Stephen A (asshole) Smith is an idiot and played the race card to get a reporter's job when he doesn't have the crednetials for it. I hate to agree with him though as predicts the Thunder won't go far in the playoffs this year as it looks like Houston is the odds favorite to win the west.

Pretty irresponsible accusation with no offer of proof.

Some nice play tonight but maybe my favorite thing was looking over and seeing Coaches Donovan, Cheeks, Williams and Grant talking during a timeout! Think this could be REAL good.:)

Some nice play tonight but maybe my favorite thing was looking over and seeing Coaches Donovan, Cheeks, Williams and Grant talking during a timeout! Think this could be REAL good.:)

I was having fun watching Turkey's coach. He was a hoot.

But yeah...... SO ready for this B-Ball season. :D

http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u240/Kingk0ng_2007/FB_IMG_1444529498095.jpg

Kevin Durant and the decision that will forever change Oklahoma City (http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/13840629/kevin-durant-decision-forever-change-oklahoma-city)

Advice for attending this year's Thunder games - at least early in the season = ARRIVE EARLY. The new security measures including metal detectors made lines 15-plus minutes long the other night getting into the game. It was the first night and I am sure it will smooth out but just logistics are it will take longer this year due to the process.

Advice for attending this year's Thunder games - at least early in the season = ARRIVE EARLY. The new security measures including metal detectors made lines 15-plus minutes long the other night getting into the game. It was the first night and I am sure it will smooth out but just logistics are it will take longer this year due to the process.

Metal detectors added to heighten security at Thunder games | Oklahoma City - OKC - KOCO.com (http://www.koco.com/thunder/metal-detectors-added-to-heighten-security-at-thunder-games/35761612)


Security has been tightened at Oklahoma City Thunder games following NBA requirements for all arenas. Fans had to pass through metal detectors to attend a preseason game Friday evening at the Chesapeake Energy Arena. The detectors replaced the “wands” security staff previously used to check people for weapons.

Thunder again ranked #7 overall in the ESPN Franchise rankings of all pro sports teams (122 in all). Spurs #1.

Chris Broussard's top 5 (6) players in the world:

My top 5 - 1 LJ, 2 KD, 3 ADavis, 4 Steph, 5 Harden....5A Russ

Sunday, October 18, 2015 from Chesapeake Energy Arena

Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Denver Nuggets preseason live stream:

Thunder Live | Oklahoma City Thunder (http://www.nba.com/thunder/live)

Seeing tweets that the lines to get in today might have been worse than the 1st night. Not good at all.

Maybe fans will actually find use for the grand southern entrance now. That's good because by the time that area is developed the Thunder will probably be building the next arena. ;)

John Knight is a regular poster, but I'm sure he wouldn't post this himself... so I'll do it. Here are his new Anthony Morrow shirts. Good look for the new season: 2Morrow | MENT Apparel (http://www.mentapparel.com/collections/men/products/2morrow)

11628

Really impressed with the Thunder in the preseason. Not, so much about won-lost record because it is preseason. I'm seeing better spacing, ball movement, teamwork and great looks to get players open for a high percentage shot; something you didn't see throughout Brooks' tenure. Durant's getting his mojo back.

Thunder centers (Adams, Kanter) are positioned to get rebounds on defense as well as offense. Westbrook & Durant are more disciplined with allowing the game to come to them.

Cameron Payne has hit the ground running like a newly born Wildebeest calf. This young man's potential could mirror that of Westbrook.

Got to give it up to Billy Donovan & staff; he's on the right track...

There have been some promising things in the preseason, particularly Dion Waiters' play. If he can remake himself as a guy who racks up assists and finishes at the rim then he could really turn the corner and shake his inefficient and problematic past.

I am still less excited about Kanter. He puts up big offensive numbers, but he's still getting destroyed on the defensive end. His poor defense more than outweighs his solid offense. If he doesn't improve then I just don't think he should be on the floor in important moments or games. I think the Thunder would be better served by going with Adams or going small with Ibaka at center.

One other thought, I'm really hoping Cam Payne can win the backup point guard job. His overall potential is a lot higher than D.J. simply because he might be a decent defender. Like Kanter, D.J. destroys our defensive play when he is on the floor.

It's crazy how cartoonishly bad Kanter is defensively. He hasn't improved at all.

