries from Kobe, Gallinari, Faried, we should have no excuse not to make it to Finals again, plus we will have home court through out  the West playoffs. Now if we can get the Knicks to be the Heat, we just might be able to win our first championship! Thunder Up!


There's some tough series in there. Let's not count our chickens before they hatch.  :Wink: 

And I'd put the odds on the Knicks beating this Heat team (if they play) at about 1 in 6 or 7. Just don't see it happening.

----------


## Praedura

With tonight's win:

60 (plus) win season

#1 Seed in the West (guaranteed)

----------


## dankrutka

Well, the Rockets and Lakers play on Wednesday. The loser plays the Thunder in the 1st round. It's looking like we may get to see James Harden in OKC for the playoffs afterall.  :Wink:

----------


## ljbab728

The Spurs lost again tonight, which isn't suprising since they were resting players.  It will be interesting to see how much time the Thunder starters play in the last game.

----------


## Teo9969

> Well, the Rockets and Lakers play on Wednesday. The loser plays the Thunder in the 1st round. It's looking like we may get to see James Harden in OKC for the playoffs afterall.


That assumes Utah loses. If Lakers Lose and Utah wins @ Memphis, then Utah is the #8 season.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

Since they're #1 guaranteed now, I'd aim for letting our back-ups get some valued time, after, say....halftime.  No reason to play our starters in the second half.

----------


## dankrutka

> That assumes Utah loses. If Lakers Lose and Utah wins @ Memphis, then Utah is the #8 season.


Yeah. Don't know how I forgot about Utah. So, in summary there are 3 options that can play out Wednesday night (in order of likelihood IMO):

Lakers win over Rockets (Jazz outcome is irrelevant) = Lakers #7 and Rockets #8 (Thunder play Rockets)
Rockets win over Lakers and Jazz loss = Rockets #7 and Lakers #8 (Thunder play Lakers)
Rockets win over Lakers and Jazz win = Rockets #7 and Jazz #8 (Thunder play Jazz)

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> Yeah. Don't know how I forgot about Utah. So, in summary there are 3 options that can play out Wednesday night (in order of likelihood IMO):
> 
> Lakers win over Rockets (Jazz outcome is irrelevant) = Lakers #7 and Rockets #8 (Thunder play Rockets)
> Rockets win over Lakers and Jazz loss = Rockets #7 and Lakers #8 (Thunder play Lakers)
> Rockets win over Lakers and Jazz win = Rockets #7 and Jazz #8 (Thunder play Jazz)


Deep Thoughts by Jack Handy

----------


## BoulderSooner

> Yeah. Don't know how I forgot about Utah. So, in summary there are 3 options that can play out Wednesday night (in order of likelihood IMO):
> 
> Lakers win over Rockets (Jazz outcome is irrelevant) = Lakers #7 and Rockets #8 (Thunder play Rockets)
> Rockets win over Lakers and Jazz loss = Rockets #7 and Lakers #8 (Thunder play Lakers)
> Rockets win over Lakers and Jazz win = Rockets #7 and Jazz #8 (Thunder play Jazz)


a rockets win and a golden st loss puts the rockets at 6 and GS at 7

----------


## Just the facts

So even though Durant has several hundred more points than Carmello Anthony, Carmello wins the scoing title.  That makes sense [\sarc].  The NBA needs to change how they determine the scoring champ.

----------


## BoulderSooner

> So even though Durant has several hundred more points than Carmello Anthony, Carmello wins the scoing title.  That makes sense [\sarc].  The NBA needs to change how they determine the scoring champ.


lol ... doing it the same way every league has for all time will probably continue to work for the NBA

----------


## Just the facts

> lol ... doing it the same way every league has for all time will probably continue to work for the NBA


Maybe, I just think 'scoring champ' should go to the person who scored the most points.

----------


## G.Walker

I like the current system, it shows consistency over time, and shows how dominant the player is for the whole season. I would rather have a player that would give me 30pts a night on a consistent basis, rather than score 50pts one night, and then 10pts the next 3 nights. Durant could have easily one the soring title, but he has changed his game to become not just a scorer, that is why his assists, steals, and blocks are all up this year, he is becoming an all around player, and not just a pure scorer like Carmelo.

----------


## Just the facts

> I like the current system, it shows consistency over time, and shows how dominant the player is for the whole season.


That is just it though - the current system does the exact opposite by favoring players who play less games.

This is how it is now.

Player X
Game 1: 30 pts
Game 2: 27 pts

Player Y
Game 1: 29 pts
Game 2: DNP

Player Y wins scoring title.  If a player doesn't play one game he should get 0 points for that game, not pretend the game didn't exist.

Durant will play in 82 games.  CA only played in 67.  That looks to me like CA didn't score in 15 games.

----------


## Praedura

The team had a slew of blowouts this season where KD and Russell sat out the entire fourth quarter.

If the Thunder had been a little bit weaker, Kevin would have had to play more minutes and very likely would have won the scoring title.

A lot of that dominance in games came from KD stepping up other aspects of his game - passing, playmaking, defending (particularly blocking shots), rebounding...
So his reward for helping to create a better team is losing the scoring title.  :Frown: 

But actually, I think Kevin is okay with that. At this point, I think he's more focused on winning championships than racking up more scoring titles.

----------


## G.Walker

> That is just it though - the current system does the exact opposite by favoring players who play less games.
> 
> This is how it is now.
> 
> Player X
> Game 1: 30 pts
> Game 2: 27 pts
> 
> Player Y
> ...


You do have a point, I get what you are saying. Because how can Rondo still lead leauge in assists per game at 11.1, and he only played 38 games this year. So basically, let's say one player only played one game and scored 50pts, then gets hurt and not play rest of the year, but he is considered scoring champ because his average would be 50.0 for the year, crazy.

----------


## Just the facts

They do have cut-offs for each categroy but I would just prefer they did season totals.

Category Minimums 
SCORING:  70 games or 1,400 points  
REBOUNDS:  70 games or 800 rebounds  
FIELD GOAL %:  300 field goals made  
FREE THROW %:  125 free throws made  
3PT %:  55 three-point field goals made  
ASSISTS:  70 games or 400 assists  
STEALS:  70 games or 125 steals  
BLOCKED SHOTS:  70 games or 100 blocked shots  
MINUTES:  70 games or 2,000 minutes  
ASST/TO RATIO:  200 assists  
STLS/TO RATIO:  82 steals  


So yes, it is crazy the Rondo is the assist leader and he hasn't played in nearly 3 months (last game was 1/25).

----------


## dankrutka

> You do have a point, I get what you are saying. Because how can Rondo still lead leauge in assists per game at 11.1, and he only played 38 games this year. So basically, let's say one player only played one game and scored 50pts, then gets hurt and not play rest of the year, but he is considered scoring champ because his average would be 50.0 for the year, crazy.


You have to play a certain number of games to be eligible. I don't think Rondo is eligible, but I'd have to check...

----------


## SoonerBoy18

Houston better come out clicking on all cylinders, we CANNOT let the Lakers move to #7 so they can face the Spurs while we host a boring matchup with the Rockets. The nation wants to see OKC vs LAL. Thats just whats going on in my head lol, I want all the media in Oklahoma City lol.

----------


## Teo9969

> Houston better come out clicking on all cylinders, we CANNOT let the Lakers move to #7 so they can face the Spurs while we host a boring matchup with the Rockets. The nation wants to see OKC vs LAL. Thats just whats going on in my head lol, I want all the media in Oklahoma City lol.


Playing the Lakers is not going to increase the amount of media personnel in OKC. Playing the Lakers will likely generate less air time for and about OKC than a matchup with Houston A.) Because all the talk would be about LA and their roller coaster season, and Kobe's injury, blah blah blah, with only mentions of OKC whereas B.) Because the matchup with Houston puts all the focus on OKC and Harden and almost none on the Houston Rockets. It puts OKC at the forefront of the discussion and Houston as a team will get the same treatment whoever plays LA is going to get.

----------


## Just the facts

> You have to play a certain number of games to be eligible. I don't think Rondo is eligible, but I'd have to check...


Rondo met the minimum requirements (got in on the minimum assist count) and he is in first place.

----------


## Bellaboo

> You have to play a certain number of games to be eligible. I don't think Rondo is eligible, but I'd have to check...


Before each game, they run through the stats leaders on the score board. Rondo is still on the board so he must have qualified.

----------


## Anonymous.

It will be interesting to see how many people attend tonight's game. Severe weather could turn a lot of folks away. I have always attempted to imagine what it would be like for a tornado warning be issued for the area when there is an arena of 18000+ people. I can only imagine utter chaos.


I am debating on whether to attend tonight's game or not myself.

----------


## Bellaboo

> It will be interesting to see how many people attend tonight's game. Severe weather could turn a lot of folks away. I have always attempted to imagine what it would be like for a tornado warning be issued for the area when there is an arena of 18000+ people. I can only imagine utter chaos.
> 
> 
> I am debating on whether to attend tonight's game or not myself.


This is probably in another thread, but the weather I watched this morning had the most severve weather in the southern half of the state.

----------


## AP

Kevin Durant officially not playing tonight. Kind of sad that he didn't win his 4th scoring title.

----------


## Bellaboo

> Kevin Durant officially not playing tonight. Kind of sad that he didn't win his 4th scoring title.


He would have needed 70 points to win it, it's better for him and the team to have the rest.

----------


## andrewmperryold

I know. He did lead the league in total scoring for the fourth straight year, though.

----------


## Jake

Durant officially is in the 50-40-90 club though. That's rare air. Really special, especially with his usage.

----------


## G.Walker

> Durant officially is in the 50-40-90 club though. That's rare air. Really special, especially with his usage.


Yes, this is more impressive to me than scoring title. He now needs to get ring and Finals MVP!

----------


## Bill Robertson

> It will be interesting to see how many people attend tonight's game. Severe weather could turn a lot of folks away. I have always attempted to imagine what it would be like for a tornado warning be issued for the area when there is an arena of 18000+ people. I can only imagine utter chaos.
> 
> 
> I am debating on whether to attend tonight's game or not myself.


KD or no KD. If the arena is standing we'll be there. We're usually on the third level. Occasionally the club level. For tonight I was given third row courtside tickets. I'm not passing this up.

----------


## dankrutka

One of my favorite games I went to was during the snowstorm a couple of years ago. Lots of empty seats, but a lot of people moved down into the bottom bowl. Good times.

----------


## Anonymous.

Thunder as expected dropped their finalee against the Bucks. For some reason we always play the Bucks last. Anyways, the bench and garbage time guys got to play while the starters sat and waited safely on the bench for Sunday. 


No time has been announced as it will depend on the timezone for TV viewing of who we play on Sunday. 

It will be the loser of the Lakers/Rockets game. Neither team wants to play us. They want the Spirs because the Spurs are in a downward spiral. 

At time of posting HOU is up by 5.

----------


## ljbab728

Lakers by 4.  Here comes The Beard.

----------


## Mississippi Blues

Game over. Lakers prevail, so Houston it is.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> game over. Lakers prevail, so houston it is.


ugh!!

----------


## Teo9969

I can't take credit for this, but I thought it was brilliant:

SHEAR THE BEARD!

----------


## OKCisOK4me

I kinda like playing Houston in the first round.  Sure, the Lakers thing would have given us way more national exposure, but this team already has world wide exposure AND the fact that we'll be facing off against a guy that could have still been on our team this year, I think that will create plenty of exposure.

----------


## warreng88

Thunder-Rockets series starts Sunday at 8:30pm on TNT.

Here is the schedule for the first three games:

Game 1 - Sun April 21, Houston at Oklahoma City, 9:30 p.m. ET, TNT 
Game 2 - Wed April 24, Houston at Oklahoma City, 7 p.m., TNT 
Game 3 - Sat April 27, Oklahoma City at Houston, 9:30 p.m., ESPN/R 

2012-13 Playoffs Schedule | NBA.com

----------


## Anonymous.

Of COURSE we have a late Sunday night game... I hate those.


Something to note, Game 2 on Wednesday is @ 6PM OKC time.

----------


## ABryant

enjoy the fact that the playoffs start the springtime.

----------


## warreng88

> Of COURSE we have a late Sunday night game... I hate those.


It will be worse if we get LA in the second round...

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> Of COURSE we have a late Sunday night game... I hate those.
> 
> 
> Something to note, Game 2 on Wednesday is @ 6PM OKC time.


I work til 6 on Sunday so that's fine by me!

----------


## jedicurt

> For some reason we always play the Bucks last.


only happened twice in 5 seasons... not sure i'd call that always.  the other final games have been the grizzles, clippers, and nuggets

----------


## Anonymous.

Lol, well I guess the recent occurrences made it seem like a good thing to say, was more of a casual fact - not a "hey, I looked it up and this is what it is".

I apologize if I misled anyone.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

Why do WE always have to be the last playoff team to get underway (I dont know if that makes sense) and I am willing to bet that all teams will be doing the "white outs", "blue outs", "yellow outs", etc.. All because Oklahoma City started the TREND. (No I am not saying we did it FIRST, But since we played the Lakers the 1st in 2010, a lot of teams jumped on the wagon when they saw us, you cant tell me they didnt. Lol)

----------


## Bellaboo

> *Why do WE always have to be the last playoff team to get underway* (I dont know if that makes sense) and I am willing to bet that all teams will be doing the "white outs", "blue outs", "yellow outs", etc.. All because Oklahoma City started the TREND. (No I am not saying we did it FIRST, But since we played the Lakers the 1st in 2010, a lot of teams jumped on the wagon when they saw us, you cant tell me they didnt. Lol)


Because they're saving the best for last.

----------


## traxx

> Why do WE always have to be the last playoff team to get underway (I dont know if that makes sense) and I am willing to bet that all teams will be doing the "white outs", "blue outs", "yellow outs", etc.. All because Oklahoma City started the TREND. (No I am not saying we did it FIRST, But since we played the Lakers the 1st in 2010, a lot of teams jumped on the wagon when they saw us, you cant tell me they didnt. Lol)


Yeah, I'm really surprised everyone jumped on that after we did it. Because according to that writer last year or the year before (from Pittsburgh or Chicago or some such) nothing makes you look more small time than the crowd coordinating the color of their shirts. We're just a bunch of small market, ignorant, rednecks here. Why would a fanbase from a big ol' fancy big city team do what we're doing?

----------


## OKCisOK4me

I say that they're all jealous that a college oriented city is dominating their pro home crowds and so they follow suit.

----------


## Praedura

Cool shot used for playoff wallpaper:



(click on the image to see a larger, fuller version)

----------


## Praedura

Thunder signage starting to pick up downtown:

----------


## adaniel

> Yeah, I'm really surprised everyone jumped on that after we did it. Because according to that writer last year or the year before (from Pittsburgh or Chicago or some such) nothing makes you look more small time than the crowd coordinating the color of their shirts. We're just a bunch of small market, ignorant, rednecks here. Why would a fanbase from a big ol' fancy big city team do what we're doing?


You are probably referring to the write up that appeared in the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Even for the snark-filled world of sports writing, it was incredibly condescending. No worries, though, since the Timberwolves yet again did not make the playoffs this year. 

