Well, I guess that's something... sort of.

Here's their take:

Signs Point To Oklahoma City Thunder As NBA Team Name - Sports News Story - KOCO Oklahoma City (http://www.koco.com/sports/16925692/detail.html)

Man, this is kind of an easy news cycle for the locals. Any little nugget they can find or dream up about the name and they put it out there.

I honestly think at this point that they would interrupt a weather advisory to give us some news on the name.

Just heard Mark Rodgers report this on The Sports Animal.

He said that they checked all possible nicknames and "Thunder" was the only registered to that company mentioned in the link in the previous post.

He also said that a source confirmed to him the "Thunder" nickname.

Take it for what it's worth....

mann, that's a female sounding WNBA team name....
Well, the dream had to end at some point....
I knew we would wack this up!!!!

Go Thunder!!!
May it roll over honky-tonk Okie Dokie plains.
Could they have picked a less-threatening name?
Oh yeah, and I bet the colors are pink, lilac, and fuschia.

I wonder is the mascot will be a fluffy cloud? We'll still just have to wait and see.. it's not the worst but it's not the best either. I could have lived with the Thunderbirds.. but I'm not feeling Thunder. Oh well, when I become a billionaire I guess I can name my own team what I want. The Vipers

Thunder would be a very solid choice. When put up against all the others, it stands out the most, is relevant to the area, and is NOT hickish in any form. Kudos to the PBC if this is true. Can't wait for November.

If that's it - I like it! It is certainly marketable. Can't you hear the deep, deep voice at the end of a commercial:
THUNDERRRR BASSSKETBALLLLL.

Could they have picked a less-threatening name?

I dunno, I can think of some less threatening names like the Heat, Magic, Lakers, Nets, Knicks, Jazz... just to name a few. ;)

At least Thunder scares children and small animals.

Could they have picked a less-threatening name?

Why does the name need to be threatening?

If that's it - I like it! It is certainly marketable. Can't you hear the deep, deep voice at the end of a commercial:
THUNDERRRR BASSSKETBALLLLL.

They need to get Don LaFontaine to do those commercials.

They need to get Don LaFontaine to do those commercials.


That would be cool. Let's just hope it's not Ben Buckland, OKC Blazers fame. ;)

They need to get Don LaFontaine to do those commercials.


Is he the movie trailer guy who was faceless until the Geico commercials? If so, you are right on the money - and he'd be worth every penny. Can't you hear that out of his pipes?

I don't know. I'm suspicious. This could be a clever diversion. Anyone can cybersquat. Who's to say that the ownership group didn't make a deal a long time ago for a URL and will unveil the whole thing at a presser? Maybe they even squatted on an obvious URL and made it look like "just some dude" registered it? How clever would that be?

I'll give Mark credit: This is decent evidence, but it seems a little too obvious.

Is he the movie trailer guy who was faceless until the Geico commercials? If so, you are right on the money - and he'd be worth every penny. Can't you hear that out of his pipes?

Yup...that's him!

"In world, where tall people fly thru the air dunking orange, round balls with relative ease...."

:tiphat:

Is he the movie trailer guy who was faceless until the Geico commercials? If so, you are right on the money - and he'd be worth every penny. Can't you hear that out of his pipes?

That's the one.

ZJMGS7l0wT8

I don't know. I'm suspicious. This could be a clever diversion. Anyone can cybersquat. Who's to say that the ownership group didn't make a deal a long time ago for a URL and will unveil the whole thing at a presser? Maybe they even squatted on an obvious URL and made it look like "just some dude" registered it? How clever would that be?

I'll give Mark credit: This is decent evidence, but it seems a little too obvious.


I'm always the skeptic. But the domain wasn't officially registered until July 10th, and it's the only "OKC" domain registered by that same company that is the registrar on record for nba.com

Also, fwiw, okcthunderbasketball.NET is also registered by the same group.

I'm always the skeptic. But the domain wasn't officially registered until July 10th, and it's the only "OKC" domain registered by that same company that is the registrar on record for nba.com

Also, fwiw, okcthunderbasketball.NET is also registered by the same group.

Plus, from looking around their website, it doesn't look like they register for the general public - but only for signed-up corporate clients.

$100 million dollars to anyone, ANYONE who can draw a "thunder" for the fine people here at OKCTalk.
I'll be waiting.....

edit: I know, they were setting up the cheerleaders website name.
That's what it was.

