Check, check it – Joe Smith – I mean – JOE BEAST, has released his debut rap album. Making a guest appearance is 
Desmond Mason on and be sure to listen closely to Murda Kapital/Lucifer: “Keep thunder like Kevin Durant and the fire gone…” or something like that. All I know is that he mentioned KD by name. DJ Switch, a local DJ helped Smith on the album and evidently it’s getting airplay here in OKC – though I wouldn’t know because my dial rarely moves away from 98.1. You can download the whole thing for free at or preview it at his Myspace. You got to love the cover Just Died In Your Arms Tonight.
Empty the Bench looks at the seven teams in the West that didn’t make the playoffs: “They have an exciting core of youngsters-Kevin Durant, Jeff Green, and Russell Westbrook-who all can do a little of everything. They lost 14 games by 5 points or less, which should drop as this group gains more experience. Without anyone on the team averaging more than 6.9 rebounds, the Thunder were still seventh in the league with a +1.41 rebounding differential. Starters Nenad Krstic (center) and Thabo Sefolosha (guard-forward) weren’t present for a combined 95 games. Can wunderkind point guard Shaun Livingston continue his solid play in the summer league and actually play a full regular season?”
Joe and I both talked to Hoop China. Don’t worry, they translated it for us. Also, it looks like they interviewed Berry Tramel and Mike Baldwin as well: “I think if the Thunder can get Tony Parker, Chauncey Billups or Derrick Rose for next to nothing, then fine, let’s kick Westbrook to the curb. But otherwise, I don’t understand the questions about Westbrook.You’ve got a rookie point guard, who is only 20 years old, and didn’t get toplay much point in the past, who averages 15 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists a game for a bad team. He’s wonderfully athletic, and everyone thinks he will become a defensive stopper. He’s a penetrator deluxe. His flaws are that his decision-making is still shaky and he’s not a great shooter. There are about 29 NBA teams that hope the Thunder listens to the skeptics and moves Westbrook off the point.”
Ricky Rubio “officially” has declared for the NBA Draft: SLAM 128 cover kid Ricky Rubio, the 18-year-old point guard sensacion from Barcelona, Spain, is entering the 2009 NBA Draft. While Rubio could still remove his name from the Draft until as late as June 15, his agent, Dan Fegan, told ESPN, “Ricky will be in the 2009 NBA Draft.”
An early look at next year’s rookie of the year race: “As the virtual lock to be the top overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft Griffin has to be considered the frontrunner for the award. Griffin is as NBA-ready as they come with the strength, versatility, and skill needed to take the league by storm in year one. At the conclusion of the draft lottery we will know where Griffin will be playing at next year as he is hands down the top overall selection. You cannot make the case for any other player at the top spot, including Spanish point guard Ricky Rubio if he decides to stay in. Griffin is going to be successful whether it’s in Washington, Sacramento, or ideally Oklahoma City. It’s his award to lose.”
Thunder players and coaches really feel the support: “They had every reason to say, ‘oh, this is fun early, but let’s wait, let’s wait and see if they can turn it around,’” Brooks said. “But they stood by our guys. And our guys, they knew what was going on. We’d been in other arenas where it was not like that. We’d been to other arenas where the record of that team was really good and it wasn’t like what we have every night in Oklahoma City. Our players appreciate that.”
NBA attendance was up this year and revenue held strong: “The NBA cushioned the impact of a crumbling economy during its 2008-09 regular season by increasing attendance and keeping its gate revenue at last year’s record-setting level. Average attendance rose almost 1 percent and the flat gate revenue comes even after tickets were deeply discounted by most of the NBA’s 30 teams in an effort to fill seats. While the league refuses to disclose its gate revenue, one source familiar with NBA finances said that last year’s record gate ranged between $800 million and $1 billion, with overall league revenue in the neighborhood of $3.5 billion … The NBA’s gate was also helped by the Oklahoma City Thunder’s inaugural season. The team drew 18,704 a game compared with the 13,355 fans a game the Sonics drew in their final season in Seattle.”
I don't think GH has declared yet. Willie Warren is going back to school.
I believe that player can be Gerald Henderson as I stated in a previous thread. He is an good shooter on a good team with a HOF coach which by the way coached the U.S.A to an Olympic win. He's a really good athlete and can play some defense too with a winners swagger. He in my opinion is a little bit better than average ball handler but has an exceptional first step. I believe that he's the most mature and seasoned of all the gaurds in this draft.
Thabo was a good pickup. Going forward, I don't think he will be the starter at the two. Presti is smart enough to know we need somebody who can knock down a jumper at the two, but the right guy hasn't landed here yet. But he will. Presti tipped his intentions to us in the offseason last year when he signed CJ Miles to the offer sheet that Utah matched. He's a good shooter.