If you want to make your blood boil on this otherwise beautiful Saturday afternoon, here you go: Souhan: If playoffs arrive, please act smart; Okie dokie? | StarTribune.com

----------


## Jake

I really hope he's joking. As if the Minnesota Timberwolves know the procedure when it comes to playoffs. We've been in the playoffs more times in our short existence than they have in their entirety in Minnesota.

----------


## workman45

> You are probably referring to the write up that appeared in the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Even for the snark-filled world of sports writing, it was incredibly condescending. No worries, though, since the Timberwolves yet again did not make the playoffs this year. 
> 
> If you want to make your blood boil on this otherwise beautiful Saturday afternoon, here you go: Souhan: If playoffs arrive, please act smart; Okie dokie? | StarTribune.com


Sad, truly sad, but on the bright side we have much better sports coverage!   :Smile:

----------


## ljbab728

I was downtown this afternoon and walked along the north side of the arena.  I happened to pass two oriental men standing next to the arena.  One of them was filming the other one who was holding a Thunder t-shirt and speaking what sounded like Japanese into a microphone he was holding.  I have no idea if they were tourists or media but it certainly shows the worldwide interest in the Thunder.

----------


## dankrutka

Some great games today so far (aside from the Bulls-Nets blowout). Glad the playoffs are back...

----------


## SoonerQueen

Decorate your social media with OKC Thunder. Show everyone how big of a fan you really are.
Playoffs Downloads - 1213 | THE OFFICIAL SITE OF THE OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER

----------


## Praedura

The United States of NBA, heh:

----------


## Praedura

Shear the Beard!

 :Smile:

----------


## Mississippi Blues

I'm sure we all know this by now, but the Thunder beats Houston tonight 120-91.

----------


## dankrutka

That win seemed too easy. I'm sure the Rockets will catch fire at some point in the series to make a game or two interesting, but it doesn't look like this series will go more than 4 or 5.

----------


## Anonymous.

Noway all the games will be like that, but OKC came out playing playoff basketball. Great sign to the start of this post-season.



Tonight on TNT is Game 2 for both Bulls/Nets and  Grizz/Clips.

----------


## lindsey

Does anyone know where I can get a HUGE custom Thunder banner made?  I'd like to hang one from my balcony downtown.

----------


## Bellaboo

> Does anyone know where I can get a HUGE custom Thunder banner made?  I'd like to hang one from my balcony downtown.


Probably get one already made from SandRidge...................j/k

----------


## skanaly

> Does anyone know where I can get a HUGE custom Thunder banner made?  I'd like to hang one from my balcony downtown.


Believe it or not, my father runs a great company that does that very thing and so much more. Image Arts Etc. - 496-9780

----------


## Praedura

> Noway all the games will be like that, but OKC came out playing playoff basketball.....


Yep, they'll all be like that. It's 30 point blowouts the rest of the way. I'm sure of it.
 :Wink:

----------


## Praedura

Crowd gathering before last night's game:



Source: http://www.facebook.com/foxokc

----------


## workman45

You tell em' KD!!!

----------


## adaniel

> You tell em' KD!!!Attachment 3662


This guy is going to win a championship if it kills him. And when he does, I can't wait until all the people who are still moping around crying "wahhh James Harden left blah blah blah" get to eat a big juicy side of crow.

----------


## workman45

Enjoy KD's top 10 plays of the year.

New Daily Thunder.com Video: KD?s top 10 of 2012-13 | New Daily Thunder.com

----------


## skanaly

> This guy is going to win a championship if it kills him. And when he does, I can't wait until all the people who are still moping around crying "wahhh James Harden left blah blah blah" get to eat a big juicy side of crow.


Nothing annoys me more than people on ESPN and NBATV talking about how James Harden being gone is going to effect us...were gonna get it done. Me personally, not this year...but not because we don't have Harden

----------


## warreng88

We have a better winning percentage this year than we did last year. 2011-2012: 47 wins in 66 games= 0.71212121212. 2012-2013: 60 wins in 82 games= 0.73170731707.

Last year with 33 home games and 33 away games, we went 26-7 at home and 21-12 on the road. That is a winning percentage of 0.78787878787 and 0.63636363636, respectively.
This year with 41 home games and 41 away games, we went 34-7 at home and 26-15 on the road. That is a winning percentage of 0.82926829268 and 0.63414634146, respectively.

KD's average minutes have stayed the same but his Field Goal %, 3 point %, Free throw % and assists per game have all gone up from last year to this year.

Westbrook's field goal % and free throw % have gone down, but his 3 point %, rebounds and assists per game have all gone up.

All of Serge's stats have gone up.

It is hard to see how people think we are doing worse.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> We have a better winning percentage this year than we did last year. 2011-2012: 47 wins in 66 games= 0.71212121212. 2012-2013: 60 wins in 82 games= 0.73170731707.
> 
> Last year with 33 home games and 33 away games, we went 26-7 at home and 21-12 on the road. That is a winning percentage of 0.78787878787 and 0.63636363636, respectively.
> This year with 41 home games and 41 away games, we went 34-7 at home and 26-15 on the road. That is a winning percentage of 0.82926829268 and 0.63414634146, respectively.
> 
> KD's average minutes have stayed the same but his Field Goal %, 3 point %, Free throw % and assists per game have all gone up from last year to this year.
> 
> Westbrook's field goal % and free throw % have gone down, but his 3 point %, rebounds and assists per game have all gone up.
> 
> ...


Only because we didnt win the KEY game this season (Miami there and here) lol.

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> Only because we didnt win the KEY game this season (Miami there and here) lol.


I think that was a rhetorical statement. But yeah, those Miami games leave me (& presumably every Thunder fan) with a bad taste in my mouth. I would feel a tidbit better about this season (sounding a little spoiled am I?) if we had won just one of those games, specifically the Christmas Day game.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> I think that was a rhetorical statement. But yeah, those Miami games leave me (& presumably every Thunder fan) with a bad taste in my mouth. I would feel a tidbit better about this season (sounding a little spoiled am I?) if we had won just one of those games, specifically the Christmas Day game.


The christmas day game for me was a loss as soon as the NBA released the schedule, but what really left me with a bad taste in my mouth was when they beast us here right before the All Star break. i was very hurt that day. Lol

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> The christmas day game for me was a loss as soon as the NBA released the schedule, but what really left me with a bad taste in my mouth was when they beast us here right before the All Star break. i was very hurt that day. Lol


I was iffy on it. & the game that they drilled us in made me mad. We were at home & they came into our place & made us look silly. It's only fun if we go into other teams place & drill them!  :Smile:

----------


## Anonymous.

Early tip tonight (thank you schedulers). 6pm on TNT.


Houston actually sent the team home for the past couple days during the break. I feel like they have already accepted this beating.



I wonder if Harden's hindsight realizes maybe $4.5 mil was worth being on a championship team. He looks miserable out there, hardly having fun. I know I am just a common peasant in the fray of the world, but wrapping my head around that sort of greed is difficult.

----------


## Teo9969

Harden probably looked miserable because his team was getting blasted. I doubt that he is generally miserable in his current situation. He may or may not have been happier in OKC, but I doubt he hates being in Houston. He's probably fairly excited  about the prospects of this team going forward, considering that they are way under the luxury tax and will gain more pieces in the upcoming year to actually propel them forward.

----------


## Dustin

Love this!  Just shows how many people around the WORLD will be cheering for our little small market team!

----------


## OKCisOK4me

^^Good stuff^^  :Smile:

----------


## Anonymous.

Good win last night. Looked like a blast from the past in the 4th with us blowing a 15 point lead. 

Sefalosha and Ibaka with the daggers. This team is really great right now.

----------


## dankrutka

> I know I am just a common peasant in the fray of the world, but wrapping my head around that sort of greed is difficult.


How many times have you taken a 20% pay cut out of loyalty? And even if you have done so, it's a personal decision. No one would blame you for taking the higher paying job. Maybe Harden wanted the challenge of leading his own team? Is there anything wrong with that? I have absolutely no problem with Harden asking for his market value. He has definitely proven that he is worthy of his contract unlike some other max (or near max) players (e.g., Joe Johnson, Rudy Gay). Finally, everyone seems to forget that Presti pulled the plug on negotiations and traded Harden. Harden did not end them.

----------


## dankrutka

> I don't think last night was as much about our failure to play well. I thought we mostly did a good job.  Granted, not stellar like G1, but we aren't going to play like that every game.
> 
> I thought last night was a better indication of what the true capacity of the Rockets is. I can't see them really playing a better game here on out.  I think we've got this series in 4.


I generally agree with you, but championship caliber teams shouldn't give up 21-2 runs like that. Hopefully it was just a perfect storm of terribleness that we got out of our system, but great teams find a way to get easy buckets or get the line in that situation. What's amazing is that OKC gave up a 21-2 run near the end of the game and still won.

The Rockets are going to make a run at some free agents this summer. If they can land Pau Gasol, Dwight Howard, or another piece, they could become a headache in the near future.

----------


## adaniel

> How many times have you taken a 20% pay cut out of loyalty? And even if you have done so, it's a personal decision. No one would blame you for taking the higher paying job. Maybe Harden wanted the challenge of leading his own team? Is there anything wrong with that? I have absolutely no problem with Harden asking for his market value. He has definitely proven that he is worthy of his contract unlike some other max (or near max) players (e.g., Joe Johnson, Rudy Gay). Finally, everyone seems to forget that Presti pulled the plug on negotiations and traded Harden. Harden did not end them.



I don't think most people had a problem with him going after a max contract. I think the issue is his perpetual bullsh*ting during the negotiations about I want to play with my brothers, I'm willing to sacrifice a little, blah blah blah. Of course, when the rubber hit the road, he conveniently forgot those things. I would have a hard time turning down $80 mil, but it just sounds very insincere on his part. 

It left a very bad taste in my mouth about him, but both he and the Thunder are probably better off in the long run where he is now. No hard feelings.

----------


## Anonymous.

> How many times have you taken a 20% pay cut out of loyalty? And even if you have done so, it's a personal decision. No one would blame you for taking the higher paying job. Maybe Harden wanted the challenge of leading his own team? Is there anything wrong with that? I have absolutely no problem with Harden asking for his market value. He has definitely proven that he is worthy of his contract unlike some other max (or near max) players (e.g., Joe Johnson, Rudy Gay). Finally, everyone seems to forget that Presti pulled the plug on negotiations and traded Harden. Harden did not end them.




20%?

It is $4.5 million total. That is 7.5% of his contracted salary.

This situation has nothing to do with anything you mentioned in your post if you assume Harden was being honest. Which is what I am assuming. Harden said long before final negotiations that he and others are willing to make sacrifices to keep this team on the path it was/is on.

Also no, Presti did not pull the plug. Harden and his agent did. When they declined the offer of 55.5 which was clearly stated to be the final offer, Harden/his agent pulled the plug. How much more "sacrificing" can you make when you won't accept 4.5 less than max? 

There comes a time where you cannot give someone the benefit of the doubt, when someone lies to the public and front office about how they are willing to make sacrifices, then they go and do the exact opposite for a measily 7.5% - you see who is truly here for the large picture. I feel like this is what Presti instills this team to be, and Harden declining the offer essentially made it clear that not only could we not afford him, but we _truly_ cannot afford him.


Harden was a no-show in the Finals, that's fine - everyone has a bad series/stretch. But to come home to OKC and lie to the fanbase/media/front office and then pack your bags for pocket change is not a person I want to root for, nor my fellow fanbase to root for.

----------


## adaniel

^
I see we posted at about the same time LOL. Definitely some good points here. People seem to forget that he checked out during the Finals.

----------


## Bellaboo

> 20%?
> 
> It is $4.5 million total. That is 7.5% of his contracted salary.
> 
> This situation has nothing to do with anything you mentioned in your post if you assume Harden was being honest. Which is what I am assuming. Harden said long before final negotiations that he and others are willing to make sacrifices to keep this team on the path it was/is on.
> 
> *Also no, Presti did not pull the plug. Harden and his agent did.* When they declined the offer of 55.5 which was clearly stated to be the final offer, Harden/his agent pulled the plug. How much more "sacrificing" can you make when you won't accept 4.5 less than max? 
> 
> There comes a time where you cannot give someone the benefit of the doubt, when someone lies to the public and front office about how they are willing to make sacrifices, then they go and do the exact opposite for a measily 7.5% - you see who is truly here for the large picture. I feel like this is what Presti instills this team to be, and Harden declining the offer essentially made it clear that not only could we not afford him, but we _truly_ cannot afford him.
> ...


The way I thought I read it, was that Presti gave Harden's agent 1 hour to make a decision, and when it didn't come, he pulled the plug and traded him to Houston. Harden said he was in disbelief he only had an hour to give an answer. As far as I'm concerned, he had most of the Summer and Fall to decide.

Harden said he was at the Cheesecake Factory when he got the call that he was traded.

----------


## adaniel

> The way I thought I read it, was that Presti gave Harden's agent 1 hour to make a decision, and when it didn't come, he pulled the plug and traded him to Houston. Harden said he was in disbelief he only had an hour to give an answer. As far as I'm concerned, he had most of the Summer and Fall to decide.
> 
> Harden said he was at the Cheesecake Factory when he got the call that he was traded.


Yeah, that's how it went down. 

When Presti told him you have 1 hour to make up your mind, he was probably thinking, oh they'll never trade me, whatever Sammy. It just reeks of arrogance. Presti is as cold as ice, did he not think he was serious? I'm wondering what happened to him last summer. It's almost like his agent or somebody else grabbed his ear and started pumping up his ego. He got his money though, maybe just not the way he wanted. 

I would have paid to see him get that call/text that he was traded and almost choke on his cheesecake LOL. In all seriousness, I am really not convinced he is as happy in Houston as he was in OKC.

----------


## Anonymous.

Exactly adaniel. I am sick of reading/hearing others talk about how it was a mistake to trade Harden... When it was clearly Harden who put himself on the trade block and pressed the button.

*Presti offered Harden 55.5 million. That is 4.5 shy of what he got from Houston*... Read this sentence over and over to people who complain about Presti "sending Harden away".

The kid is 23 and has a lot to learn. This series will be a great example as he watches his former team progress through the playoffs while he sits on his 4.5 million dollar couch.

----------


## dankrutka

First, as others have pointed out, Presti pulled the plug, not Harden or his agent. This is well documented. I agree that Harden should not have talked sacrifice if he wasn't going to do it, but I give him the benefit of the doubt just because of everything he did here. A lot of players would have complained to come off the bench when they're better than the starter and top 5 at their position, but he never complained. Because of this I'm not as hard on Harden for implying he would sacrifice salary. I wish him nothing but the best when he's not playing the Thunder. Although I still think it was a mistake on the part of the Thunder. I think we'd be even better with Harden this year, but we'll never know. 

Anyway, moving on.... We've had this argument before. 

The bigger question now is whether Martin will sacrifice. He's implied that he will like Harden did (maybe not too the same degree though), but will he? Should the Thunder do it? Or is Martin expendable because of Lamb?