$100 million dollars to anyone, ANYONE who can draw a "thunder" for the fine people here at OKCTalk.
I'll be waiting.....

edit: I know, they were setting up the cheerleaders website name.
That's what it was.

Yeah, kind of like drawing a "Magic." They settled for pixie dust. It depends on which "thunder" they want to play off of. A thundering herd could be drawn with a stampeding buffalo. Good question though.

I admit to being a cynic, but I'm calling this a ruse. Folks, with the exception of the irresponsible quote from Aubey Mac, this ownership group has operated with stealth-like precision. I refuse to believe that they would fall for something so obvious. I have no problem with Mark's "discovery," or even the name itself, but it just seems too obvious. Much too convenient for this ownership group.

Everything that they have done has been brilliantly orchestrated and conceived. I refuse to think that a simple Internet search would out them.

I'm throwing down the gauntlet and will declare that this is not the name of our team.

I admit to being a cynic, but I'm calling this a ruse. Folks, with the exception of the irresponsible quote from Aubey Mac, this ownership group has operated with stealth-like precision. I refuse to believe that they would fall for something so obvious. I have no problem with Mark's "discovery," or even the name itself, but it just seems too obvious. Much too convenient for this ownership group.

Everything that they have done has been brilliantly orchestrated and conceived. I refuse to think that a simple Internet search would out them.

I'm throwing down the gauntlet and will declare that this is not the name of our team.

If it wasn't the only "OKC" name that was registered to this company, AND if this wasn't a company that is the registrar on record for ALL the NBA teams and nba.com, I'd be right there with ya.

Granted, I know that it's not 100%, and that information can change on a dime. But it is, I think, the best evidence yet that "Thunder" will be the nickname.

I just figured it out:
It's "Controlled leak", a true litmus-test of real okc-ians opinions of that name.
THey are using us (stealthily-so), as a focus group.

Call it a dry run if you like.
Well, to those who might be watching: up with Outlaws\Barons, down with Thunder.

Outlaws/Barons <<< Nah!

Thunder isn't really possible, because someone involved with decision making wanted a name that end with 's'. A plural name gives a sense that the Oklahomans is on the team as well, after all, the fans is what keep a team alive.

It's not the official site, because that would be nba.com/thunder. I suppose it could be someone in the know who's trying to tie up another site, but again, I think this is weak evidence.

Betts - You're right! I just checked and that format is followed across the league. Did Channel 5 not check that? (Obviously not.)

It's not the official site, because that would be nba.com/thunder. I suppose it could be someone in the know who's trying to tie up another site, but again, I think this is weak evidence.

That's what it would redirect to, once the site is up. All team sites can be accessed by typing in the full name. (eg orlandomagic.com redirects to nba . com/magic)

Until the site goes live, it's not going to redirect anywhere. Right now, www . supersonics .com goes to nba . com/ oklahomacity

It may end up being wrong, but the evidence is pretty darn strong, IMO...based on my comments earlier.

That's what it would redirect to, once the site is up. All team sites can be accessed by typing in the full name. (eg orlandomagic.com redirects to THE OFFICIAL SITE OF THE ORLANDO MAGIC (http://www.nba.com/magic))

It may end up being wrong, but the evidence is pretty darn strong, IMO...based on my comments earlier.

You would think, but I tried slcjazzbasketball.com and it doesn't redirect to anything. And the OrlandoMagic.com is owned by the NBA and not purchased through the same registrar as okcthunderbasketball. Similar sounding registrar - but different. Edited to add: I hope you're right as I was getting pumped about the name!

You would think, but I tried slcjazzbasketball.com and it doesn't redirect to anything. And the OrlandoMagic.com is owned by the NBA and not purchased through the same registrar as okcthunderbasketball. Similar sounding registrar - but different.

Look at the Registrar of Record section. Both say the exact same thing: Corporate Domains, LLC

according to Whois.net, slcjazzbasketball.com is available for sale, meaning that's not even a valid example. However, if you type in utahjazz.com, it redirects to nba.com/jazz AND it also has the same registrar of record: Corporate Domains, LLC

I think it's possible, but certainly not confirmatory. Even if the team name is Thunder, it will be interesting to see if that website actually links to nba.com/thunder once the team name is announced, or if this is a red herring. I've heard Thunder is definitely under consideration, and I think it's on the list of six to eight names sent to the NBA, but I don't know if it was one of their top choices.

