In case you haven’t heard, Joe Smith was waived this weekend: “Good teams seem to want Joe Smith. The veteran 
forward and the Oklahoma City Thunder reached agreement on a buyout of his contract on Sunday, and The Clevaland Plain Dealer reported that the Cavaliers will try to sign him immediately after he clears waivers.”
And in case you haven’t heard again, KD will be out 7-14 days with an ankle sprain: “Durant is expected to miss seven to 14 days after rolling his right ankle in Friday’s game at Dallas when he stepped on the foot of Mavs forward Josh Howard while driving to the basket with 7:13 left in the first quarter. He remained in the game for about three minutes before walking off the court with a limp. Team officials said X-rays taken on Durant’s foot were negative, but Durant wore a protective boot on his right foot and walked with the aid of crutches following the Thunder’s 110-108 overtime loss.”
It’s looking likely that Ricky Rubio will enter the draft: “Rubio’s position in the top three is significant for one big reason: “He has a huge buyout from his team in Spain. To afford the buyout, he really needs to be a top-three pick. Publicly, the mood has been pessimistic that Rubio would be in this draft, with a series of international stories claiming Rubio is staying overseas and other draft sites pulling him from their 2009 mock drafts. Privately, his agent, Dan Fegan, has been working on this for months, and we’ve been getting the same signals all along: Rubio is entering this year’s draft. Rubio still needs to work on his jumper and get stronger, but his floor leadership and energy are just remarkable. He’s a special playmaker.”
The Cavs are happy to (likely) have Joe Smith: “This is absolutely fantastic from a Cavalier standpoint. Joe would immediately step in as the Cavs’ most versatile big, stretching the floor on offense, being athletic enough to dive, catch, and finish inside, and quick enough with his feet and smart enough with his positioning to flash out on offense. I’ve said this before, but he brings a ton of stuff to the table without taking anything off, which is so rare in a big man.”
Tim Cowlishaw says the Thunder’s not rolling… yet: “I liked the Oklahoma City Thunder before I walked across the street to watch Kevin Durant play Friday night. I liked them even better after he limped to the locker room … Without him, Russell Westbrook had 33 points, eight rebounds and five assists. Jeff Green contributed 28 points and 12 rebounds. Give me that threesome, plus all the draft picks the Thunder has stockpiled over Dallas’ future any day.”
Matt Stroup of NBC Sports on OKC’s upcoming days: “Just don’t make the mistake of grouping this team in with other struggling franchises like the Kings or the Clippers, who don’t compete these days so much as they make a nightly mockery out of lopsided box scores. Oklahoma City still loses more often than not, but there’s a distinct ripple of electricity in the air in Thunder country. One day sooner than we all might think, that energy is going to translate into wins.”
I’ll probably go see this. Well that or Madea Goes to Jail.
Basketbawful’s Worst of the Weekend: “The Memphis Grizzlies: They lost at home to the Thunder…who were without Kevin Durant. How does THAT happen? Letting Thabo Sefolosha burn you for 15 points (a season-high) and 11 rebounds (also a season-high), that’s how. Committing 17 turnovers that the Thunder transformed into 25 bonus points didn’t help, either. The Grizzlies have officially entered “They aren’t who we thought they were…they’re worse” territory. But they do have the lowest payroll in the league, so they’re not losers, they’re salary cap winners! Hopefully that eases the pain of that seven-game skidmark…”
I don't think Rubio is a top 3 lock despite what Chad Ford thinks or hears and I think ultimately he waits even if he doesn't want to. Assists though important can be easily overrated and in their heart of hearts I don't think they are that highly valued by GMs these days. What matters more than assists is leadership. I just don't think a Spanish kid is going to lead most locker rooms or on the court. Yeah players will take an assist but most players these days aren't to wait for it either. If teams pick in current draft order I could see Rubio slipping to 8th to be taken by the Raptors.
I should have said I'd personally take Griffin by a mile in that choice, though I don't know how good he'll be and don't know if he'd be a great fit with the Thunder with Green here already. He will probably be the best of the lot though. Jordan Hill probably #2.
I should have said I'd take Griffin by a mile, though I don't know how good he'll be and don't know if he'd be a great fit with the Thunder with Green here already. He will probably be the best of the lot though. Jordan Hill probably #2.
That is a tough call Steve H. I really don't know enough about either. But straight up I'd take Griffin.
It somewhat comes down to how good Griffin will shoot and how well Rubio will defend.
At this point, I think I'd rather have Rubio than Griffin. Bad-ass that Griffin is, there are a couple premiere PF's that we could/should be able to pick up through free agency (Lee,Boozer). Rubio would give us a great pass-first PG AND solve our starting SG issues by letting us slide Westbrook over to the 2. Crow, how would Rubio stack up against Griffin in filling your assessment of what we need most?
@Crow
Yes, Wendy is Mrs. MM. I definitely out-kicked the coverage, so to speak.
Draft pick needs to 1) help team FG% directly or indirectly by passing well or drawing defensive attention 2) help team defense 3) save/win extra possessions (offensive rebounds, less turnovers or more steals/blocks) or hopefully more than one of these.
MM is Mrs MM Wendy?
Bob, I was being more facetious than anything. Just exaggerating to prove my point that KD + Green + Westrbook + 09 pick is four top 5 picks on the floor together, and how that almost seems unfair to the other teams with poor records this year.
IMO Clippers and Wizards just need to be healthy to win 35 games...
I was telling a friend of mine earlier that it almost isn't fair to the Clippers/Kings/Wizards for OKC to have a similar record. We'll get a similar lottery pick this year as those teams. We're a lottery pick away from winning 35 games next year (provided half of our twenty 6-point losses turn to wins next year), and only the lovechild of Lebron and Kobe could make the Clippers/Kings/Wizards 35-win teams next year.
@RSR
I agree with you, but you cant really look at the record to judge this team. They lose so many close games, which is in part due to their complete lack of experience. They have no depth but they get rid of a few guys this summer and with the draft, FA, and DJ White coming back the team we see next year could be vastly improved.
On a happier note, Mrs. MartzMimic was in Berry Tramel's column today. I don't know that she's quite up to Uncle Jeff's standards, but from family pickup games over the holidays, I can say that she will bruise you in the blocks.
Geez, Scott Brooks may be suiting up tonight.
Story just popped on NewsOK that Green is out tonight with a sore back. Yikes!
Portland last year was 41-41. OKC may not come within 20 games of that. I like KD-Green-Westbrook, but the bench is pretty non-existant. I think Portland of 06-07 is closer, but even that team won 32 games. Until they get some depth & good vets instead of salary dumps, I think making the playoffs is 3-4 years off.
If Rubio is entering this years draft it marks good things for us. The draft goes from 2 to 3 deep. Meaning the first three players in he draft (Griffin, Rubio, and Harden) will all be good pro's who can help immediately. We just need to avoid ending up with the #4 pick again!
I like that MSNBC article. Very fair and true. There's no way you can lump this group of guys in with the likes of Sacto, Golden State, the Wizards, Griz or Twolves.
Our best comparison is probably the Blazers of last year.