----------


## adaniel

Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!  !!!!!!!!!




> from the daily thunder: Russell westbrook will undergo surgery for a meniscus tear in his right knee. No timetable announced.

----------


## Praedura

Yikes!!!!

----------


## Praedura

Goodbye any chance of championship this year.  :Frown:

----------


## Praedura

> I feel so bad for him right now. The man has never missed a game.  This has to be *tearing him up*.


Maybe not the best choice of words... but, yeah.

----------


## BoulderSooner

we won't know until after surgery  but it could be only 2-4 weeks

----------


## skanaly

This should be intersting, Reggie has been doing great, but there's going to have to be more contribution from Kmart and Thabo. It also wouldn't hurt to get the ball down low a couple times

----------


## Praedura

from the thunderfans facebook page:

"Scott Brooks today: Reggie Jackson will start for Russ, but others will see extra minutes too. "

Well, Reggie is no Russell. But as far as backup pg options go, he's a pretty darn good one.

Good luck Reggie. This will be your chance to shine.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> Goodbye any chance of championship this year.


Thunder is not winning against the Heat in the Finals anyway

----------


## Soonerman

> Thunder is not winning against the Heat in the Finals anyway


I really like the Knicks chances against the Heat in ECF should it come to that.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> I really like the Knicks chances against the Heat in ECF should it come to that.


I don't know if I like the Knicks chances, I would be surprised if the Knicks win the series against the Heat

----------


## Anonymous.

Epic game Saturday night. Those last two shots were unbelievably lucky.

Tonight we put the brooms to 'em.


It is great to see Liggins reappear. I really like watching that guy play with the intensity he has. And I think we saw a glimpse of what is to come with Martin now that Russell is no longer there to take shots. Martin is going to get WAY more touches and he will be able to play more like he did when he was with HOU.

Tonight's game is @ 8:30 on TNT.

----------


## Anonymous.

Close game. Durant got us back in in the final minute or two. But it just wasn't enough.

Ibaka was MIA all night. And the missed lay in at the end pretty much summed up his night. 



At least we get to close it out at home tomorrow. Late night once again 8:30pm tip. I am selling my tickets, cannot afford another late night this week.

----------


## Praedura

Food courts tomorrow night at "Thunder Corner" (SE corner of Myriad Gardens).

From 5:30pm - 8:30pm (or about game time)




> Myriad Gardens Brings Family Friendly Food Trucks to Thunder Corner for Playoffs
> 
> Oklahoma City – The southeast corner of the Myriad Botanical Gardens is affectionately
> nicknamed Thunder Corner, and tomorrow starting at 5:30 and ending shortly after game time,
> it will be home to food trucks, a hotdog cart and bistro tables and chairs for folks to enjoy a fun
> dinner al fresco before we send Houston back home where they belong!
> 
> In addition to great eats, diners will enjoy knowing that a portion of the trucks’ proceeds benefits
> the Myriad Gardens, which means eating chicken and waffles is a charitable thing to do!
> ...


Participating vendors:

Wild Al’s Food Truck
Hawk’s Hotdogs
Taste of Soul Egg Rolls
Taste of Soul Chicken and Waffle Truck
Pizza 23

Source: https://www.facebook.com/MyriadGarde...56029934413516

----------


## dankrutka

> I really like the Knicks chances against the Heat in ECF should it come to that.


I'm not sure what evidence from this season would support an argument that the Knicks can even be seriously competitive. If Tyson Chandler was healthy and playing well then I could see the Knicks putting up a fight, but I don't think the Knicks are even in the top 7 or 8 teams in the NBA. I think a sweep is more likely than the series going 6.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

Off topic, but gotta get it out there. Really OKC?.. Tomorrows shirts will be the exact ones the fans were wearing during the Game 5 vs the Lakers last year. That makes me feel some of type of way... :/

----------


## Anonymous.

Westboro Church will be protesting the outside the arena tonight.

Westboro Baptist Church: Threatening to picket Oklahoma City Thunder NBA playoff - Oklahoma City Top News | Examiner.com

----------


## Praedura

> Food courts tomorrow night at "Thunder Corner" (SE corner of Myriad Gardens).
> 
> From 5:30pm - 8:30pm (or about game time)
> 
> 
> 
> Participating vendors:
> 
> Wild Als Food Truck
> ...



Update from MBG:
--------------------------

Slight food truck adjustment: we've added Off the Hook Seafood,
and Taste of Soul realized they can't come. So the lineup is:

Wild Al's BBQ
Pizza 23
Off the Hook Seafood
Hawk's Hotdogs

----------


## SoonerBoy18

The world would truly be a better place without these sick minded people.

----------


## MonkeesFan

Thunder sucks, they can't win without Westbrook, yeah, they won without him but it is obvious they needed Westbrook, Thunder season MIGHT be over

----------


## Dustin

Thunder have checked out...

----------


## adaniel

I turned it off during the 3rd quarter. Love my team, but if they aren't going to show up, don't expect me to.

Its been a long time since they laid an egg like this. A complete team meltdown from the coach down. What happened?

----------


## venture

Houston...first team to win series after being down 0-3?

----------


## Just the facts

> Houston...first team to win series after being down 0-3?


That is a definite possibility.  I guess it turns out Westbrook IS the best player on the team because the wheels have come off the Thunderwagon without him.  They simply are not doing anything that resembles a team.  It is just 5 guys on the court wearing the same uniform.  If Houston wins game 6 there is no doubt in my mind they win game 7 as well.

Here is the thing - OKC cannot out score the Rockets by trying to match them in 3pt attempts.  If the Thunder attempt one more 3pt shot in the next two game we will lose.  Every shot needs to be at the rim.  And would it kill the Thunder to try a fast break.

----------


## Anonymous.

This whole Durant run the point and pass to the open guard thing is a losing formula when everyone is missing wide open. 

Tonight was a definite wake up. Everything they've been practicing has been Durant finds the open guy since he's doubled. But our shooters are choking. Martin mustve watched tape from Harden's Finals appearance. Because he is GONE. 

I think we could win the series still, but if we struggle against the #8, then next round is even more of an eye-roll.

----------


## Dustin

> Houston...first team to win series after being down 0-3?


Thunder will pull through... They'll pull through... I think they'll pull through...  If I keep telling myself that, it will happen!

----------


## betts

Chicago lost to Philly last year after losing Rose.  It's hard to bounce back from that kind of blow.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> Houston...first team to win series after being down 0-3?


Nope Boston will do it against the Knicks

----------


## OKCisOK4me

Westbrook IS the Thunder.  Funny that KD is being outshined by a player that is injured.  

I was a little pissed at Westbrook for staying up in the suite in his lil blue Thunder fan t-shirt.  Homie shoulda been down on the sideline with his teammates.

Can't wait for the 13-14 NBA season cause this one is over for us. 

PS...if it weren't for the naysayers...there would be no winners to disprove us.

Disprove me...

----------


## Jim Kyle

> I was a little pissed at Westbrook for staying up in the suite in his lil blue Thunder fan t-shirt.  Homie shoulda been down on the sideline with his teammates.


I wondered about that, but NewsOK reported that he couldn't be on the bench because he has to stretch his right leg and there's not enough room between bench and court to allow it...

----------


## Anonymous.

What? Westbrook has crutches and his leg bandaged, and you are _pissed_ because he was up in the suite? He was even sitting on the top of the chair to give his legs more room. Have you ever been to a game? You have about 3 inches in front of your knees before you are against the chair in front. Noway to comfortably sit there with your legs extended.

Some people just can't give RW a break, even when he is off the court.



Anyways, Martin has to show up in HOU tomorrow night or Game 7 is going to be tough. Rockets for sure think they can win it now, they have nothing to lose.
 One thing to note here, it took Harden to go 7/7 and Garcia 4/6 from 3 early on to even give HOU a comfortable lead. NO chance that happens again. Law of averages - I like our chances tomorrow night.

----------


## SoonerDave

Okay, guys, I admit it. I know the real reason we lost last night.

Wasn't Westbrook's absence.

It was me. 

This was my second Thunder home playoff game ever. We lost the last time I went. And we lost again last night. 

It wasn't K-Mart's horrible shooting, or the Thunder's lethargic, often disinterested play, or their dazed and confused offense, or their often nightmarish defense. 

So if this does come down to a Game 7 back here in OKC, I feel a lot better about the Thunder's chances as I likely won't have tickets for that one.

(intense sarcasm light off).

----------


## Just the facts

> Okay, guys, I admit it. I know the real reason we lost last night.
> 
> Wasn't Westbrook's absence.
> 
> It was me.


You have been watching too much Celtic Pride.  If you haven't seen that movie - you should.

----------


## Anonymous.

I think we finally close it out tonight in HOU, the guys were embarassed the other night in the 'Peake. Many of Thunder players left a lot on the table and will likely make up for it tonight.


Also don't expect Harden to have another lights-out 3 pointer party. That was utterly ridiculous.

EDIT: Harden was diagnosed with strep-throat yesterday evening. And is expected to play tonight. <--- He played his best game in the series with strep... Yea I'm not sure I am buying it.
Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/news/houston...1209--nba.html


Game is @ 8:30 on ESPN.

Grizzlies and Clippers will also be playing at the same time, on ESPN 2.

----------


## dankrutka

Well, Harden can't shoot better and Martin can't play any worse. Hopefully as can get it. But there are a lot of other factors too. (For example, KD can't play much better).

----------


## warreng88

If Martin goes even 1-5 and Brooks doesn't replace him with Jeremy Lamb (because, seriosuly, he couldn't d any worse) then something big needs to happen. I have completely given up hope that we will win the next series, I just want to get out of this one so the Harden worshippers will go away.

----------


## OSUMom

Brooks has to do a better job too.  Why, why why was Collison not in the game at all in the second half?  Why was Jackson left wasting away on the bench while the MIA Martin was left in as a big hole in our offense and defense.

In the first half during his 6 minutes of play Collison had 6 points.  All of those were cleaning up missed shots.  He would have had a feast of garbage to clean up if he had been on the court during the second half.

----------


## warreng88

> Brooks has to do a better job too.  Why, why why was Collison not in the game at all in the second half?  Why was Jackson left wasting away on the bench while the MIA Martin was left in as a big hole in our offense and defense.
> 
> In the first half during his 6 minutes of play Collison had 6 points.  All of those were cleaning up missed shots.  He would have had a feast of garbage to clean up if he had been on the court during the second half.


Brooks reasoning was the Rockets went small and Nick doesn't work into their small rotation. It's Reggie, Martin, Thabo, KD and Serge with Fish and Liggins rotating in.

----------


## okcboomer

yeah, let's blame the coach.  Good grief people.  Losing Westbrook is equivelant to NE losing Tom Brady to begin the playoffs.  Difference here is people would not expect the Patriots to make it back to the Super Bowl because we all know how important Brady is.   Many around here don't understand just how important Westbrook is to this team.  You don't lose an All-Star point guard who runs the show and think everything is going to be just fine.  Like I said in another thread, people will soon find out just how important Westbrook is.

----------


## warreng88

> yeah, let's blame the coach.  Good grief people.  Losing Westbrook is equivelant to NE losing Tom Brady to begin the playoffs.  Difference here is people would not expect the Patriots to make it back to the Super Bowl because we all know how important Brady is.   Many around here don't understand just how important Westbrook is to this team.  You don't lose an All-Star point guard who runs the show and think everything is going to be just fine.  Like I said in another thread, people will soon find out just how important Westbrook is.


I'm not blaming the coach because K-mart played horribly, I'm blaming him for not taking him out and trying something else when he wasn't hitting his shots.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

I cant wait for next season. Particularly next seasons playoffs. That when I will have all of my excitment, confidence, optimism BACK! =(

----------


## Dustin

Guys, guys....  We might actually win this series...

----------


## Just the facts

Whew,  I am glad that is over.

----------


## ljbab728

Yup, and here come the Grizzlies. ( A team we're very familiar with )

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> Yup, and here come the Grizzlies. ( A team we're very familiar with )


A team in my opinion all season has been Thunders worst enemy. I'm going to bet we win. Our home games.

----------


## Mississippi Blues

I think Memphis wins this series. Hope I'm proven wrong though.

----------


## Jake

I'm just glad we beat the Rockets. Losing a series to Memphis is understandable given the circumstances, so I won't be too bummed if the Thunder are knocked off by them.

----------


## Anonymous.

> I'm just glad we beat the Rockets. Losing a series to Memphis is understandable given the circumstances, so I won't be too bummed if the Thunder are knocked off by them.


This. A million times this.


Winning round 1 without Russ was a great accomplishment. These guys have relearned plays and strategy over the course of 3 actual games. Expecting them to trot through the west is ridiculous.


I feel as if most of the Thunder fans feel the same way. Everything from here on out is icing on the cake.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> This. A million times this.
> 
> 
> Winning round 1 without Russ was a great accomplishment. These guys have relearned plays and strategy over the course of 3 actual games. Expecting them to trot through the west is ridiculous.
> 
> 
> I feel as if most of the Thunder fans feel the same way. Everything from here on out is icing on the cake.


But come on we gotta have a LITTLE FAITH. Its not like we are going to suck like the Cavaliers did when Lebron left.

----------


## Easy180

Get a little break that Memphis isn't a run and gun high scoring team so should help our chances....Be a tremendous accomplishment at this point to make it to the Western Finals

----------


## Praedura

Allied Arts showing their support:

----------


## dankrutka

> I'm not blaming the coach because K-mart played horribly, I'm blaming him for not taking him out and trying something else when he wasn't hitting his shots.


Brooks makes plenty of mistakes, but leaving your best scorers in even they're shooting bad is not one of them. Martin needs his shots and minutes because he's one of our most efficient scorers. You don't take out scorers when they shoot bad because they can turn it around at any moment. Martin did that last night. He won't be that good regularly, but Martin is our second best scorer so we have to stick with him.

----------


## Praedura

I'd say that we have a little less than a 50% chance of winning the series with Memphis.

But at a minimum, we're guaranted at least four more playoff games. Yoohoo!

----------


## OkieHornet

hey guys. we still have one of the best basketball players on the planet on our team. don't give up hope.

and last night with brooks showing he can actually adapt and adjust during a game, there's something too.

----------


## Praedura

Ready to rumble...

----------


## Praedura

Wow!!!!!!!!

Unbelievable finish.

Ok, that's 1-0.  :Smile:

----------


## OSUMom

I need a valium.

----------


## MonkeesFan

I said in another thread that Memphis-Thunder is going to be a boring series and the Clippers-Thunder would have been a fun series but I have to eat my crow! What a crazy great game!

----------


## Teo9969

It's going to get even better when players start getting into foul trouble and it forces coaches to make changes on the fly.

----------


## Easy180

It's over  :Big Grin:

----------


## Anonymous.

All I can say is wow, good to have you back Kevin Martin. The way this team is finding ways to win is so much fun to see.

Next game is Tuesday night, 8:30 on TNT.