Intrepid - My apologies, you are absolutely right. I was looking at a different WHOIS and it listed them with similar, but different, names; but the Network Solutions WHOIS lists them both as registered through Corporate Domains, Inc.

My hope is back up!

Intrepid - My apologies, you are absolutely right. I was looking at a different WHOIS and it listed them with similar, but different, names; but the Network Solutions WHOIS lists them both as registered through Corporate Domains, Inc.

My hope is back up!


Absolutely no apologies necessary.

I'm not saying that any of this won't change, but this is the strongest evidence, to date....IMO.

OKC Thunder sounds pretty good to me.
Not much different than the Miami Heat, although Miami Humidity would have been more relevant lol

The story on KOCO.com has been updated:

Source Tells KOCO OKC NBA Team To Be Named Thunder - Sports News Story - KOCO Oklahoma City (http://www.koco.com/sports/16925692/detail.html)

It now has the part I heard Mark Rodgers say on The Sports Animal yesterday evening:

"A source close to the NBA ownership group tells SportsXtra's Mark Rodgers the city's franchise, formerly known as the Seattle Supersonics, will be called the Oklahoma City Thunder."

The rest of the article appears to be about the same.

The story on KOCO.com has been updated:

Source Tells KOCO OKC NBA Team To Be Named Thunder - Sports News Story - KOCO Oklahoma City (http://www.koco.com/sports/16925692/detail.html)

It now has the part I heard Mark Rodgers say on The Sports Animal yesterday evening:

"A source close to the NBA ownership group tells SportsXtra's Mark Rodgers the city's franchise, formerly known as the Seattle Supersonics, will be called the Oklahoma City Thunder."

The rest of the article appears to be about the same.

If this is true, I like the name but I thought they want to have a S at the end?

I hate the name.

But isn't it dangerous to have your name "outed" before actually having it trademarked? What keeps some internet Joe from registering the trademark with the government?

A lot.

I think it's on the list of six to eight names sent to the NBA

And if it was, you can bet that the NBA would try and register all applicable domain names related to Thunder as soon as possible. Unregistered domains are CHEAP and it would be in the NBA's best interest to register all names under consideration in case there is a leak before the final decision is made. That way they can get it forever for a few hundred bucks rather than pay a squatter a few thousand.

So, I don't pretend to know if it was on the list or what the other 6 to 8 names were, but I bet that they looked into domain names related to all the proposed names. It could just be that all of the other names were already registered, so this is the only one that the NBA's registarar got at this point.

If this storm doesn't dry up, I can just hear the catcalls, here come the thundering Dunderheads.

Oh well, unkie frank used to like the word; that'll make it all ok i suspect.

I hate the name.

But isn't it dangerous to have your name "outed" before actually having it trademarked? What keeps some internet Joe from registering the trademark with the government?

Thunder sounds better than the Barons which is stupid

OKC Bawlers

Main Entry: bawl
Function: verb
intransitive verb
1 : to cry out loudly and unrestrainedly
2 : to cry loudly : wail
transitive verb
: to cry out at the top of one's voice
� bawl�er noun

http://www.okctalk.com/gallery/data/508/bawlers_okc.jpg

Image is for entertainment only! Apologies given to Midway Amusement Games, LLC

Isnt there a gentleman by the name of David Glover that is very critical of the OKC/NBA thing? He gets on here and posts quite a bit. I am not sure. I never get into the mix of things.

If so, here is an interesting link for you:

WhoIs Search Results (http://who.godaddy.com/WhoIs.aspx?domain=okcthunderball.com&prog_id=godaddy)

Looks like he is trying to cash in on the move. He just bought the website today.


Registrant:
Flying Humans

2273 Downing St
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73120-4934
United States

Registered through: GoDaddy.com, Inc. (Complete Web Solutions: domains, hosting, site builders and SSL. (http://www.godaddy.com))
Domain Name: OKCTHUNDERBALL.COM
Created on: 19-Jul-08
Expires on: 19-Jul-09
Last Updated on: 19-Jul-08

Administrative Contact:
Glover, David davidhglover@gmail.com
Flying Humans
2273 Downing St
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73120-4934
United States
(405) 830-6420 Fax -- (413) 460-5708

Whats thunderball?

OKC Bawlers

Main Entry: bawl
Function: verb
intransitive verb
1 : to cry out loudly and unrestrainedly
2 : to cry loudly : wail
transitive verb
: to cry out at the top of one's voice
� bawl�er noun

http://www.okctalk.com/gallery/data/508/bawlers_okc.jpg

Image is for entertainment only! Apologies given to Midway Amusement Games, LLC


Hmmm................NO

Whats thunderball?