Seeing tweets that the lines to get in today might have been worse than the 1st night. Not good at all.

got to the arena about 5:40 (6pm tip) and used the northwest entrance and it only took us maybe 10 minutes to get in.

Preseason predictions don't win you anything, but this is interesting

OKC Thunder: NBA TV panelists like the Thunder to win title | NewsOK.com (http://m.newsok.com/okc-thunder-nba-tv-panelists-like-the-thunder-to-win-title/article/5454544)


On Tuesday, NBA TV will air a season preview version of their popular Open Court show. On it, the six expert panelists – former players Reggie Miller, Dennis Scott, Grant Hill, Brent Barry, Steve Smith and Isiah Thomas – are asked to make their Finals picks.

Miller, Scott, Barry and Thomas pick the Thunder to make the Finals. Scott, Barry and Thomas pick the Thunder to win it all. The two others picked the Spurs to come out of the West. None of the six had Golden State in the Finals.

Open Court: Finals Predictions | NBA.com (http://www.nba.com/video/channels/nba_tv/2015/10/19/20151019-open-court-finals-predictions.nba/)

The last preseason game against the Jazz last night was an excellent warm up for the season. The Thunder dominated from start to finish. KD looked more than awesome, and when it got tight late in the fourth Donavon put KD and Russ back in to close the game. KD scored 8 points in 1:05 during that stretch to put the game away. Even though this was preseason, both teams were playing to win.
If good health prevails, were going to win a lot of games.

^Opening night should be fun versus the Spurs!!!!

In case you haven't yet seen the Westbrook AMA on Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/3oro19/im_a_basketball_player_style_guru_and/

Not the wordiest fellow. Pretty crap AMA overall.

If you haven't seen the new Edmond Hyundai commercial
rHxDSsdWAME

Would love to see some of the out takes of this, poor Andre lost it there at the end.

Who is the guy sitting on the end (far right) wearing the casual flops, is he a Thunder player?

Just don't recognize him. He has a decent voice.

Who is the guy sitting on the end (far right) wearing the casual flops, is he a Thunder player?

Just don't recognize him. He has a decent voice.

Mitch McGary

If tonight is an example, it's going to be a fun and interesting season. :)

Great opener. We showed up ~30 minutes before tip and it took less than 10 minutes to get in... not near as bad as we thought.

82-0.

If I wasn't convinced before, I'm convinced now that the Thunder will win it all this season. On tonight's airing of Conan, Charles Barkley picked the Thunder to win the championship.

If I wasn't convinced before, I'm convinced now that the Thunder will win it all this season. On tonight's airing of Conan, Charles Barkley picked the Thunder to win the championship.

Settle down. Lol. ;)

Great game. Two best players on the floor (tonight anyway) were Westbrook and Leonard. They put on a show. Heck of a opener!!

Not a bad start for a first-time NBA coach.

That was a fun one to watch and as usual, the Thunder showed a lot of scrappiness.

What encouraged me was getting a win against a scary-deep championship-caliber team despite Leonard having a career night and KD's off night shooting. The Thunder obviously wasn't close to hitting on all cylinders yet - and no question the game was a close one - but they did an excellent job of closing it out. Feeling pretty good about the season at this point.

I guess we shouldn't fail to mention Waiters and Kanter. Huge shots by DW down the stretch and Kanter was a monster on the boards - big double double for him in 24 minutes.

Some interesting things in my view to watch as things progress - Collison minutes and in that regard how does McGary factor in. Billy D has a challenge in terms of how he divvies up the minutes on this team. Also, Waiters was on the floor at crunch time and it sure paid off - there had been some speculation of how much he'd play but looks like Coach D thinks he can get it done. And he did last night!

Waiters with those two clutch shots was really fun. You could see and hear the astonishment in the crowd on both of those.

One thing I did like was down the stretch they didn't seem to panic like they used to. Everyone was calm and collected.

Unfortunately, for some players Donovan doesn't look like a "everyone is going to get their minutes" kind of coach. Seemed last night to put players in because of matchups and hot hands, which was nice to see.

One thing I did like was down the stretch they didn't seem to panic like they used to. Everyone was calm and collected.

Unfortunately, for some players Donovan doesn't look like a "everyone is going to get their minutes" kind of coach. Seemed last night to put players in because of matchups and hot hands, which was nice to see.

Yep, with Brooks, Durant easily would have been checked in for a solid 38-40 min. He played just 35 in a game that was essentially constantly tied.