----------


## Praedura

> It's over


Yep, 4-0 sweep for sure!
 :Wink:

----------


## Bellaboo

Every writer gives Conley the advantage over Reggie, but last night, in the last couple of minutes, Conley had 3 turnovers, and Reggie came up big with 3 seconds left at the line. I'd say it's a toss up...

----------


## Teo9969

Reggie Jackson is going to finish this season a Top 25 PG in this league...

Tier 1 - Westbrook, Paul, Curry, Williams, Rose, Parker, Lillard, Holiday, Rondo, Rubio

Tier 2 - Ellis, Dragic, Lin, Conley, Lawson, Walker, Robinson, Jack, Collison, Bradley, Reggie etc.

He's definitely second tier, he's just on the bottom 30% side of it...By the end of this season, with the incredible experience he's getting as a starter on a championship contender, he'll be in the Top 40%.

Conley is such a sound player and he knows his role on his team really well, but he's nowhere near as athletic and, well, talented. Reggie is more explosive and can help out on the glass. Conley is currently a better scorer, but Reggie drives the lane better and if he can develop a consistent and relatively reliable jump-shot will have Conley in that area. Reggie will probably never be the passer that Conley is, and he's got a long way to go to be as good defensively as Conley is, but he has the capabilities of being as good as Conley defensively (and probably will be within the next 3 years).

It's like anytime you have a more talented but inexperienced player matching up against a good player who has far more veteran experience: You expect the smarter player to win, but you are not surprised to see flashes from the other guy.

Luckily for OKC, Fisher matches up with Conley the way that Conley matches up with Jackson...as long as Brooks finds the right balance between the two, particularly early in the series before Conley figures both of them out and can adjust what he's doing on the fly, then I think OKC will make life for Conley particularly difficult.

----------


## BoulderSooner

Tier 1  is Westbrook and Paul and that is it   

Tier 2 is Curry Williams Parker and Irving and Wall 

Tier 3  is Walker Lawson Conley Lilard Calderson Dragic Holiday Teague Jennings Vasquez Hill Rubio Felton Nash 

reggie could move into that third group     

i did not list Bledsoe    who will be paid this summer like he is tier 2

----------


## dankrutka

A lot of people are jumping the gun here in my opinion. Look at what Conley has already done in this playoffs. I'm really encouraged by Reggie's development and potential, but Conley is averaging almost 17 and 8 in the playoffs. Ranking Reggie against other PGs at this point seems premature. Saying things like, "If Reggie just becomes a good shooter..." when he shot a terrible 23% from 3 this season is just baseless speculation. Again, I like Reggie, but he needs more time to prove himself and a much larger resume to be compared to PGs who are already established.

----------


## OSUMom

I really like Reggie.  He has, for the last two years, had a big 'trial by fire'.  First with losing Maynor and becoming the backup point guard, until we got Fisher.  And now this year being forced into the starting point guard position.  I think he has done well and will only continue to improve.

----------


## Teo9969

> I really like Reggie.  He has, for the last two years, had a big 'trial by fire'.  First with losing Maynor and becoming the backup point guard, until we got Fisher.  And now this year being forced into the starting point guard position.  I think he has done well and will only continue to improve.


Don't forget, he didn't have a training camp his rookie season...

----------


## OKCisOK4me

Friend of mine says that a plan is in the works to amnesty Perkins for bringing in his mentor (another old fogie), KG, who can still get up and down maybe a little better than him.  Wise move or is he just a player we can afford that is getting closer to retirement??

----------


## dankrutka

> Friend of mine says that a plan is in the works to amnesty Perkins for bringing in his mentor (another old fogie), KG, who can still get up and down maybe a little better than him.  Wise move or is he just a player we can afford that is getting closer to retirement??


It would be a very wise move. It's not happening unless KG plays for next to nothing, which is incredibly unlikely. I'd put the chances of this happening near zero, but the chances that its "in the works" is almost certainly zero. It would be wonderful if your friend was right though.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> It would be a very wise move. It's not happening unless KG plays for next to nothing, which is incredibly unlikely. I'd put the chances of this happening near zero, but the chances that its "in the works" is almost certainly zero. It would be wonderful if your friend was right though.


I guess we'll find out between now and the start of next season.  I put it at a 5% chance.  My bud just wants it to happen cause he thinks Perkins is worthless.  His intangible assets do not reflect on the stat sheets.  This I know.  Why others don't is beyond me.

----------


## BoulderSooner

> I guess we'll find out between now and the start of next season.  I put it at a 5% chance.  My bud just wants it to happen cause he thinks Perkins is worthless.  His intangible assets do not reflect on the stat sheets.  This I know.  Why others don't is beyond me.


KG is under contract for 11.5 mil next year and 12 mil the year after ....

who does your friend have us trading to boston for him???

----------


## warreng88

> His intangible assets do not reflect on the stat sheets.  This I know.  Why others don't is beyond me.


This is how I feel about Collison. He is easily my favorite player, yet if you look at his stats, they are nothing special. But, it's things like the pass before the assist, his screens or his defense and no complaining that makes me like him more.

----------


## dankrutka

> His intangible assets do not reflect on the stat sheets.  This I know.  Why others don't is beyond me.


While Perk does provide some intangibles (e.g., leadership, especially off the court), a lot of what he does show up in the stat sheet. The problem is that people only look at simple offensive stats like points per game or rebounds. Perk is an awful offensive player - one of the worst in the league, but if you look at advanced defensive stats (beyond blocks and rebounds) you will see that he is a very solid isolation post defender - one of the best in the league. When the Thunder play a team that does not have an elite interior scorer Perk's greatest contribution is mitigated and he should not play as much. However, when we play a team with solid interior scorers (e.g., Memphis) Perk's value goes up. Aside from screens, Perk's best contributions are not intangibles, but his tangible and quantifiable contributions on the defensive end.

In short, no one should play because of intangibles. And neither Perk, Collison, or Fisher should get minutes because of "intangibles." Advanced stats show Perk's defensive contributions are worthwhile when the Thunder are playing certain opponents. They also show the value of Collison. Fisher's recent rise in on-court production merit him getting minutes now, not intangibles.

----------


## OSUMom

> This is how I feel about Collison. He is easily my favorite player, yet if you look at his stats, they are nothing special. But, it's things like the pass before the assist, his screens or his defense and no complaining that makes me like him more.



Collison is a working man.  Every game he puts on his hard hat, picks up his lunchbox and goes to work.  Steadily and quietly.  He is one of my favorite players.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> KG is under contract for 11.5 mil next year and 12 mil the year after ....
> 
> who does your friend have us trading to boston for him???


Please notate that I said I put it at a 5% chance !!!

----------


## MonkeesFan

> Yep, 4-0 sweep for sure!


There will be no sweep, the Grizzles are going to win tonight

----------


## Praedura

> There will be no sweep, the Grizzles are going to win tonight




 :Tongue:

----------


## MonkeesFan

> 


Haha, oh please, I am not even a Thunder fan

----------


## Praedura

> Haha, oh please, I am not even a Thunder fan


Too bad. You'll never know the simple joys of a Thunder fan...

----------


## MonkeesFan

> Too bad. You'll never know the simple joys of a Thunder fan...


Haha, oh please, I have more joy being a Magic fan and I have been a fan for 20 years

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> Haha, oh please, I have more joy being a Magic fan and I have been a fan for 20 years


Congratulations, you like the Orlando Magic. I'm sure Florida has some nice fishing weather this time of year.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> Congratulations, you like the Orlando Magic. I'm sure Florida has some nice fishing weather this time of year.


I do not live in Florida

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> I do not live in Florida


It was a shot at the Magic for not making the playoffs.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> There will be no sweep, the Grizzles are going to win tonight


And I was right!

----------


## MonkeesFan

> It was a shot at the Magic for not making the playoffs.


So what? Magic will win a championship before the Thunder will  :Tongue:

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> So what? Magic will win a championship before the Thunder will


I very highly doubt that. I'll be surprised if they make it out of the east before the Thunder win a championship.  :Wink:   :Stick Out Tongue:

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> And I was right!


Good call. It was almost predictable with the way the game ended on Sunday.

----------


## ljbab728

> And I was right!


And what was that saying about a monkey and a typewriter?  LOL

----------


## Bellaboo

> So what? Magic will win a championship before the Thunder will


Are you off or just dreaming...? everyone knows the Magic are not very good.

----------


## Anonymous.

Some interesting decisions last night.

Not sure why Martin was not in down the stretch until the final couple minutes. Also Thabo was not playing either. All of our bigs got in foul trouble and could not grab a rebound to save their life.

A pretty bad game played by the Thunder. Surprising because I feel like they should have been more energized after Sunday. KD and Fisher and Reggie are the only ones consistently giving us good games. Fisher has been flat out insane these playoffs, he is a different player come post-season. It is too bad we wasted such a great game by him on a loss.


At least we know we can win in MEM. We have to claim HCA back.

----------


## okcboomer

> Some interesting decisions last night.
> 
> Not sure why Martin was not in down the stretch until the final couple minutes. Also Thabo was not playing either. All of our bigs got in foul trouble and could not grab a rebound to save their life.
> 
> *A pretty bad game played by the Thunder. Surprising because I feel like they should have been more energized after Sunday*. KD and Fisher and Reggie are the only ones consistently giving us good games. Fisher has been flat out insane these playoffs, he is a different player come post-season. It is too bad we wasted such a great game by him on a loss.
> 
> 
> At least we know we can win in MEM. We have to claim HCA back.


Why in the world would that surpise you?  You can have all the engery you want, but that doesn't make you play well.   What a silly thing to say.  

2 simple reasons why they didn't play well.   No Westbrook and Memphis.

----------


## Anonymous.

> Why in the world would that surpise you?  You can have all the engery you want, but that doesn't make you play well.   What a silly thing to say.




What is silly about expecting them to be pumped up after winning Game 1?





> 2 simple reasons why they didn't play well.   No Westbrook and Memphis.


Oh yea, I forgot Russell came out on his crutches Sunday and Memphis turned into the lolcats.

----------


## okcboomer

> What is silly about expecting them to be pumped up after winning Game 1?
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Oh yea, I forgot Russell came out on his crutches Sunday and Memphis turned into the lolcats.


So in their 1 point win at home, they were "pumped", but in their 2nd home playoff game against Memphis, they were not, so that's why they got beat?  LOL
I tell you what, since you think they weren't pumped up to play in game 2 of this series at home with a chance to go up 2-0, please give examples.  I'd love to hear.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> Are you off or just dreaming...? everyone knows the Magic are not very good.


Yes, they are not very good right now but they are a very young team and have a bright future and will be contenders in a few years

----------


## BoulderSooner

> Yes, they are not very good right now but they are a very young team and have a bright future and will be contenders in a few years


who is thier star??   they don't have anyone that can be the second best player on a great team

----------


## Bellaboo

> Yes, they are not very good right now but they are a very young team and have a bright future and will be contenders in a few years


How many all - stars do they have on their roster ?

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> who is thier star??   they don't have anyone that can be the second best player on a great team





> How many all - stars do they have on their roster ?


They will be contenders in a few years simply because they're his favorite team. You don't need good players on a team to be contenders, they just need to be your favorite team. Duh.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> who is thier star??   they don't have anyone that can be the second best player on a great team


None for now but Tobias Harris might become their star in the future and Jameer Nelson can be the second best player on a great team

----------


## MonkeesFan

> They will be contenders in a few years simply because they're his favorite team. You don't need good players on a team to be contenders, they just need to be your favorite team. Duh.


No, they will be contenders because they have a young team and will only get better, do you watch the Magic play?

I guarantee the Magic will have a better record this year unless they have a huge amount of injuries

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> No, they will be contenders because they have a young team and will only get better, do you watch the Magic play?
> 
> I guarantee the Magic will have a better record this year unless they have a huge amount of injuries


I never watch them, but I keep up with them just like I do all NBA teams. They're nothing impressive. They may be young, but they're nothing that makes you say "oh, they're gonna be good in a few years."

----------


## Teo9969

Magic may be contenders for a playoff birth in the next few years. But if they don't find a Top 10-15 player, they have exactly 0 shot at an NBA title. For all the fear people had of Denver, they got knocked off by a good but nowhere near great Golden State squad.

Have to have a superstar in this league to have any chance at a title.

----------


## Mississippi Blues

> Magic may be contenders for a playoff birth in the next few years. But if they don't find a Top 10-15 player, they have exactly 0 shot at an NBA title. For all the fear people had of Denver, they got knocked off by a good but nowhere near great Golden State squad.
> 
> Have to have a superstar in this league to have any chance at a title.


Agreed. I was one of those people that feared Denver & they turned out to be another fluke. They have a lot of good role players, but none of them are LBJ, KD, or KB24 superstar status.

----------


## BoulderSooner

> None for now but Tobias Harris might become their star in the future and Jameer Nelson can be the second best player on a great team


hello dream world .... 

Harris might turn into a second banana       but nelson in no way can be the second (or 3rd for that matter) best player on a great team

----------


## MonkeesFan

> hello dream world .... 
> 
> Harris might turn into a second banana       but nelson in no way can be the second (or 3rd for that matter) best player on a great team


Nelson was the 2nd best player after Dwight on a great Magic team in 2009 so he can be the 2nd best player on another great team

----------


## BoulderSooner

> Nelson was the 2nd best player after Dwight on a great Magic team in 2009 so he can be the 2nd best player on another great team


1. hedu turkoglu  was the second best player on that team 
2. Jameer nelson is 31 and is getting worse year by year not better

----------


## MonkeesFan

> 1. hedu turkoglu  was the second best player on that team 
> 2. Jameer nelson is 31 and is getting worse year by year not better


Oh yeah, I totally forgot about Hedo, but then again, I am trying to forget that Hedo exists since Hedo is currently trash

Yeah, Jameer is getting old but he would have been the 2nd or 3rd best player on a great team in his prime though

----------


## okcboomer

You know this team is in a small market city when the talk of a "Official 2012/2013 Oklahoma City Thunder Basketball" thread is the Orlando Magic.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> You know this team is in a small market city when the talk of a "Official 2012/2013 Oklahoma City Thunder Basketball" thread is the Orlando Magic.


I would not be here in this thread if I did not live in Oklahoma so sue me

----------


## MonkeesFan

Alright guys, I am going to stop talking about my Magic and let you guys talk about the Thunder since it is a Thunder thread after all

Have a nice day

----------


## workman45

I'm guessing that the Thunder will improve their competition against the Grizzlies. This is the first chance they have had to practice without Russell so they should be able to iron out some of their difficulties.

----------


## Bellaboo

> Alright guys, I am going to stop talking about my Magic and let you guys talk about the Thunder since it is a Thunder thread after all
> 
> Have a nice day


Don't run off mad.... how about you starting an Orlando Magic thread then if people want to talk about the Magic they can ?

----------


## okcboomer

> Alright guys, I am going to stop talking about my Magic and let you guys talk about the Thunder since it is a Thunder thread after all
> 
> Have a nice day


Don't stop, I actually liked reading about them, just found it odd how this was being talked about in an "official Thunder" thread.

