- New ESPN Power Rankings are out and OKC is up two spots at No. 26: ”Halfway through the schedule, OKC can finally look at the standings without cringing. The Thunder rolled into 2009 with a mere four victories, but check out the L10 column now: 5-5 in the past 10 games is no misprint.” Also, the fans have the Thunder No. 25 and John Hollinger puts OKC at No. 26 as well.
- 48 Minutes of Hell talks about the rumored Nick Collison to the Spurs deal: “Right now, it looks as if only Memphis is likely to be in the same cap space neighborhood as OKC. But how much money is Michael Heisley willing to spend in a bad economy? In other words, would Sam Presti want cash to spend in a buyer’s market? And in a year when the competition for talent is scarce? More specifically, does Presti want to add a Carlos Boozer or David Lee–with money enough left for, say, Zaza Pachulia–to his core of Durant, Green and Westbrook? This might be the perfect storm of opportunity for the ambitious young GM. Turning Nick Collison into Carlos Boozer would be a neat party trick. On the court Collison is an ideal fit for San Antonio, but is he worth jeopardizing their 2010 cap space? I’m not sure. Perhaps, there is a different way to ask the question. Are the Spurs playing for championships now or later? Collison is not a bit player. His presence would immediately shore up the frontline.”
- Joe Smith prefers to stay with the Thunder: “I like the young fellas and what they bring to the table,” Smith said of the Thunder. “A lot of people want to chase that ring and things like that. But when you have a group of guys like this giving it their all every night, I don’t get involved in stuff like that. We dug this hole together. We have to fight out of this hole together.”
- OKC is trying to get over the nine-win hump and that means the players only take days off when Scott Brooks makes them: “Interim coach Scott Brooks, who took over when P.J. Carlesimo was fired after a 1-13 start, believes his team is “still learning how to win” but has improved because of an unwillingness to quit despite a hopeless 3-29 start. After the team returned from a recent overtime loss at New Jersey at 3 a.m., he decided not to hold practice later that day. When he showed up hours later, there were nine players at the practice gym. “I needed a day off. I’m like, `Get out of here,”‘ Brooks said. “We have a team full of that. They’re young guys that want to get better,” he added. “They’re thirsty, they’re hungry, they want to enjoy this league, but they enjoy it by working hard.”
- Ian Thompson on OKC’s chances of re-signing Kevin Durant: “The timing here is interesting. The owners will seek a new collective bargaining agreement with the players in 2011. Under the current terms, Durant will be, at most, a restricted free agent, enabling the Thunder to match any offer he receives. Unless he has an unexpected falling-out with team management, he won’t be going anywhere. It could be in his best interests to sign an extension with Oklahoma City under the terms of the current agreement, because the new CBA (to be negotiated in 2011-12) is expected to be less accommodating to the players, who are likely to face shorter contracts with smaller annual raises.”
Ah.. It feels good not having the tag as the worst team in the
nba anymore. This team is playing a ton better and things are only
going to get better as the team continues to gel and the younger players
continue to get better. It starts with the ability to know you can win and the
Thunder are/is? figuring that out. They can compete with anyone on any given night.
Just know i was reading an article on realgm.com talking about how Jamal Crawford is improving his defensive game now that he is the starting PG for GSW and that reminded me that he has an opt out clause in his contract that he could exercise this summer. If he were to opt out it would probably be to sign a long term deal in Oakland because he loves it there but there is always the possibility to sign elsewhere. While he will most likely be commanding $10m a year he would be a great compliment to Westbrook in the backcourt because he would be able to take a load off of Russel's back because they could share the PG duties. In addition, Crawford can score and would help stretch the floor along with Durant and also be able to hit outside shots even though he is more known as a penetrator.
Regarding Harden, while he may not seem to be a go to scorer in the NBA you never know. During this past June's draft everyone was saying that OJ Mayo was not good enough to be a go to scorer because he relied too much on the outside shot and didn't play much D. Now in Memphis he is averaging close to 20 ppg and playing good defense according to scouting reports I read on ESPN.com. Harden may not be as talented as Mayo, but he is more physical and has many ways of getting to the hoop and splitting double teams.
