Free agency is dying down, summer ball is over, but the NBA Talk is still strong at Thunderground Radio. This week we take a look around the NBA in our returning segment “What Up With That” where we discuss: Chris Paul’s trade demands, the signing of Royal Ivey, Team USA, Presti re-upping, and of course KHAN!!!!
Then we interview “The voice of the Thunder” Brian Davis for some good Thunder talk. This is our first episode as the official podcast of ESPN True Hoop affiliate Daily Thunder so make sure to leave a comment and check back daily for constant Thunder info.
Episode Breakdown:
- 00:00-17:30: What Up With That? (CP3 leaving, Ivey signing, Team USA, Presti and Khan)
- 17:30-38:30: Interview with Brian Davis
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Jax Raging Bile Duct :@Joel
Both the name and the picture are from fight club.
Haha, and all this time I thought it was Nathan Lane from "Birdcage".
@Joel
Both the name and the picture are from fight club.
@ Jax Raging Bile Duct...ya, Brian Davis is first class. Btw..is your pic Brad Pitt from The Mexican or Oceans 11?
Just wanted to say that I thought it was classy that BD gave you guys an interview.
@f5alcon
But we don't "do like" the Timberwolves and Garnett. McHale as GM squandered 3 first round draft picks in the Joe Smith debacle, traded away good guys like Ray Allen and Brandon Roy, and traded for malcontents like Stephon Marbury and Latrell Sprewell.
Presti will build around his superstar the right way, hoarding future draft picks even when there isn't an obvious need (Tibor Pleiss and that Clippers first round pick will be useful at some point) and drafting selfless, character guys. A headcase like Marbury or Sprewell wouldn't have a chance in hell of making the Thunder roster.
Presti will get Durant championships.
I'm reserving judgement on whether I think they will contend for or win a Championship.
There are a LOT of things that have to fall in to place for a championship run. Personally, I would not be surprised if the Thunder fail under the bright lights after an injury bug or some other issues. Nor would I be (that) surprised if they won it all. I just don't know.
Royce Young :@justinBut if the end result is 21 and you win $1,000,000, does it really matter?
Sure, it matters. It'd be thrilling if the team won a title this way because of the odds stacked against them. It wouldn't change the facts, though, that at this point looking at prior champions this team falls short unless they get lucky. I wouldn't flip-flop if this team won something as-is.
the thing is there is no guarantee we ever win a title, this experiment of presti using all young players that grow together is interesting, it might work, or we might end up 6 seed or worse for the next decade, everybody drinks the thunder kool-aid now when we are pretty good beating expectations, what if we do like the wolves and garnett and spend 5 6 7 years losing in the first rd? how long before frustration sets in?
the anonymous was me...Joel
@justin
But if the end result is 21 and you win $1,000,000, does it really matter?
Even if the team does win s title this season, it wouldn't change the fact that it was a longshot and required many things to go right. I'd stand by my opinions.
You can hit on 18 and catch a 3, doesn't mean it was a great decision.
@j-mo
Let's be fair, if anyone comes out saying the Thunder are going to win the championship next year, on this blog or elsewhere, even the biggest fans around here would call them crazy. Development may be enough for some players to jump to the level this team needs to win it all. It may not. But, even if it is, I don't think anyone expects it to happen as early as next year. Harden might make a decent jump, but Ibaka has too long a way to go before he is the frontcourt presence we need.
Justin,
I'm not going to go out on a limb and call it right now, but IF, IF, IF, IF the Thunder should win it all this next year, you had better not be saying anything like "I saw it from the start that this team had it in them and would be special." or anything like that. You don't seem like someone that would say this, but I'm just putting it out there...
justin :
j-mo :It seems that many comments at DT just assume that we don’t have the pieces right now to be a Championship contender. We are the youngest team in the league and I’ve heard of no one that says we played poorly against LA in the first round of the playoffs. Can someone tell me why the perspective of DT commenters (many, not all) is that the Thunder aren’t contenders right now? I think we are.
Compare the Thunder to champion teams in the last decade and they fall way short. The offense is below average and the defense is not good enough to compensate. We have a good team with a lot of nice pieces but we’ll need a third star player to push the team over the hump. You need to make a lot of assumptions about player development if you’re going to project the team ‘as-is’ to contender status.
Good post. In the end, all of our debates and disagreements are all about the Thunder getting better and us having a passion for the team.
OT
I just got back from Grapevine, Texas at Great Wolf Lodge water-park with my family (Mom, brother, wife, son and daughter) and we ALL sported our Thunderware every chance we had...no really, like I brought nothing but Thunder gear. That's all I packed ;)
It felt good to get positive feedback about our team/state in Texas. As an OU fan, I really like the fact that my friends that are OSU, Texas, Kansas, or whoever- can come together with our NBA squad and have a common team to cheer for. I guess I'm still in awe of having our own pro team that we can be proud of.
GO THUNDER!!