----------


## okcboomer

> So in their 1 point win at home, they were "pumped", but in their 2nd home playoff game against Memphis, they were not, so that's why they got beat?  LOL
> I tell you what, since you think they weren't pumped up to play in game 2 of this series at home with a chance to go up 2-0, please give examples.  I'd love to hear.


Anonymous??

----------


## Anonymous.

I am not sure what your post is asking. I feel as if game 1 was a moral victory in addition to an added W in the playoffs column. Thus the team would believe themselves even more and come out blazing in game 2. It did not happen. And this surprised me.

Not sure if that answers your question, okcboomer.


We know we can win in MEM, hopefully the rest of the team will get off the plane and play some good ball.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> I am not sure what your post is asking. I feel as if game 1 was a moral victory in addition to an added W in the playoffs column. Thus the team would believe themselves even more and come out blazing in game 2. It did not happen. And this surprised me.
> 
> Not sure if that answers your question, okcboomer.
> 
> 
> *We know we can win in MEM*, hopefully the rest of the team will get off the plane and play some good ball.


Nice call  :Roll Eyes (Sarcastic):

----------


## venture

> Nice call


Is it your job to be the resident asshat I'm guessing?

The team has to believe they can win and give it their all, obviously that's not the case. The team shouldn't die with one playing going down. Something will need to change before next season...and that means more than just Westbrook coming back.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> *Is it your job to be the resident asshat I'm guessing?*
> 
> The team has to believe they can win and give it their all, obviously that's not the case. The team shouldn't die with one playing going down. Something will need to change before next season...and that means more than just Westbrook coming back.


Yes

----------


## dankrutka

> Is it your job to be the resident asshat I'm guessing?
> 
> The team has to believe they can win and give it their all, obviously that's not the case. The team shouldn't die with one playing going down. Something will need to change before next season...and that means more than just Westbrook coming back.


Every team in the NBA would be far worse if a top 10 player went down. OKC is doing better than most teams. OKC is the 2nd best team in the NBA with Russ. No need to panic in regards to next year.

Without Westbrook, Memphis is a better team. It shouldn't be a big surprise OKC is down. It's been a good series though. Lets hope we can steal game 4.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> Every team in the NBA would be far worse if a top 10 player went down. OKC is doing better than most teams. OKC is the 2nd best team in the NBA with Russ. No need to panic in regards to next year.
> 
> Without Westbrook, Memphis is a better team. It shouldn't be a big surprise OKC is down. It's been a good series though. Lets hope we can steal game 4.


The Thunder is going to lose the series and they are not winning anything with Westbrook next year either

----------


## BoulderSooner

> The Thunder is going to lose the series and they are not winning anything with Westbrook next year either


I will bet you any amout of money that you want right now that with a healthy Westbrook and Durant the thunder are the 1 seed and win the western conf next season

----------


## MonkeesFan

> I will bet you any amout of money that you want right now that with a healthy Westbrook and Durant the thunder are the 1 seed and win the western conf next season


I am not going to take that bet since you will win it easily but I will take the bet that the Thunder is not winning the championship next year

----------


## SoonerBoy18

I'm bout to weigh in on how frustrated I am with this team ever since Westbrook got injured. I am seriously fed up with this dude named Reggie Jackson, Why in the world would he commit a foul with 50 seconds left in the game. He is turning into another Westbrook and if that happends, he needs to go. And Kevin Durant..... Right after he says "I'm tired of being second", he has shown why he has a LONG way to go before reaching Lebron's status. He looks so defeated when the game is on the line. Kevin Martin needs to step up, and Kendrick Perkins needs to be gone. and Scott Brooks ..........

----------


## MonkeesFan

> I'm bout to weigh in on how frustrated I am with this team ever since Westbrook got injured. I am seriously fed up with this dude named Reggie Jackson, Why in the world would he commit a foul with 50 seconds left in the game. He is turning into another Westbrook and if that happends, he needs to go. And Kevin Durant..... Right after he says "I'm tired of being second", he has shown why he has a LONG way to go before reaching Lebron's status. He looks so defeated when the game is on the line. Kevin Martin needs to step up, and Kendrick Perkins needs to be gone. and Scott Brooks ..........


I knew you would not take the bet that the Thunder is not winning the championship next year since you are chicken and you would be afraid that I am right

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> I knew you would not take the bet that the Thunder is not winning the championship next year since you are chicken and you would be afraid that I am right


Lol. I still think we are winning next year but we got to make some major adjustments in order for it to happen.

----------


## Mel

These early games mess me up. Like to have a adult beverage or two during the game. 4 is just a bit early for me.

----------


## BoulderSooner

> I'm bout to weigh in on how frustrated I am with this team ever since Westbrook got injured. I am seriously fed up with this dude named Reggie Jackson, Why in the world would he commit a foul with 50 seconds left in the game. He is turning into another Westbrook and if that happends, he needs to go. And Kevin Durant..... Right after he says "I'm tired of being second", he has shown why he has a LONG way to go before reaching Lebron's status. He looks so defeated when the game is on the line. Kevin Martin needs to step up, and Kendrick Perkins needs to be gone. and Scott Brooks ..........


Step away from the ledge

----------


## SoonerDave

> Every team in the NBA would be far worse if a top 10 player went down. OKC is doing better than most teams. OKC is the 2nd best team in the NBA with Russ. No need to panic in regards to next year.
> 
> Without Westbrook, Memphis is a better team. It shouldn't be a big surprise OKC is down. It's been a good series though. *Lets hope we can steal game 4*.


As much as I found myself creeping to the ledge  :Smile: , I have to admit that "stealing" game 4 gives the Thunder at least a fighting chance to get back into this thing. They'd get home court back, and have a chance to win game 5 at home, thus giving them two shots to actually win the series. Mind you, I am NOT predicting this will happen, I'm just trying to put the most positive spin on this. 

I will say this about NBA playoff series - streakiness is epidemic, and a bad call/bounce/break can change the direction of a game, and a series, so very quickly! As bad as the Thunder has played (and surely we must give Memphis no small dose of credit for that) there has to be a notion that they could combine today's_ defensive_ performance with a better - even average - shooting performance, and "stealing" game 4 doesn't seem so improbable. I know things seem bleak right now, and I guess in reality they are, but hey, we're still fighting, we've still got a home game, and I *have* to imagine we'll shoot better next time around. 

T'aint over yet folks. Shaky, yes, but we're still breathin'. Gasping, maybe, but not out yet. 

Somehow, we've got to figure out how to roll one more shooter onto this team. Can't see us keeping KMart, he's simply disappeared again, and we knew going in that our bench wasn't the strongest. I know we don't have much $$$ in terms of the cap, but we've got to get at least one credible scoring option off the bench, seems to me.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

> I am not going to take that bet since you will win it easily but I will take the bet that the Thunder is not winning the championship next year


I will bet your LSD induced butt that no matter who Orlando plays in the playoffs next year, that they will get smoked! lmao

----------


## betts

> I'm bout to weigh in on how frustrated I am with this team ever since Westbrook got injured. I am seriously fed up with this dude named Reggie Jackson, Why in the world would he commit a foul with 50 seconds left in the game. He is turning into another Westbrook and if that happends, he needs to go. And Kevin Durant..... Right after he says "I'm tired of being second", he has shown why he has a LONG way to go before reaching Lebron's status. He looks so defeated when the game is on the line. Kevin Martin needs to step up, and Kendrick Perkins needs to be gone. and Scott Brooks ..........


SoonerBoy,  Reggie Jackson is just that -a boy.  A boy with one season of experience as a back up point guard suddenly thrust into the position of being the starting point guard in the playoffs, of all places.  I've actually been very impressed with his performance.  If he turns into another Westbrook my two thoughts are, "God be praised!" And "Can we sign him to an extension before he figures out how much another team will pay him?"  Kevin Durant is carrying an an entire team on his shoulders.  He doesn't look defeated, he looks tired.  I remember some games in Cleveland at Durants age where LeBron wasn't able to do it all either.  There's a four year age difference.  LeBron is in his prime and Kevin has a few years to go. Enjoy watching one of the best players on the planet while you can.  Perkins likely will go, but there's got to be a better replacement we can afford.  As far as Brooks goes, he's not a fast learner, I suspect, but he's learning through all these experiences.  All the coaching in the world doesn't guarantee the ball goes in the basket....

----------


## Spartan

> I'm bout to weigh in on how frustrated I am with this team ever since Westbrook got injured. I am seriously fed up with this dude named Reggie Jackson, Why in the world would he commit a foul with 50 seconds left in the game. He is turning into another Westbrook and if that happends, he needs to go. And Kevin Durant..... Right after he says "I'm tired of being second", he has shown why he has a LONG way to go before reaching Lebron's status. He looks so defeated when the game is on the line. Kevin Martin needs to step up, and Kendrick Perkins needs to be gone. and Scott Brooks ..........


Junk post is junk

----------


## jn1780

> I will bet your LSD induced butt that no matter who Orlando plays in the playoffs next year, that they will get smoked! lmao


Your nice for assuming Orlando makes it to the playoffs. Lol

----------


## Anonymous.

> Nice call


We'll see what happens Monday night. general consensus is if we don't win tomorrow night, the series is over.

However, everyone thought the WCF were over after 0-2 SAS.

----------


## dankrutka

Just to clarify, Reggie is the least of the Thunder's problems. In fact, he's been great. We can't ask much more of him. Martin's inconsistency and Serge, Perk, and Thabo's, well, consistency have been the biggest problems on offense.

----------


## dankrutka

> I'm bout to weigh in on how frustrated I am with this team ever since Westbrook got injured. I am seriously fed up with this dude named Reggie Jackson, Why in the world would he commit a foul with 50 seconds left in the game. He is turning into another Westbrook and if that happends, he needs to go. And Kevin Durant..... Right after he says "I'm tired of being second", he has shown why he has a LONG way to go before reaching Lebron's status. He looks so defeated when the game is on the line. Kevin Martin needs to step up, and Kendrick Perkins needs to be gone. and Scott Brooks ..........


Not feeling your basketball analysis... You rip the two people who are playing the best ball, including KD who might be playing better than LeBron for the first time in his career. Have you looked at his production? LeBron wouldn't do any better than KD put in the same situation. Sigh.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> Not feeling your basketball analysis... You rip the two people who are playing the best ball, including KD who might be playing better than LeBron for the first time in his career. Have you looked at his production? LeBron wouldn't do any better than KD put in the same situation. Sigh.


Well I'm not ripping them apart just to be doing it. I'm calling it like I see it. We have been playing Memphis' game all series with all these low scoring qtrs. I wish Kevin would take at least 40 shots a game.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> Junk post is junk


Too afraid to call a thing a thing. I get it. Most Thunder fans are like that.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> SoonerBoy,  Reggie Jackson is just that -a boy.  A boy with one season of experience as a back up point guard suddenly thrust into the position of being the starting point guard in the playoffs, of all places.  I've actually been very impressed with his performance.  If he turns into another Westbrook my two thoughts are, "God be praised!" And "Can we sign him to an extension before he figures out how much another team will pay him?"  Kevin Durant is carrying an an entire team on his shoulders.  He doesn't look defeated, he looks tired.  I remember some games in Cleveland at Durants age where LeBron wasn't able to do it all either.  There's a four year age difference.  LeBron is in his prime and Kevin has a few years to go. Enjoy watching one of the best players on the planet while you can.  Perkins likely will go, but there's got to be a better replacement we can afford.  As far as Brooks goes, he's not a fast learner, I suspect, but he's learning through all these experiences.  All the coaching in the world doesn't guarantee the ball goes in the basket....


Well that shines a little light to how I feel

----------


## Bill Robertson

> SoonerBoy,  Reggie Jackson is just that -a boy.  A boy with one season of experience as a back up point guard suddenly thrust into the position of being the starting point guard in the playoffs, of all places.  I've actually been very impressed with his performance.  If he turns into another Westbrook my two thoughts are, "God be praised!" And "Can we sign him to an extension before he figures out how much another team will pay him?"  Kevin Durant is carrying an an entire team on his shoulders.  He doesn't look defeated, he looks tired.  I remember some games in Cleveland at Durants age where LeBron wasn't able to do it all either.  There's a four year age difference.  LeBron is in his prime and Kevin has a few years to go. Enjoy watching one of the best players on the planet while you can.  Perkins likely will go, but there's got to be a better replacement we can afford.  As far as Brooks goes, he's not a fast learner, I suspect, but he's learning through all these experiences.  All the coaching in the world doesn't guarantee the ball goes in the basket....


Well done. Given the situation Reggie Jackson has done a fantastic job. KD is playing some of the best ball he ever has. I've not been a big fan of Brooks refusing to change rotations when what we're doing isn't working. Since Westbrook has been injured Brooks has actually impressed me with some of the changes he's made. I think he's doing a much better job of coaching. These Playoffs might be a very good learning experience for Jackson and Brooks. The biggest problem I see is that Ibaka and Martin can't find the basket. I lost count of the number of uncontested shots Ibaka missed in game 3. If Ibaka and Martin could start hitting shots like we know they can we'd be right back in this thing.

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> Well done. Given the situation Reggie Jackson has done a fantastic job. KD is playing some of the best ball he ever has. I've not been a big fan of Brooks refusing to change rotations when what we're doing isn't working. Since Westbrook has been injured Brooks has actually impressed me with some of the changes he's made. I think he's doing a much better job of coaching. These Playoffs might be a very good learning experience for Jackson and Brooks. The biggest problem I see is that Ibaka and Martin can't find the basket. I lost count of the number of uncontested shots Ibaka missed in game 3. If Ibaka and Martin could start hitting shots like we know they can we'd be right back in this thing.


He needs to put Jeremy Lamb in

----------


## Teo9969

> He needs to put Jeremy Lamb in


Put a rookie in the most intense basketball environment he'll ever compete in, when OKC needs solid, consistent, intelligent play?

There's a reason Lamb hasn't even dressed for the playoffs...

----------


## okcboomer

Come on guys, the Thunder weren't pumped up to play.  That's why they got beat games 2 and 3.  They were pumped up to play game one though, that's why they won.  Maybe they will be pumped up tonight.  who knows?

----------


## Anonymous.

> Come on guys, the Thunder weren't pumped up to play.  That's why they got beat games 2 and 3.  They were pumped up to play game one though, that's why they won.  Maybe they will be pumped up tonight.  who knows?



They better be pumped. This game is almost necessary.


Also, cute attempt. .

----------


## dankrutka

> He needs to put Jeremy Lamb in


Good lord.

----------


## SoonerQueen

> Good lord.


We have to win tonight.

----------


## Mel

We will. Watching the game and just thought that it's a good thing Kevin Martin's first name isn't Walter.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> Don't run off mad.... how about you starting an Orlando Magic thread then if people want to talk about the Magic they can ?


Nah, it is okay, it would be weird to start a Orlando Magic thread when I am the only Magic fan, haha

----------


## MonkeesFan

> Don't stop, I actually liked reading about them, just found it odd how this was being talked about in an "official Thunder" thread.