One thing I did like was down the stretch they didn't seem to panic like they used to. Everyone was calm and collected.

Unfortunately, for some players Donovan doesn't look like a "everyone is going to get their minutes" kind of coach. Seemed last night to put players in because of matchups and hot hands, which was nice to see.

Augustin played up until the 7-8 min mark in the 4Q with Westbrook on the bench, and continued for another minute or so with Westbrook at the 2. That is something that we never would have seen before. Being able to keep the game close with our second team and allowing our starters to close out the game fresh is going to be huge.

Really impressed with the way the Thunder stayed in the game despite the super play of Leonard; especially the defensive blocks by Diaw, Duncan & Leonard.

Dion Waiters & Westbrook kept the Spurs on their heels; the weapons the Thunder threw at San Antonio confused their defense.

Durant & Ibaka looked a bit rusty. They (Spurs) put the squeeze on K.D. on many occasions as they kept him boxed all night.

Donovan's strength was his ability to adjust to the match-ups in response to the surge Popovich made. Consider the additions to the Spurs this season (Aldridge & West), San Antonio will be a beast if Pops can get them to mesh together.

Popovich, there may be a new sheriff in town.

What encouraged me was getting a win against a scary-deep championship-caliber team despite Leonard having a career night and KD's off night shooting. The Thunder obviously wasn't close to hitting on all cylinders yet - and no question the game was a close one - but they did an excellent job of closing it out. Feeling pretty good about the season at this point.
I dk if that was a career night for Leonard. He's a legit super star.

It was. 32 is his career high

Let's not forgot we committed 19 turnovers last night, still beat the Spurs. This team is insanely deep.

It was. 32 is his career high

Fair enough, but I expect him to continue to put up mid 20s with his elite defense the rest of the year. I thought urbanized meant it more abstractly like that was a career night he normally won't be that good. Leonard will be that good this year, he's incredible.

Fair enough, but I expect him to continue to put up mid 20s with his elite defense the rest of the year. I thought urbanized meant it more abstractly like that was a career night he normally won't be that good. Leonard will be that good this year, he's incredible.

Kawhi Leonard is a fantastic player, but he averages 12 points on his career and averaged a career high of 16 last season. If Leonard averages in the 20s then he is a legit MVP candidate. While he's shown flashes of offensive potential (including in the NBA Finals), I think his offense was a bit of a surprise last night. He looked really, really good. I really hope it's an aberation because if Leonard is that good offensively, then that's not good for the Thunder.

Kawhi Leonard is a fantastic player, but he averages 12 points on his career and averaged a career high of 16 last season. If Leonard averages in the 20s then he is a legit MVP candidate. While he's shown flashes of offensive potential (including in the NBA Finals), I think his offense was a bit of a surprise last night. He looked really, really good. I really hope it's an aberation because if Leonard is that good offensively, then that's not good for the Thunder.

It's not an aberration in my opinion. He's going to be that good. I just don't think it's going to be enough for the spurs. We committed 19 turnovers last night, what if that was 12 like normal? Oh and they still have 0 answer for RW, unless they stick Leonard on him but that frees up KD. Having any combo of Ibaka, Roberson, Adams out on the floor defensively really disrupts the spurs offense. This thunder team is very very very good, Billy D gives them an edge in coaching, and at worst brings us to equal.

This team could win 67 games if they are healthy all season.

If you think I'm excited, this is from Grantland.

"
I’m so happy all the best pieces of the Thunder are healthy.

Their team is ****ing wonderful to watch and talk about and think about.

I can’t wait to watch the Spurs and Thunder play in the Western Conference finals.

It’s going to be so great.

And significant and important.

Because if the Thunder win, they’re going to win a championship and stay together (and best-case scenario, possibly become the new Spurs).

And if they lose, the team is going to explode its guts all over the NBA (and become the current Clippers)."

NBA Shootaround: And So It Begins « (http://grantland.com/the-triangle/nba-shootaround-and-so-it-begins/)

San Antonio Spurs vs. Oklahoma City Thunder - Box Score - October 28, 2015 - ESPN (http://espn.go.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=400827900)

Kawhi Leonard is a fantastic player, but he averages 12 points on his career and averaged a career high of 16 last season. If Leonard averages in the 20s then he is a legit MVP candidate. While he's shown flashes of offensive potential (including in the NBA Finals), I think his offense was a bit of a surprise last night. He looked really, really good. I really hope it's an aberation because if Leonard is that good offensively, then that's not good for the Thunder.