Two bad movies?

Two bad movies?

I actually liked 'Never Say Never Again' even more than 'Thunderball'. Both were based on Ian Fleming's novel, Thunderball.

I was talking about the OTHER Thunderball....You know...Rollerball?


lol...My bad. Got those mixed up.

We may actually have a name.....

The Oklahoman is now reporting the KOCO story and Tramel has a positive, and very creative, column on the 'Thunder' name. There's even yet another short blurb in the paper about singular names.

I can't see the Oklahoman publishing three stories on the name if it's not the name.

Front Page (http://newsok.com/article/3272613/)

Tramel Column (http://newsok.com/article/3272612) (Quite good!)

Small Box of Singular Names (http://newsok.com/article/3272616)

And the Thunder Rolls .. Garth Brooks.. appropriate.

I can live with Thunder. I won't say I love it, but I can live with it.

I'm fine with it. After all, it is my official nickname. lol I even have THUNDER written on my front car plate with lightning background. :D

I like Tramel's idea of the ThunderGround. We could also borrow the Twins' ThunderDome. I actually like that better.

I'm fine with it. After all, it is my official nickname. lol I even have THUNDER written on my front car plate with lightning background. :D

You could sell your OKCTalk username on eBay!

Thunder, let's see a pic of that, we might use it for a team logo.. lol

so do we have it?

Oklahoma City Thunderballers?

I could see it, from a marketing prospective it would be like the Seattle Supersonics or Portland Trailblazers - very many opportunities. You could go Thunderballers (quite unique so you could define it aas you want), AND you could go with ballers (ala Sonics or Blazers) AND you could go with Thunder; you could go with ALL - all would be marketing opportunities.

In this sense, I like it. Thunderballers has some fit to OKC and I think over time it will be like the New York Knickerbockers (nobody says that, they say Knicks - but the full team name is Knickerocker). People will refer to OKC as either the Thunder or Ballers (but the team name would be Thunderballers).

Hmm, I like it.

Where did you get ThunderBallers ... ?

Thunder, yes, Ballers, no.

Now since we have a name, I'm curious to see what the logo and uniforms look like

Too bad I won't be rooting for them though, I am still gonna root for my Orlando Magic since I have been a loyal fan for 15 years and my loyatity goes with my Magic but I am happy to see Oklahoma get a NBA team here so that means I can go watch my Magic against the Thunder :)

[QUOTE=Karried;155765]And the Thunder Rolls .. Garth Brooks.. appropriate.

QUOTE]

Maybe it's just me but I don't think a song about a wife shooting her cheating husband will go over too well as a theme song.

they wont play the whole song so1rfan, just prominent clips.

I have DirecTV and I was watching the postgame after the Colorado Rockies game tonight and they reported on their that the trademark to the Thunder name is owned by the Oklahoma Thunder minor league football team in Tulsa so they were having to go back to the drawing board. Then one host suggested they should call the team the "Tumbleweeds" the "Kissing Cousins", or the "Double-Wides" with Larry the Cable Guy as the mascot. That's reall good to act like a pompous ass especially with one or the Rockies announcers (George Frazier) being an Oklahoma guy.

I have DirecTV and I was watching the postgame after the Colorado Rockies game tonight and they reported on their that the trademark to the Thunder name is owned by the Oklahoma Thunder minor league football team in Tulsa so they were having to go back to the drawing board. Then one host suggested they should call the team the "Tumbleweeds" the "Kissing Cousins", or the "Double-Wides" with Larry the Cable Guy as the mascot. That's reall good to act like a pompous ass especially with one or the Rockies announcers (George Frazier) being an Oklahoma guy.

Somebody actually said that? Suggesting Oklahoma is full of incestuous people living in trailers? Announcers have been fired for less.

This name kind of kills my enthusiasm. It's weak and reminds me of the worst name in sports "Orlando Magic". I didn't think the name would matter all that much to me but I guess it only does if it is terrible. This name definitely falls under the terrible category.

And the Thunder Rolls .. Garth Brooks.. appropriate.

I love the song, however it's about a husband cheating on his wife and spousal abuse.

For that reason, I hope it's not used.

I see AC/DC being used more than Garth Brooks. I know he's from OK and all but he just creeps me out. (Oh, and I hate county music.)