Haha, well I live here and am the only Magic fan here

----------


## boscorama

That must have been YOU I saw in Sam's that day!

----------


## MonkeesFan

> That must have been YOU I saw in Sam's that day!


Nope, I never go to Sam's, okay fine, there is 2 Magic fans here

----------


## Dustin

These playoffs have been frustrating.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> I am not sure what your post is asking. I feel as if game 1 was a moral victory in addition to an added W in the playoffs column. Thus the team would believe themselves even more and come out blazing in game 2. It did not happen. And this surprised me.
> 
> Not sure if that answers your question, okcboomer.
> 
> 
> *We know we can win in MEM*, hopefully the rest of the team will get off the plane and play some good ball.


Well, it backfired

Thunder are done

----------


## adaniel

Heartbreaking loss. I think our season ends on Wednesday. Somewhere in some dingy bar in Houston, Patrick Beverly and Satan are toasting right now.

If it makes anyone feel better, IMO I think the Spurs are in trouble and will probably lose in 7. Then Golden State and Memphis can duel it out in the who-gets-slaughtered-by-Miami series.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> Heartbreaking loss. I think our season ends on Wednesday. Somewhere in some dingy bar in Houston, Patrick Beverly and Satan are toasting right now.
> 
> If it makes anyone feel better, IMO I think the Spurs are in trouble and will probably lose in 7. Then Golden State and Memphis can duel it out in the who-gets-slaughtered-by-Miami series.


I do not see the Thunder losing in front of their fans, they will win on Wednesday but lose at Memphis in Game 6

The Spurs is not going to lose the series, they will advance

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> Put a rookie in the most intense basketball environment he'll ever compete in, when OKC needs solid, consistent, intelligent play?
> 
> There's a reason Lamb hasn't even dressed for the playoffs...


Nothing works for us, so you got to try other options.

----------


## dankrutka

> Nothing works for us, so you got to try other options.


You don't just desperately try out random options. Lamb is the worst defensive player on the team and got totally lost when he played in the regular season. That ship sailed months ago. This is not a realistic option. Moving on..

----------


## dankrutka

> Heartbreaking loss. I think our season ends on Wednesday. Somewhere in some dingy bar in Houston, Patrick Beverly and Satan are toasting right now.
> 
> If it makes anyone feel better, IMO I think the Spurs are in trouble and will probably lose in 7. Then Golden State and Memphis can duel it out in the who-gets-slaughtered-by-Miami series.


I expect a great series between the Spurs and Grizzlies (if/when we lose). 

Those are the two toughest match ups for the Heat in the NBA. It'll be a good Finals with either of those teams from the West.

----------


## Jake

Westbrook is missed.

----------


## Dustin

LOLOLOL.  Another butthurt Seattle fan.

Macklemore not happy with OKC Thunder using his song - Local News - Seattle, WA | NBC News

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> LOLOLOL.  Another butthurt Seattle fan.
> 
> Macklemore not happy with OKC Thunder using his song - Local News - Seattle, WA | NBC News


They just keep on coming. Why would Thunder do that in the first place though. Lol

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> You don't just desperately try out random options. Lamb is the worst defensive player on the team and got totally lost when he played in the regular season. That ship sailed months ago. This is not a realistic option. Moving on..


Oh so instead we can desperately do the Ha..... UGH I'M NOT GOING THERE WITH NON OF YALL!!

----------


## MonkeesFan

So any chance the Thunder will fire Brooks? He is a overrated coach

----------


## sgt. pepper

> So any chance the Thunder will fire Brooks? He is a overrated coach


You must be an OU fan. I predicted OKC would loose in the first round...I was almost right.

----------


## SoonerDave

Guys, I admit I'm mostly a lurker in this thread, but at this point we're a one-horse team. We knew our bench wasn't the strongest (to be generous), and all Russ' injury did was expose this quite plainly to, well, the rest of humanity. We had a third scorer, but he's gone, and Fisher was never intended to replace RW's points. The team has been architected around RW and KD, and with RW gone, it's like a three-legged stool with one of the legs broken. RJ has played well, but Serge and KMart pulling their disappearing act is, well, crushing.

Granted, we shouldn't have put out some of the horrible ball we've seen in this series, but it is what it is. We _should_ have been better than we've shown, but we haven't been. All we can do is write this season off to terrible luck, take our wounds, amnesty Perk, get RW healed and rehabbed, get a third scorer on our bench, and try again next year. 

What happened to RW sucks, but that's sports.

----------


## warreng88

> So any chance the Thunder will fire Brooks? He is a overrated coach


He won 60 games in the regular season... Should the Spurs fire Pop? Should Denver fire George Karl? It would make sense because they both have worse records in the regular season than the Thunder.

----------


## Anonymous.

Last night was pretty much everything you could ask for from our guys. Everyone mostly firing on all cylinders and we end up losing in crunch time.

Late game execution was embarassing to say the least, getting defensive rebounds at the end was pretty much impossible for our guys. Not to complain about officiating, but it was pretty blatant KD was fouled in the second-to-last posession on his shot. Should have been two free throws and put us up and forced Grizzlies to tie instead of us. Oh well, this is no excuse for failing miserably in overtime.



Winning the next 3 in a row is a super long shot, but at least we get to see the team Wednesday night at home. We will be giving standing ovation, win or lose.

----------


## betts

If anyone on this forum has played in or coached in college or the NBA, I will value their opinion about Brooks or any player on the Thunder. If you got cut from your high school basketball team and/or don't have the credentials to coach anything but your kid's YMCA basketball team, please outline your specific complaints with Coach Brooks, followed by the highest level you played or coached basketball.  :Stick Out Tongue:

----------


## BoulderSooner

> If anyone on this forum has played in or coached in college or the NBA, I will value their opinion about Brooks or any player on the Thunder. If you got cut from your high school basketball team and/or don't have the credentials to coach anything but your kid's YMCA basketball team, please outline your specific complaints with Coach Brooks, followed by the highest level you played or coached basketball.


Brooks is a good NBA coach  (great in some areas, getting effort/D/Hustle/motivation and i think player development) 

but the Thunder's system on O seriously breaks down in crunch time.  (this was less of a problem with Russ because he can break down the D)   

in the final 6 min and in over time we go to iso basketball (this works ok against bad defensive teams)  with KD getting the ball at either the top of the key or on the elbow (foul line extended )   against Memphis which has 2 great man defenders (allen and prince) this is makes things very difficult.  the D gets to set and help can come against durant from either direction.  also with our relative lack of tall 3 point shooters (much easier to close out on fisher and jackson) memphis can pack in the D and force durant to shoot off balance shots.    will he normally make more than 2-13   of course he will because he is a great player.  however this is not putting him in a good position to succeed when you do it 15 possessions in a row.  

having durant come off screens to catch and shoot and letting him be an off the ball threat at least some of the time (as we did the other 42 min of the game) is a much better way to play.  Reggie Jackson had 8 ast  and he is capable of running the O .. 

played highschool/AAU and have coached AAU basketball  and of course college inter-murals

----------


## jedicurt

> He won 60 games in the regular season... Should the Spurs fire Pop? Should Denver fire George Karl? It would make sense because they both have worse records in the regular season than the Thunder.


I don't think Brooks is overrated as a coach... i am just curious if he has taken this team as far as he can... which is to say he has done a lot.   we have gone from that 3-29 to a consistent playoff contender.   Sometimes in sports it is time for a change in the locker room to spur new motivation and just shake things up.   Is it time for that in OKC?  and if it is, we should be selective.   Scott Brooks is better than 90% of the coaches we could replace him with.  So it is a matter of 1) is it time to change up the locker room and 2) who could we get to make that next jump?

----------


## dankrutka

I am very critical of Brooks sometimes, but asking if Brooks has reached his ceiling without Westbrook playing is ridiculous.

----------


## warreng88

The Thunder signed Brooks for a four year, $16 million extension beginning this season. He will be here for three more seasons and if he continues to coach a team that makes it to the playoffs and past the first round consistently, he might be here for longer. The people who think Brooks should be fired are the same people who probably think Bob Stoops should be fired for *ONLY* having a 10 win season.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> You must be an OU fan. I predicted OKC would loose in the first round...I was almost right.


What does a OU fan have to do with it?

----------


## MonkeesFan

> He won 60 games in the regular season... Should the Spurs fire Pop? Should Denver fire George Karl? It would make sense because they both have worse records in the regular season than the Thunder.


As for Spurs, no since he won 4 championships, as for the Nuggets since George is a overated coach just like Brooks is

----------


## jedicurt

> I am very critical of Brooks sometimes, but asking if Brooks has reached his ceiling without Westbrook playing is ridiculous.


for the record, i was making this statement back during the regular season when i saw us making the same mistakes that we were making 3 years ago.  Things like bad clock management at the end of games (while he is mostly good, i think there are times that he doesn't maximize usage of the clock.  Things like our team randomly deciding to stop playing any offense at all and just dribbling down, holding onto the ball for 20 seconds and then chunking up a last second 3 to avoid the shot clock expiring (something that you thought would have been coached out of them by now).  Things like crazy substitution patterns in which players that aren't producing on a given night are given way more playing time than those that are or sticking to the substitution patterns like they are in stone regardless of who the other team has on the court.   


This is not something new that i have only been saying since Westbrook went down.  Yes, if i had only come to this conclusion in the past 5 or so games, then you are right, that is ridiculous... but this is not.  

and as for the comment that was made about Brooks being on a four year deal... if the NBA has proved anything, it is that Coaches Contracts are just a minor inconvenience when it comes to the decision of changes coaches.

----------


## td25er

> You don't just desperately try out random options. *Lamb is the worst defensive player on the team* and got totally lost when he played in the regular season. That ship sailed months ago. This is not a realistic option. Moving on..


LOL, Fisher says hi.

----------


## td25er

> If anyone on this forum has played in or coached in college or the NBA, I will value their opinion about Brooks or any player on the Thunder. If you got cut from your high school basketball team and/or don't have the credentials to coach anything but your kid's YMCA basketball team, please outline your specific complaints with Coach Brooks, followed by the highest level you played or coached basketball.



I value Dez Bryant's opinion more than Mike Leach's because he played in the NFL and Leach hasn't coached above college (or even played in college).

----------


## td25er

> The Thunder signed Brooks for a four year, $16 million extension beginning this season. He will be here for three more seasons and if he continues to coach a team that makes it to the playoffs and past the first round consistently, he might be here for longer. The people who think Brooks should be fired are the same people who probably think Bob Stoops should be fired for *ONLY* having a 10 win season.


Stoops is not winning another National Championship.  Not going to happen.  Some people are content with contending year after year for league titles.  Some want more.  Brooks is a good coach.  The players love him and he's a good motivator.  He's limited, though.  He doesn't know how to maximize Durant and WB.  He should win 65 games with those 2.

----------


## Bill Robertson

> I value Dez Bryant's opinion more than Mike Leach's because he played in the NFL and Leach hasn't coached above college (or even played in college).





> Stoops is not winning another National Championship.  Not going to happen.  Some people are content with contending year after year for league titles.  Some want more.  Brooks is a good coach.  The players love him and he's a good motivator.  He's limited, though.  He doesn't know how to maximize Durant and WB.  He should win 65 games with those 2.


Well, we know where your college affiliation lies, don't we! LOL

----------


## dankrutka

> Stoops is not winning another National Championship.  Not going to happen.


I wonder if Nebraska fans thought Osborne was going to ever beat OU or win a national championship? It took him like 30 years to win titles. People like you would have fired him before he won the program 3 titles. I'm sure you would have wanted Swizer fired right before the 1985 title too. 

Stoops may not win another title, but declaring that there is zero chance that he will considering he has led maybe the most consistently high level program in college football over the last 14 years is asinine. Just make your case, don't overstate it.

----------


## dankrutka

> He doesn't know how to maximize Durant and WB.  He should win 65 games with those 2.


Brooks has his flaws, but you realize that KD and Westbrook are the most productive offensive combo in the NBA, right? Kind of hurts your argument.

----------


## Anonymous.

Tonight is the night, does the Thunder roll over and accept defeat? Or do we pull out a W and fly back to MEM with a mission to crush hopes?

Winning game 6 sounds almost impossible as the series stands. I am sure if we force a g6, the Grizzlies will pull off a game 5 Heat performance from the finals last year (where everyone and their dog can make anything).


At least we get to see our team at home for possibly the last time (this post season) tonight.


8:30 on TNT

----------


## Bill Robertson

I hope we can have the intensity, and ability to hit shots, that we had in game 1. If so we will at least be going back to MEM for a game 6. I don't see us winning the series. Coming back from 1-3 has only been done something like 8 out of 211 times. But I want to us to go down fighting.

----------


## Bellaboo

> Tonight is the night, does the Thunder roll over and accept defeat? Or do we pull out a W and fly back to MEM with a mission to crush hopes?
> 
> Winning game 6 sounds almost impossible as the series stands. I am sure if we force a g6, the Grizzlies will pull off a game 5 Heat performance from the finals last year (where everyone and their dog can make anything).
> 
> 
> At least we get to see our team at home for possibly the last time (this post season) tonight.
> 
> 
> 8:30 on TNT


If it goes to a game 6, I'm hoping for a re-run from 2 years ago, when Memphis came out old, tired and ragged at the end of the series.

----------


## Anonymous.

Marc Gasol ate speghetti warehouse for lunch today. Maybe it will come back to haunt him by game time.

----------


## MonkeesFan

Get ready to see the Thunder get eliminated tonight

----------


## okcboomer

> They better be pumped. This game is almost necessary.
> 
> 
> Also, cute attempt. .


See how silly it sounds to suggest they aren't pumped up to play in a playoff game and then suggesting that's why they got beat?

----------


## dankrutka

> Get ready to see the Thunder get eliminated tonight


I haven't seen you make a quality post... Maybe ever. How about instead of just throwing out baseless opinions/assertions you make a decent contribution to the dialogue. For example, provide a reason for your statement. 

The Thunder could get eliminated tonight, but I'd argue they're more likely to stave off elimination for at least one game. There's a lot of pride in the locker room and the crowd should be energized. We'll see. Hopefully, its not like game 5 of the Finals last year.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> I haven't seen you make a quality post... Maybe ever. How about instead of just throwing out baseless opinions/assertions you make a decent contribution to the dialogue. For example, provide a reason for your statement. 
> 
> The Thunder could get eliminated tonight, but I'd argue they're more likely to stave off elimination for at least one game. There's a lot of pride in the locker room and the crowd should be energized. We'll see. Hopefully, its not like game 5 of the Finals last year.


Sure, here is my reason that the Thunder will get eliminated: No Russell Westbrook

----------


## Dustin

It's over folks.  Not even 2nd half and it's over.  

Maybe next season, Thunder.

----------


## Easy180

So we went from damn we need Harden to nah don't need him to damn we need Harden

----------


## SoonerBoy18

Sad the season had to end like this. I said a couple months ago that Memphis was a team the every body on the Thunder and even the fans really despise. I rooted against the Spurs all season and I hope they take them down!

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> So we went from damn we need Harden to nah don't need him to damn we need Harden


We need Westbrook, We need scoring Down low, all we do is take jumpers!