It'll be interesting to see what OKC does with its first round draft choices this year and next because i think it has in total 3-4 1st round choices. I expect Presti to trade some of them for players that can help out right now because 3-4 rookies would be too many to inject into an already very youthful squad.
While you can say the Blazers are just as youthful, they have veterans such as Joel Pryzbilla that help lead the squad along with the very mature, and in my opinion underrated, Brandon Roy.
That's good though. We LOVE the discussion. And like I said in the welcome, if you ever get the urge to write a feature on something, email to us and we'll try and post it.
Geez I right a lot LOL. it dosen't feel like it though when im writing. :)
Francisco Garcia is not going to be a free agent because he was signed last summer to a long term deal by the Kings. Your right about Gordon's defense and one of my pet peeves when it comes to basketball strategy is great perimeter defense. One interesting player that you mentioned was Anthony Parker. He is a leader for TOR(even though they suck wind). But i blame Toronto's problems for its vast amount of European pansies and Bosh's inability to lead by example (calling out Jamario Moon today through the press). But i got carried away, thats besides the point.
I was kinda hoping that the ping pong balls would drop favorably for OKC thus landing them Blake Griffin. But theres only a 25% chance of that happening. I was watching Harden against UCLA this weekend and his ability to beat the double team and score in traffic is amazing. What the Thunder really need right now more than a shooter is a low post presence like the aforementioned Griffin or Hasheem Thabeet who i love(im from CT). If it comes down to the Thunder being in the middle of the top ten and Harden and Thabeet are left, that would be a hard choice for Presti and Co.
By the way i do remember Mitch Richmond although i was only around 9 or 10 when his wheels began coming off(long before i truly understand basketball strategy). While parker is old, he will not be a core player and will only be needed as a veteran presence/shooter/defender.
An interesting prospect in this years FA class is Carlos Boozer. At this point it seems like MIA is content with trading Marion for either Jermaine O'Neal or Brad Miller and waiting until the summer of 2010 so that they can lock up D-Wade and bring in a max contract sidekick. While Boozer does have knee issues, he is only 29 and very capable of still playing a high level and consistently averaging 20 and 10.
Yep, you are right. I was looking at something the other day that had FG as a free agent, which must have been old.
I watched that AZ state UCLA game also Brian. It is so hard to get a read on Harden's defense because they always play zone. All Harden is guarding is a spot and not a man. That being said, you can see that despite his bulk, he moves well. He is a very good passer and dribbler, although a bit careless. He is a lefty when he drives and finishes. He looks strong as an ox. He would be a good consolation prize if we don't get the first pick, but I don't really see "star" when I look at him, just a very nice NBA starter would be my estimation.
Yeah, Nick Young is an up and coming star. Did you see the documentary on him on ESPN a few months ago? Still i believe Redick is on the same level as Morrison (bother shooters), they are college players and will never be able to transition to the NBA. They are too soft. I was thinking about shooters that would help compliment Durant and Ben Gordon came to mind. While I understand that he will be commanding anywhere from $8-10M a year, this offseason OKC will have loads of money to spend with all the expiring deals they have. Gordon can shoot and penetrate and will not be expected to be the clutch last minute shooter he was in Chicago, that will be Durant's job. thats my take on what OKC could spend some of its cap room on. Its not like there will be many teams yearning for his services because of the current state of the Bulls, his inconsistencies shooting and his salary demands.
If you don't like JJ's defense, you really won't like Ben Gordon's either. Chicago's defense is three points better per 100 with him on the bench. The SG crop in the draft is almost non existent after Harden. The only worthwhile free agent SG's after this year are Anthony Parker, Kyle Korver and Francisco Garcia. Each has his pluses and minuses. Korver is a player option fa, and may exercise since he is getting low minutes behind Harp and CJ. Garcia is intriguing, not sure about his defense. Parker has all the tools and plays defense, but he is 33; about the age the wheels fall off for a SG. Remember Mitch Richmond?
It's funny that you should mention the Wiz Brian. I have really been intriqued by Nick Young since he was drafted, and I always thought he would become a very good player. This year he has exploded, and he is pretty much untouchable. That is the guy I'd like to have. Deshawn Stevenson is mired in his worst season since his rookie year. Not sure what is going on with him.