I have a feeling the teams we watched last night are two of the elite teams in the league assuming they stay healthy. Both teams seem pretty loaded. Green had a bad night last night - normally he kills the Thunder (2-9 and 0-5 from three). KD wasn't MVP caliber KD. But with both teams it seems they are so deep and have very few weaknesses. Based on Game 1 of 82 (HA)! We might recall last year we had Lance Thomas, Ish Smith, Perry Jones, Jeremy Lamb on the floor at various crucial times which didn't always go so well.:)

I thoroughly enjoyed hearing actual coaching in the huddle from Donovan last night as opposed to just screaming "play hard!" Or "rebound!" At guys.

Its worth noting again that the line situations are ridiculous. We passed both north entrances on our way to the SW entrance and it was a cluster. I understand its better to be safe than sorry, but there has never been an incident here (at least not reported) of any crimes with any weapon that would set off a metal detector. I don't even recall any issues league wide.

Its somewhat tolerable now since the weather isn't bad, but when I gets really cold it could get ugly. Last thing you want is 18,000 grumpy fans coming inside a building and not wanting to buy merchandise or food/beverage

Its worth noting again that the line situations are ridiculous. We passed both north entrances on our way to the SW entrance and it was a cluster. I understand its better to be safe than sorry, but there has never been an incident here (at least not reported) of any crimes with any weapon that would set off a metal detector. I don't even recall any issues league wide.

Its somewhat tolerable now since the weather isn't bad, but when I gets really cold it could get ugly. Last thing you want is 18,000 grumpy fans coming inside a building and not wanting to buy merchandise or food/beverage

We got to the SW corner about 35 minutes prior to tipoff and we waited 10 minutes tops. It was a very smooth process and while it is a little annoying, we were all expecting much worse based off of preseason reports.

Its worth noting again that the line situations are ridiculous. We passed both north entrances on our way to the SW entrance and it was a cluster. I understand its better to be safe than sorry, but there has never been an incident here (at least not reported) of any crimes with any weapon that would set off a metal detector. I don't even recall any issues league wide.

Its somewhat tolerable now since the weather isn't bad, but when I gets really cold it could get ugly. Last thing you want is 18,000 grumpy fans coming inside a building and not wanting to buy merchandise or food/beverage

I understand this is an NBA league wide deal required at all arenas this season so not just OKC. I had club seats for SA game so used the far East entrance along the middle of the arena by the hotel parking and were maybe 10 people in line there about 630. But the lines to the main entrances looked pretty dang long. Glad to hear Sooner88 report of only 10 minutes. That is tolerable.

I understand this is an NBA league wide deal required at all arenas this season so not just OKC. I had club seats for SA game so used the far East entrance along the middle of the arena by the hotel parking and were maybe 10 people in line there about 630. But the lines to the main entrances looked pretty dang long. Glad to hear Sooner88 report of only 10 minutes. That is tolerable.

My season tickets are in club level so I use the west entrance. I got there at a quarter after 6 and it took about 10 to 12 minutes. I was in line outside for the majority of that time. The holdup was people getting through the detectors but I think with this first experience over it should go faster. I did notice they removed all the detectors when leaving the building.

My season tickets are in club level so I use the west entrance. I got there at a quarter after 6 and it took about 10 to 12 minutes. I was in line outside for the majority of that time. The holdup was people getting through the detectors but I think with this first experience over it should go faster. I did notice they removed all the detectors when leaving the building.

Try that far East entrance next time with your club tickets and see what you think. I was glad we walked a little extra to get over there!:)

I will say that we were in line at around 620. might just wait longer to walk over there

I will say the line looked really long at the SW entrance when we got there... it was already going down the ramp, but it went by as fast as possible.

PHOTO: NBA officially releases Christmas jerseys, including the Thunder's | News OK (http://newsok.com/nba-officially-releases-christmas-jerseys-including-the-thunders/article/5457049)

those are awesome, they finally added a Christmas touch to these

Yeah, I really like them as well. On a side note that somewhat relates to the Thunder; ESPN shut down Grantland today.

those are awesome, they finally added a Christmas touch to these

These are by far my favorite that we have, including alternates... and I agree, socks/shoes are a nice touch.

Well.......just a routine road win at Orlando.:p

LOL routine. I'm in cardiac arrest.