----------


## dankrutka

> Sure, here is my reason that the Thunder will get eliminated: No Russell Westbrook


Proving my point.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> So we went from damn we need Harden to nah don't need him to damn we need Harden


Harden have not done ****, he sucked in the Finals and sucked against the Thunder in the first round, Harden would have not made a difference

----------


## MonkeesFan

> It's over folks.  Not even 2nd half and it's over.  
> 
> Maybe next season, Thunder.


Giving up on the team already after the Thunder is behind 2 points?

----------


## Jake

Patrick Beverly for series MVP.

----------


## zookeeper

Silence on this board. Either way, what a finish!

----------


## zookeeper

Ok, you hate to say it, but how many millions do you pay Durant to make THAT shot? I know, they wouldn't be there without him. BUT.

Great year Thunder. NEXT YEAR!

----------


## MonkeesFan

> Proving my point.


Told you that the Thunder will get eliminated, now the Thunder can watch the rest of the playoffs on the couch at home just like my Magic! Enjoy the loss!  :Big Grin:

----------


## Dustin

> Giving up on the team already after the Thunder is behind 2 points?


Yup.  You could tell they checked out.  I was right

Excited for next year!

----------


## zookeeper

Barkley is spot-on in the postgame wrap-up on TNT. Thunder's a great team, but they miss a big man when the jumpers don't fall and the Grizzlies wouldn't have lost to an OKC team WITH Westbroook. They were playing better basketball than the Thunder before Westbrook got hurt. The match-up either way belonged to the Grizzlies THIS YEAR. But he said in the long run the Thunder will be winning for years because of their youth. He again said we just need a big man. Kenny Smith agreed with him on just about everything. Interesting thoughts from them all that nobody really knew how good Harden was going to be as a starter, they made the right move in the trade and Barkley said to remember that that trade came with some great draft picks coming up. But this year? It was going to be the Grizzlies no matter what. 

Ready for summer camp and the '13-'14 season. Thunder up!

----------


## Jake

The contract Perkins has is atrocious. Can't believe they're paying him that much money.

----------


## warreng88

> Told you that the Thunder will get eliminated, now the Thunder can watch the rest of the playoffs on the couch at home just like my Magic! Enjoy the loss!


Can you do us all a favor and not make any jerk remarks? Some of us are frustrated with the loss and are mourning the end of the great season. Thanks.

----------


## warreng88

> The contract Perkins has is atrocious. Can't believe they're paying him that much money.


It made sense at the time because he was a great defensive stopper and we already had so many offensive options that we didn't need him to be an offensive prowess. Now, with the loss of Harden, no Westbrook, Serge struggling for z lot of games, we miss those offensive capabilities.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> Can you do us all a favor and not make any jerk remarks? Some of us are frustrated with the loss and are mourning the end of the great season. Thanks.


Why be frustrated? You should have expected that the Thunder is done without Westbrook

----------


## SoonerBoy18

> Why be frustrated? You should have expected that the Thunder is done without Westbrook


Go away!

----------


## MonkeesFan

> Go away!


No

----------


## dankrutka

> No


Not cool, dude. Bad timing. Wrong place. C'mon.

----------


## MonkeesFan

> Not cool, dude. Bad timing. Wrong place. C'mon.


They will get over it after they stop crying after the loss today

----------


## betts

There is always at least one 13 year old on any sports thread or forum.  It's the price of having one. It's pretty obvious who the 13 year old is here.

Tough loss, but we didn't fold despite losing one of our superstars. We could have won any or all of the games we lost. We weren't going to win it all this year regardless.  Its Miami's championship to lose. Reggie Jackson got some superb experience during these playoffs, if there's a silver lining to be looked for.

----------


## okcboomer

Does everyone now understand just how important Westbrook is to this team?

----------


## warreng88

For anyone who cares, you can go to Monkees profile and hide all of his posts. Problem solved. 

Now, Perk played an absolutely atrocious game last night, as did mostly everybody. But, if we amnesty him, who do we get to take his place? We need an elite center with the ability to score as well as defend the paint. But Dwight Howards and Javale Mcgees are hard to come by. Thoughts?

----------


## venture

> For anyone who cares, you can go to Monkees profile and hide all of his posts. Problem solved. 
> 
> Now, Perk played an absolutely atrocious game last night, as did mostly everybody. But, if we amnesty him, who do we get to take his place? We need an elite center with the ability to score as well as defend the paint. But Dwight Howards and Javale Mcgees are hard to come by. Thoughts?



Ding ding ding. Best way to get rid of a troll, just put them on ignore and they won't get the responses they want. Also the report post feature is there for a reason.  :Smile: 

Tough loss for the fans. Things will get better. At least that's what I tell myself every year after OU's bowl game. :-P

----------


## Anonymous.

What a great season!

I am proud of the way the team performed with losing their star PG in the middle of the playoffs. Nobody was claiming OKC was still going to the Finals. MIA is tornado of domination right now, I don't see anyone (especially now the Grizz) beating them.

Barely losing 4 games to Memphis with the condition our team was in, is truly respectable.
It was cool to stay in the arena until the team walked out and chanting OKC. You could tell the players really appreciated the fans as they high-fived everyone they could through the tunnel.

At least I get to save money not buying more playoff tickets the rest of the way.


On to next season. Russell comes back. Perkins most likely is gone. Martin is probably gone. A lot of cool new things will be in place for next season. I am excited.

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## BoulderSooner

> For anyone who cares, you can go to Monkees profile and hide all of his posts. Problem solved. 
> 
> Now, Perk played an absolutely atrocious game last night, as did mostly everybody. But, if we amnesty him, who do we get to take his place? We need an elite center with the ability to score as well as defend the paint. But Dwight Howards and Javale Mcgees are hard to come by. Thoughts?


javale mcgee is a massive head case and only plays hard about half the time ..

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## BoulderSooner

> What a great season!
> 
> I am proud of the way the team performed with losing their star PG in the middle of the playoffs. Nobody was claiming OKC was still going to the Finals. MIA is tornado of domination right now, I don't see anyone (especially now the Grizz) beating them.
> 
> Barely losing 4 games to Memphis with the condition our team was in, is truly respectable.
> It was cool to stay in the arena until the team walked out and chanting OKC. You could tell the players really appreciated the fans as they high-fived everyone they could through the tunnel.
> 
> At least I get to save money not buying more playoff tickets the rest of the way.
> 
> ...



i very much agree with most of what you posted .. i am proud of our team and loved the growth we saw from reggie 

so where do we go from here .. (numbers are from hoops hype/usatoday)

this years cap was 58mil and tax level was 70.3 mil 

under contract for next season 

KD 18.7 mil 
Rus 14.6 mil 
Serge 12.2 mil
Perk 8.4 mil 
Thabo 3.9 mil
Collison 2.5 mil 
Lamb 2.1 mil
Reggie 1.3 mil
Jones 1.0 mil 
Thabeet .9 mil

Martin Fisher Orton Liggins are free agents that we can resign even over the cap 

plus we have cap holds for the 2 first round picks 

total under contract 66.1 mil and we have to have at least 13 players under contract per NBA rules Cap next year will be around 60 mil with the tax line around 72 mil (these are set in july) 

so what does this mean?? 

if we don't amnesty Perk we will be 6 mil over the cap  (actually more because the 12th pick makes 1.7 mil +/- 20% and the 29. makes .88 mil +/- 20%)

so our options are to resign Martin for whatever we want because of his Bird rights     
we can resign Fisher Orton and Liggins to 120% of this years salary 
and we will have our MLE (mid level exception) which is 5 mil     

keep in mind that with the draft picks we will be at 68 mil and then with 1 or 2 other players we will be very very close to the tax line which our owners have not shown that they will play 

if we amnesty perk (keep in mind we still have to pay him he just doesn't count against the cap) his 8.4 mil comes off the cap  and we would be about 2 mil under going into the draft 

this doesn't change our options much   

after the draft we would be at the cap  and have our MLE to work with   and would have to decide if we want to resign Martin 


so pay role with Perk  IMHO we don't resign Martin or use the MLE and we have a 72mil dollar pay role just under the cap 

if we amnesty Perk we could either resign Martin this puts us between 68 and 72 mil (depending on how much martin would sign for 8-12 he will get 8 from some one) but puts the owners on the hook for between 76-80 mil (or a little less depending on how much perk signs for elsewhere) 

if we amnesty Perk and use the MLE on whomever (big guy or wing)   we will be at 65 mil or so and the owners will be on the hook for 73 mil (or a little less depending on how much perk signs for elsewhere) 

bottom line   we will return Perk or Martin or MLE new guy    very unlikely 2 of the 3 

so unless we make a major trade our team will not be much different

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## AP

Oklahoma City Thunder lose to the Memphis Grizzlies - Grantland

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## Martin

from usa today:  Reminder: Oklahoma City Thunder fans are the best | For The Win

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## dankrutka

> The contract Perkins has is atrocious. Can't believe they're paying him that much money.


He's getting paid too much, but atrocious is a little strong. There are worse contracts and centers are almost always overpaid. It's definitely not a good contract though.

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## dankrutka

> For anyone who cares, you can go to Monkees profile and hide all of his posts. Problem solved.


Thanks. I had forgotten how to do that.

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## dankrutka

> Perkins most likely is gone.


Perkins will almost definitely be back. I'd put it at 95%. He'd have to get traded or amnestied. Who is going to trade for him and his contract? No one. And he is not getting amnestied. You'd still have to pay him and then also find a replacement. The better solution is for Brooks to use him less and in appropriate situations. The team could definitely go small like Miami did this year.

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## dankrutka

Good breakdown, BOULDERSOONER. Like I said above, amnestying Perk serves almost no purpose. We wouldn't have the money to go get anyone that really would be good enough to be worth it. We just need to use him less. I'd like to see us go small more with KD at the 4 and up Collison's minutes. \

I think Kevin Martin will be back if he is willing to... wait for it, "sacrifice." The Thunder won't offer him market value. I think they should offer him about 6 million per year. He's been on losing teams his entire career. Is he willing to sacrifice to stay? I hope so. He was very efficient this year. He's not good enough to be a #2 on a title team, but he's good enough to a #3 or 4 option, which he would be with the Thunder. 

The big question is what we're going to with all our young assets (rookies and draft picks). Are going to give Lamb or PJ3 real minutes next year? What about our 2 first round draft picks? When does Tibor Pleiss come over (I'd say after next season)? We have a bunch of assets, but it's unclear what we're going to do with them... That's the big mystery to me. 

Finally, our guys are young and should continue to improve. Reggie should be better from the experience he gained. Serge still has a lot of room to grow. Could he come back with some post moves? People often forget to consider that teams can improve if they're young just by maturation and hard work. Hopefully OKC's improvement in this area is enough to not even need other major moves.

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## BoulderSooner

IMHO we do not amnesty perk and we don't resign Martin .. 

Reggie proved that he can be a very good bench player and Imho he will lead the second unit with Lamb making the big jump   and perry jones/our #12 pick  getting some run

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## dankrutka

> IMHO we do not amnesty perk and we don't resign Martin .. 
> 
> Reggie proved that he can be a very good bench player and Imho he will lead the second unit with Lamb making the big jump   and perry jones/our #12 pick  getting some run


I generally agree, but I think they'll give Martin an offer well below market value and see if he'll bite. He probably won't, but it's worth a shot. If he leaves then you have half a season to see the young guys play before determining if something needs to be added at the trade deadline. 

It's important for everyone to remember that the motto of the Thunder's front office is sustainability. They won't sign people to long term bad contracts. Another Perk signing won't happen.

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## HOT ROD

First off, congratulations to the Oklahoma City Thunder for a wonderful season. Our team has shown consistent improvement season by season and it was a great year to be a fan from the Pac NW. OKC is my favourite major league team and I ordered NBA LeaguePass just so I could see EVERY OKC game, even DVRing them to ensure I could watch when live wasn't an option.

Now, here is some criticism that I hope will be received as constructive. Again, I watched most of OKC's games live and all eventually and I have some strong opinions on the team and why we were knocked out rather quickly.

1) obviously, this team was built around Russell Westbrook. He is my most favourite NBA player and I absolutely hate Skip Bayless or whatever his name is and other pundits who claimed Russell should have taken a back seat and let KD shine. Honestly, KD is a superstar but that doesn't make him the #1 person on the team. Russell is and these playoffs proved it. Russell is not a backup to KD, instead, Russell IS OKC. OKC proved it could win without KD but it proved just now that it can NOT win without Russell. Take that Skip!

2) while I like Scott Brooks, most other elite teams out coach him. He reacts way too slow (calling time outs after OKC blows leads and gets behind by double digits) and he pulls people who are shooting/defending well way too quickly. These are game-time aspects which I absolutely hated took place, this along with his persistence to play Kendrick Perkins who was always a constant net-negative to the team. I have more to say about Brooks and the coaching but I will save it for another point as this point should stand by itself in my opinion.

3) James Harden trade was a bust. I am not one of those bandwagon people who are just now seeing this was not a good deal for OKC, I said it all along and was shocked that OKC traded him but kept Kendrick Perkins. I'll get to Perkins in another point. Clearly, if OKC still had Harden then the three way tandem could have been retained. What OKC should have done was write plays specifically for Harden and get him in off the bench early; having Harden at the 1, Westbrook at the 2, Durant at the 3, Ibaka at the 4, and Collison/Thabeet at the 5. Playing that lineup for consistent minutes after starting would be unstoppable because you have playmakers at every position (provided you also work with Collison and Thabeet on how to post up and dunk) and you have arguably the #1 NBA players at the 1, 2, and 3. I personally do not think coaches did anything good for Harden which is why he had to create on his own when they subbed him for Westbrook AND Durant mostly during the 4th quarter. Yes Harden shined but that was due to his athletic ability and not because of him being an integral component of the team. What a miss, which was surely highlighted during these playoffs and earlier.

4) OKC should have gotten rid of Perkins and use some of that money to pay (and keep) Harden. Perkins is a net negative for OKC, he does nothing for the team positive. The guy can't rebound, he cant low post, he can't jump shoot, he can't even dunk the ball much less hold on to it if you pass it to him. Not to mention the constant hard passing and turnovers he causes because of that, it's like the guy is another player for the other team (6 to 4). This was also proven during the Mem-OKC series which was supposedly when Perkins would show his worth to the team. We saw his worth - NOTHING as OKC did better when he was warming the bench. I understand why he was acquired initially and back then we needed him instead of Jeff Green. But that was then and this is now, the guy does nothing now to help the team. We should have given him only a two year contract and got rid of him and got a cheaper center who is willing to play for a champion contender. Perkins has got to go, the man is not worth $9-million.