I advocated getting JJ as a specialist with one of our expiring contracts. I agree with you, I don't think he will be a 36 minute a night player. More like a deadeye shooter for situational purposes. We have like 5 expiring deals and I thought that since we were dead last in three attempts, and he wasn't getting any run, maybe a deal could transpire. But, I never thought he would be our answer at the 2 guard.
A guy that i think of right off the bat that hits threes and plays defense is Deshawn Stevenson. God knows whats going on now in WAS with Gilbert probably out for the rest of the season and Jamison on the block no less than 6 months after he was signed to a 4yr deal. Personally, i dont think JJ Redick is good enough to play in the NBA. While he CAN hit threes, he CANT play defense and easily gets pushed around and swayed by defenders. I think in a year or two the Thunder will be an up and coming team, as the blazers are, because of the core group they have right now in Durant, Green, and Westbrook, and the possiblilty of another franchise player being picked up in the draft this june or a free agent signing with the oodles of cap room they will have this summer with the departures of watson, smith and wilcox.
By the way, to tell you the truth i don't much about kyle weaver so i wont comment on his abilities but a veteran shooter/defender like Stevenson. His contract is very manageable also.
After the first 15 games Brian, no one was going to disagree about the level of horribleness we were looking at. We all doubted Westbrook because we were concerned because he wasn't a great scorer or distributor in college.
Twenty games is not out of the question at all. Heck, 25 really isn't *if* (and that's a big if) they can keep playing like this. Think about it, to win 25, OKC would need to go 17-23 the rest of the way. Probably a stretch, but the fact we're even talking about that possibility is example of how far they've come.
And the outside shooter is absolutely necessary, You're dead on there. Joe wrote earlier in the year about trying to get J.J. Redick. OKC needs someone that can hit a consistent three. Michael Redd might be a stretch because he's locked up for a while. I think OKC needs a guy that specializes in defense and hits the three, but isn't a "scorer" if you know what I mean. Who that could be, you got me. Maybe Kyle Weaver if we're lucky.
To tell you the truth, at the beginning of the season i really expected the Thunder to win barely more than 10 games and set the new mark for "horribleness", thats right i said it. But the way Russel Westbrook has emerged has been amazing. Coming out of the draft, i saw Westbrook as a Mike Conley type who could not shoot the ball and would be unable to penetrate against NBA defenders because they would always be laying off of him. But his speed and quckness has easily translated to the NBA level allowing him to score 1v1 and become a more prototypical point guard because of his ability to penetrate and kick out to shooters like Durant and Green. At the rate the Thunder are playing right now, i think they can win 20 games by the end of the season and retain their coach Scotty Brooks so that the organization has some stability. While they may not be able to lure a high priced free agent this summer, a lucky bounce in the lottery and the a trade of Collision/Wilcox and Joe Smith's expiring contract could land a franchise player such as Blake Griffin and a more capable sidekick on the perimeter for Durant. While Green and Westbrook can score, there outside shot is suspect so a shooter like Michael Redd or Vince Carter could really help stretch the D and open up the floor for the possible combo of Durant/Griffin.
By the way i would really like to hear what everyone thinks of my idea and if you disagree thats totally fine, id like to hear whateveryone else thinks because i am new to blogging and am not able to watch all OKC games because i live in FLA.
The problem isn't so much the CBA being accomodating to the players as it is the owners making stupid decisions. As long as the Mark Cubans of the world are passing out max contracts to players like Raef Lafrentz, the money will be there.
Thanks so much Slade. It's a pretty cool thing to have at the top of your blog.
Congrats on the new site and the ESPN affiliation. Your future with this blog is obviously very bright. I look forward to checking in daily...
It's good to see that the new collective bargaining agreement will be more economical and less player friendly. I may sound like a jerk to our boys, but if it will help the individual franchises in small markets (like ours) continue to make money than I think these guys should collectively take a little bit of a pay cut. Smaller contracts means there are potentially more moves and trades, as teams will be constantly able to find players who are immediately coming off of the books.
Also using our current CBA to tempt Durant and Green is a GREAT bargaining chip for the Thunder. Hope Presti uses this opportunity!