I believe that Weaver and Thabo are going to be great bench/role players for the Thunder for years to come. I think Thabo will be in the mold of a Bruce Bowen. BTW, Bruce Bowen couldn't shoot for a good percentage until like his fifth season. Weaver I think will be a backup/role player at three positions. Plus his versatility will allow us to not have to use a roster space for a third point guard. Weaver can fill that role.
In my opinion if you get a James Harden, or Ty Lawson, or a Ricky Rubio, you can sort of have Westbrook "share" the point guard duties, and not have to handle the ball 100% of the time because all of those guys can handle the rock, plus Durant was handling the rock even more towards the end of the season. The key I think though will be somebody who can shoot with good average and handle the rock at the other guard position, whether or not you label him as a PG, or a SG or whatever you want to call Westbrook. Pairing him with somebody who can handle the ball and shoot will change everything for our team next year.
@Nix
I agree. He was tremendous in the regular season. Of course, he's also a head case, so who knows how it would have really turned out.
Royce :@Jax
Raging Bile Duct
Yeah, I don’t think that’s my flav, knawmean?
Now THAT's gangsta.
Joe, Shaq, and Ron Artest should collaborate on a rap album (with a guest spot for Brian Scalabrine (search for the YouTube dis of LBJ)). Hell yeah.
@Jax Raging Bile Duct
Yeah, I don't think that's my flav, knawmean?
Every game I watch the Bulls play makes me still wish we had Salmons over Thabo...(stones are about to be hurled my way, but I don't back down)
@Bernard
I don't think the comment was meant as a cheap shot at the Seattle fans, but rather a statement of fact that selling 219,000 more tickets helped the bottom line. I think it says a lot that 13,000-plus people showed up to see the team that last season in Seattle.
His market value is going up as we speak - if the Bulls advance to the Conf semifinals or Conf finals, Presti won't pay the money he commands - despite the economy, someone will pay him; he's lighting it up at the best time of the year on national television . . .
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having said all that, I wouldn't want him on the Thunder because he would be yet another guy on our team that is defensively challenged . . .
Here's the reason I think it may be realistic to sign Gordon. He's completely unrestricted, so he will have to sign at fair-market value which won't be near the $50 million he declined.
I'm also wondering if he's reached that "veteran maturation" stage where his own numbers don't mean as much as victories do (which is exactly what the Spurs do with veterans). Maybe he has checked some of his ego, maybe not. But it's sure worth exploring.
Royce, I take it you were turned down for that hip hop and rap blogger gig? Just a guess...
Gordon sets himself a high price, higher than what we would like to pay.
It was a cheap shot comparing Seattle's last year attendance to OKC's first year attendance. I would not want to go to a game knowing this team has no future here and is going to lose anyways. OKC always wanted a NBA team and it is the first year. I am not saying OKC will not support the team with years to come, I know they will.
it is just not fair to compare numbers without stating the different circumstances.
No. Ben Gordan is a ballhog who jacks up shots every time he touches the ball. He works on the fast paced Bulls, but he wouldn't work on a defensive minded team like the Thunder. Also, the Bulls will probably re-sign him, and I doubt that he would sign here even if they don't. He strikes me as a big city kind of guy.
New thought--
I've never been a huge Ben Gordon fan, but watching him the last two games has given me an idea. Could we sign him on the cheap (which may be possible this summer) for something like 2 years, $16 million and make him our insta-offense sixth man off the bench. We all saw how much we struggle to score with KD off the court, but if you add Ben Gordon, our second unit has a bonafide scorer that is certain to get you 10-18 points a night.
I would love to see Ben Gordon be this team's version of Jason Terry--for the right price.
I say leave Westbrook at point. People are totally overreacting and calling for him to be moved to the two because he hasn't been Chris Paul. Give the dude some time to develop. Patience is an important thing to have when you are a fan of a pro sports team.
They have an exciting core of youngsters-Kevin Durant, Jeff Green, and Russell Westbrook-who all can do a little of everything. They lost 14 games by 5 points or less, which should drop as this group gains more experience. Without anyone on the team averaging more than 6.9 rebounds, the Thunder were still seventh in the league with a +1.41 rebounding differential.
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nice rebounding stat - it was truly a by committee approach . . .
But otherwise, I don’t understand the questions about Westbrook.You’ve got a rookie point guard, who is only 20 years old, and didn’t get toplay much point in the past, who averages 15 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists a game for a bad team.
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Another bogus statement - yes we are a bad team (right now) - BUT if you start for a bad team, then YOU are partially responsible for the poor record - the record should not be an excuse . . .
There are about 29 NBA teams that hope the Thunder listens to the skeptics and moves Westbrook off the point.”
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This statement is incorrect on multiple levels . . .