5) lack of coaching and preparation. This was proven almost every OKC game when we played an elite team or a team with an elite player (Cleveland), OKC showed up not prepared. This is the fault of coaching who didn't have OKC ready to play. Take for instance the Memphis games, there was no analysis on how to stop Zbo and Gasshaul, yet "Inside the NBA" broke them down quite nicely and effectively after the series was over. Why was Ibaka and Perkins falling for Zbo's backing down to the right (when he would then spin left to his shooting hand and lay the ball in since that would be open)? Why not back him right and force him to shoot right? Why were they letting Gasshaul shoot the mid-range jumpers (which he never missed)? Why not make him take shots right in the paint where he is less effective? Why were OKC players double-teaming, leaving one of those guards open for threes (which they hit)? Why does OKC not have a Zone defense? Why does OKC coaches only rely on 'shots falling' to win games but no plays developed to move players around so somebody could even be open for a shot to fall - particularly an inside shot. Speaking of that, why was OKC ONLY taking outside shots to begin with? why did it take OKC the 3rd quarter of Game 5 to finally get inside pass and lay-in between Durant and Collison? None of that was due to coaching, it was just things OKC figured out on the fly, and you can't blame that on Westbrook but all of the blame should be on Scott Brooks and the coaching staff. They should have been scouting teams before they play and should have developed defense to stop a team and offenses to exploit THEIR weaknesses. 

Honestly, even without Westbrook there is no reason OKC should have lost that series. The games were within a few points either way and OKC should have had the composure to close out the games. It is very clear OKC had no idea what they were doing, despite having some time (during breaks in scheduling) to scout teams they would play. OKC coaches depend too much on OKC's athleticism, which IS the best in the NBA. But other teams know this and their coaches scout - ala Memphis, they knew exactly what OKC players do, where they would be and how to defend every last player save Westbrook. Memphis's coaching staff won that series and OKC's coaching staff let us down. Seriously, I give Scott Brooks one more year to figure this out, if he comes back with "well, our shots just weren't falling" or "so and so had an off night" instead of "I got out-coached, but I will be prepared next time.... " then I think it is time to send him into the sunset and go get Byron Scott or somebody who knows how to draw up plays that exploit the opponent.

6) KD. I like him and he is a superstar, but this playoffs proved why he should NOT have been the MVP and that HE was riding Westbrook's coattails and not the other way around. Why was KD constantly trying to shoot jumpers when he should have been trying to take it to the hole (as in the last play of the season, which likely would have given us a chance at least to win the game)? KD shines when the team/Westbrook is doing well, but he fails when the team does not do well (or when Westbrook is out, as we see). For him to get to the next level, he needs to grow up and learn how to vary his shots, not just keep chunking up prayers hoping they will go in.

7) team immaturity. OKC is still very immature. If OKC scores a point, they get so excited yet forget to defend (and Memphis runs down a fastbreak counter score AND one). If OKC (as in KD, Perkins, Ibaka) tries to score but doesn't, there is POUTING and staredowns while the other team runs a fastbreak for an uncontested. This crap has got to stop! I understand the refs did give Memphis preferential treatment during game 4 and other times, but if OKC just cuts out half of our mistakes we would win inspite of the refs or Memphis's two big guys. Can OKC please grow up and stop pouting so much, get back on defense when a score does or does not take place - other teams get back on OKC, it is no excuse since OKC is most athletic of all.

8) Why the heck did OKC not retain DFish? Why did we resign him so late? Why did we let him go in the first place? This guy brings championship leadership to OKC in a way that Perkins could NEVER. I was so upset when Brooks sat DFish in game 4 after he almost single handedly brought the team out of the dolldroms, only for OKC to then blow the lead in the 3rd quarter and then he calls on a now COLD DFish (or KMart). Trump this up to coaching again, we need some consistency and I'd like to see DFish signed for an entire year to get us to the level we need to be.

9) Coaching (again). I remembered one more point which I think needs its own number. 3rd quarter blows. Teams know that regardless of how much OKC is up, that they can catch up in the 3rd quarter because Scott Brooks will send out K Perkins to significant minutes and the team can watch film of the first half to make adjustments and exploit Perk. I am so sick of that. Why not do something different? Why be so predictable and gullible? Too many times OKC blew leads due to coach bringing out the obvious who cant move, cant jump, cant rebound, cant jumpshoot, cant dunk, cant pass, and cant catch a pass without losing it. I mean, damn; Perkins and Coach Brooks lost OKC this series - plain and simple. This is something that needs to be corrected, otherwise I'd like to see Brooks escorted out of OKC as the head coach at least, and bring in somebody with some ba**s who knows how to adapt to situations QUICKLY and draw up plays that exploit the other team.

OK, sorry for the rant but I had to get this off my chest. I hope people will not be homers with this "well, at least we got to the playoffs 2nd round, we improved over last year, blah blah". OKC has what it takes to at least have made it past Memphis and given SA a good series WITHOUT Westbrook. Yet if you look at the coaching (or lack thereof) AND Perkins, as well as some dumb moves by Durant and Ibaka's lack of low post - this is why OKC barely lost the series, yes barely!

We have to fix these mistakes, otherwise, this will be the end result regardless of Westbrook's return; because teams now know how to take OKC out of their game since there is no variation and OKC shows up unprepared for them!

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## BoulderSooner

Don't even know where to start.    But I will go with Westbrook not at point = fail

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## dankrutka

The analysis of KD's game is way off base. KD played some of the best ball of any player in playoffs history and we actually have people posting that he has been riding RWO's coat tails and is not a legitimate MVP candidate. The Thunder fell apart, but KD was amazing this playoffs save one bad game. His numbers are off the charts. Goodness. I can't believe someone who "watched every game" could come to such asinine conclusions about KD. The distance between him and the 3rd best player in the league is pretty wide. 

Brooks is not a great Xs and Os coach. Perk is bad offensively. Everyone knows that stuff. 

I've always thought the Harden trade was a mistake and there were ways to keep him for at least 2 seasons. 

Okay. That's about all I can get to from that novel of a post.

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## Easy180

No time to panic folks...Best record in the toughest conference...Just lost a top 7 player early in the playoffs and lost to a 5 seed in the 2nd round of the playoffs

Solid year and definitely enjoyable

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## SoonerBoy18

> Does everyone now understand just how important Westbrook is to this team?


He can take all the shots he wants next season and I wont say anything negative lol.

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## dankrutka

> No time to panic folks...Best record in the toughest conference...Just lost a top 7 player early in the playoffs and lost to a 5 seed in the 2nd round of the playoffs
> 
> Solid year and definitely enjoyable


Indeed. I have concerns, but the Thunder are without a doubt a top 5 team in the league next season.

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## HOT ROD

Im not sold on KD as you are; 

Far too many jumpshots and not enough basketball IQ. If you need a reference, recall the last Thunder offensive play of the last game, and the game before that. ... I completely disagree with your opinion that KD played the best of any player in this year's playoffs - not even close. It was ridiculous of him to have 5-21 on an elimination game (when most of those 21 shots were jumpshots and not enough to the hole. ...)

Yep, I am someone who watched every game - if you disagree then maybe my reception up here in Seattle isn't as good as yours because that is what I and my wife observed. I did give KD props as #2 in the league, but I also clearly pointed out why he is not in the same league as LeBron and it is no surprise KD did not get the MVP because he is not there yet. Apparently KD agrees with me in that he said he has lots to improve on and I know exactly what that is.

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## Bill Robertson

Hot Rod, maybe your reception isn't so good. No, KD isn't as good without Westbrook. They play off each other. Neither would be as good without the other. Jordan would not have been as good without Pippen, LeBron would not have be as good without Wade and the list goes on and on. You bring up two plays KD flubbed. OK he didn't have a good game 5. What he did do was lead the average points per game in the playoffs with 30.8 points. 3.1 points better than number 2 Carmelo Anthony. He hit 45.5% from the field and 83% from the line. I'll take that any game. He pretty much carried the team since except for a few spots Martin, Ibaka and Fisher couldn't find the basket.

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## TaoMaas

KD was worn down to a nub by this last game.  Trying to judge him by the last game or two is crazy.

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## dankrutka

After Westbrook went down KD's production went up as he maintained his efficiency. You're all focusing on his only bad game of the postseason because it was his last one. You could definitely make a case that KD has the highest basketball IQ in the NBA. He gets to the rim with consistency. 

All your points are anecdotal, HOT ROD. KD's numbers speak for themselves. Look at his PER and advanced stats for the playoffs. KD has had the best playoffs of anyone. The team suffered from Westbrook's absence, but KD stepped up big time. The problem was that our other players didn't.

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## OKCisOK4me

If Perkins is amnesty'd, I've been researching for the last hour or so, who would replace him...based on their current salaries and PER (Player Efficiency Ratings) lowest to highest via PER rankings.  They are as follows:

Elton Brand 15.19
Marreese Speights 17.35
Carl Landry 17.60
Samuel Dalembert 18.60 
Tiago Splitter 18.72
J.J. Hickson 19.71
Paul Millsap 19.89
Andray Blatche 21.98

As far as PER ratings go, Kendrick Perkins is currently rated at 8.20, Kevin Durant at 28.35 and our favorite, Lebron James at 31.67, to put these guys on a scale.

Blatch is currently the lowest paid and Millsap the highest paid.  What would it take to bring one of these guys in?  

Don't get me wrong, I love Perk but if he goes the way of amnesty then these are the candidates I would like to see brought in.  I hope Presti would be on the same page but I'll let him judge the intrinsic values of each player to decide who might be the perfect fit for the 2013-14 Thunder season.

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## Mississippi Blues

What I've gathered from the Brooklyn games I've watched, Blatch is a pretty solid player.

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## Teo9969

> If Perkins is amnesty'd, I've been researching for the last hour or so, who would replace him...based on their current salaries and PER (Player Efficiency Ratings) lowest to highest via PER rankings.  They are as follows:
> 
> Elton Brand 15.19
> Marreese Speights 17.35
> Carl Landry 17.60
> Samuel Dalembert 18.60 
> Tiago Splitter 18.72
> J.J. Hickson 19.71
> Paul Millsap 19.89
> ...


I sincerely doubt Perkins gets amnestied, but I still think OKC should use their MLE to go after another Big. If OKC can't nab Greg Oden, I'd go with Splitter (though I think SA is going to re-sign him), and I like what I've seen from Blatche. I think bringing in any of those guys gives us what we need off the bench, but any of those guys could easily get an offer that is more than we can sign.

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## dankrutka

Perk is not getting amnestied and I don't think they'll go after anyone in the offseason either. I think they're going to see what our rookies can do to help the team, but we're not going into the luxury tax ( at least early in the season, maybe at trade deadline) for Blatch or Splittter. It's more likely the team just tries to roll with Ibaka at center more than anything else. The team is likely to try to grow within first.

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## Teo9969

> Perk is not getting amnestied and I don't think they'll go after anyone in the offseason either. I think they're going to see what our rookies can do to help the team, but we're not going into the luxury tax ( at least early in the season, maybe at trade deadline) for Blatch or Splittter. It's more likely the team just tries to roll with Ibaka at center more than anything else. The team is likely to try to grow within first.


OKC will be really really close to the tax just signing their draft picks. That doesn't factor in a contract for Kevin Martin that at the very minimum would be ~$6.5/year, but probably closer to $8.5/$9.

The MLE is use it or lose it...And if we don't use it this year, then the level of contract we can sign will drop from $5M to $3M.

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## warreng88

Not sure where to put this, so I'll put it in a few places: Kevin Durant just donated a million dollars for tornado relief.

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## td25er

> Not sure where to put this, so I'll put it in a few places: Kevin Durant just donated a million dollars for tornado relief.


Awesome!!!!!!

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## king183

KD donated $1 million and Perkins, his wife, and Thabo have been collecting donations and organizing relief efforts of their own in OKC.  Amazing team we have.

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## Bellaboo

> KD donated $1 million and Perkins, his wife, and Thabo have been collecting donations and organizing relief efforts of their own in OKC.  Amazing team we have.


KD gave his pledge to the Red Cross Tornado fund.

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## king183

> KD gave his pledge to the Red Cross Tornado fund.


Russell Westbrook just matched KD's pledge.

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## ljbab728

The Thunder organization also donated $1M.

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## HOT ROD

Yep, you keep the faith dan - seems san antonio isnt having okc/kd's issues with memphis

----------


## betts

> Yep, you keep the faith dan - seems san antonio isnt having okc/kd's issues with memphis


They aren't missing their point guard.

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## Easy180

> They aren't missing their point guard.


You mean a top 8 player in the league, most athletic player in the league?  No big loss, hardly phase a team lol

----------


## Plutonic Panda

Y! SPORTS Hope KD stays here in OKC, people commenting on this article seem to think he might move.

----------


## OKCisOK4me

He's one of two 5 year players...the other being Westbrook...that are currently under contract. Don't read into the wishes of some jacks outside of the organization.

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## Bellaboo

> Y! SPORTS Hope KD stays here in OKC, people commenting on this article seem to think he might move.


Fans of the other 29 teams are in fantasy land wishing they could get KD.....Last year I was reading a Phoenix blog and they were saying they'd have KD on their team in 2 years.....right

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## adaniel

The only thing worse than Yahoo! Sports is the commenters on Yahoo! Sports. I wouldn't take either seriously.

This move probably has more to do with increasing his brand via endorsements and what not, plus a plethora of behind the scenes things, than anything dealing with a departure from OKC.

----------


## skanaly

In 2010-11 Season KD signed an 8 year contract...so we have him for atleast another 6 years, the Thunder will get a lot accomplished in that time period

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## warreng88

> In 2010-11 Season KD signed an 8 year contract...so we have him for atleast another 6 years, the Thunder will get a lot accomplished in that time period


Not sure where you got that from, but KD signed a 5 year contract that started in the 2011-2012 season, so we have him through the 2015-2016 season, another three seasons.

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## dankrutka

> In 2010-11 Season KD signed an 8 year contract...so we have him for atleast another 6 years, the Thunder will get a lot accomplished in that time period


The longest contract you can sign in the NBA is 5 years.

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## Laramie

Yes we are going to have Kevin Durant around until 2015-16.  You are correct, the maxium an NBA team can sign a player is five years. 

Has anyone heard about any of the developments on Kevin Durant's restaurant?

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## ljbab728

> Yes we are going to have Kevin Durant around until 2015-16.  You are correct, the maxium an NBA team can sign a player is five years. 
> 
> Has anyone heard about any of the developments on Kevin Durant's restaurant?


Kevin Durant Restaurant - OKCTalk

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## Laramie

Oklahoma City Thunder's ranking among (2013 year) major professional sports franchises (MLB, NFL, NBA, NHL):

1. Memphis Grizzlies
 2. San Antoino Spurs
 3. Indiana Pacers
 4. Oklahoma City Thunder
 5. Green Bay Packers
 6. Arizona Diamonbacks
 7. Pittsburgh Penguins
 8. Anaheim Ducks
 9. Ottawa Senators
 10. Baltimore Ravens

2012 Oklahoma City Thunder ranked No.1.

Ultimate Team Rankings - All Sports - SportsNation - ESPN

Can anyone figure this out? These figures don't add up using the catagories. Plus, the select market drop down menu doesn't list Oklahoma City as a market. *We were lost some years ago by a popular map company as a state and now Oklahoma City as a market doesn't exist on ESPN's market menu.*

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