@Lee
My Durant comment was more of a hypothetical than an actual worry of mine. I'm just saying why not hold someone to their word, especially when they signed it on a legally binding document?
As far as the Hornet's blogger, I'll go back and listen. But the impression I got from him was that Collison was a quality starter, not a star. And Paul is closer to being a superstar then star, the drop off from Paul to Collison is significant as demonstrated by NO's trip to the lottery. There is no guarantee that you will get an all-star back for Paul, especially with teams well aware of his desire to leave. Why give up something significant if you can wait it out and sign him in a year or two? He's stealing the majority of NO's leverage with this public spectacle (him being under contract is their only leverage left). And I don't think getting Paul off the books is a big favor. You expect to pay the best PG in the league max salary don't you? It's the other salaries that are hurting this squad. I don't see how they are threatening to derail his career though. They've tried to build a strong contender around him, it hasn't worked thus far, so they're trying other options. I just don't like stars begging to get out every time things go a little bit south, it's not good for small market teams.
I do completely agree with your assessment of how James' leaving is different then Paul's. LBJ definitely strung the cavs along, but to me this is a pretty big act of disloyalty that all but erases any history of good will Paul had with the Hornets.
A little choked, Brad?? I'd be down right pissed.
@Brad
I think that you are selling Chris Paul short. I remember on your podcast, the gut from The Hornets Blog talking about how darren Collison is a "Star" and how if Chris Paul leaved it wouldnt be the end of the world. Chris Paul leaving NO would do them an IMMENSE favour by leaving. Cap Space wise, they would balance their books AND get another allstar to build around collison and Thornton.
Lebron saw out his contract But stung them around for around two years. Paul has been loyal, but bad moves by the Hornets Fron ffice are threatening to derail his career. I Didnt get the impression that NO would be burning Cris Paul Jerseys in the future. He wants to compete, He wants to win. Kobe has Gasol, Odom, Bynum And Artest. Pierce had KG and Allen. And Durant Will have Westbrook, Aldrich, Harden Who are ALL top 10 picks. Not to mention guys like Ibaka and Sefalosha who are great complementary players. Dont forget He will have more help than guys like Paul and James will ever Get. So maybe we need to put this in perspective. Paul has been loyal. Its not like he's going for free.
justin :
Interesting stuff but I disagree strongly on Chris Paul. NOH wasn’t doing anything to help that guy out and he’s in a pretty rotten situation. LBJ had the best record in the league and a contending team, CP3 probably won’t get that in NOH. Don’t blame him at all for wanting out of there.
I hate what LBJ did, but I'm not sure their situations were that drastically different. The Hornets almost made the playoffs in a tough western conference with CP3 being injured for almost the entire season. I'd be willing to say the Hornets without CP3 are better then the Cavs without LBJ. They were considered contenders at best, or at least a top level playoff team just 2 seasons ago. When you look at the supporting cast that CP3 played for VS what LBJ played along side you have to at least say they are on par. David West is probably better then any guy James teamed up with. Chandler and Okafor are better then any big man pared up with LBJ as well. Both franchises spent themselves silly trying to build around these superstars... the situation is actually surprisingly similar in that they both spent themselves into a corner to appease their stars. The only difference is that Chris Paul is still under contract.
Why don't we expect more from professional athletes? Why can they sign a legally binding document to play for a particular team for x amount of years and then if things don't go perfectly, demand to get out of it by whining publicly in the media? I don't know about you guys, but if Presti made a couple of bad moves I'd be a little choked if Durant demanded publicly to leave because he agreed to play here for 5 more years!
@Joel i think j-mo said best what i should've said, lol. I just don't see any quality veterans out there right now that are better options than just sticking with the guys they have. Nick Collison is an underrated championship-level veteran in my opinion, and Ollie isn't a great player but he's been to the finals and is respected as a veteran on this team. Plus as these guys go to war together they'll become veterans themselves. I think the Thunder could go out and get guys like Joe Smith back, or maybe Oberto, but those guys haven't accomplished much more than the players they already have.
I'm saying this especially as a Mavs fan. Cuban throws his hands up and changes the whole team (except Dirk) every other year, so we have had "veterans" coming in and out the door since Nash left. I think Presti's focus on chemistry is the opposite of what we (and the Cavs) have failed on in the past, and I think it's gonna work for you guys.
j-mo :It seems that many comments at DT just assume that we don’t have the pieces right now to be a Championship contender. We are the youngest team in the league and I’ve heard of no one that says we played poorly against LA in the first round of the playoffs. Can someone tell me why the perspective of DT commenters (many, not all) is that the Thunder aren’t contenders right now? I think we are.
Compare the Thunder to champion teams in the last decade and they fall way short. The offense is below average and the defense is not good enough to compensate. We have a good team with a lot of nice pieces but we'll need a third star player to push the team over the hump. You need to make a lot of assumptions about player development if you're going to project the team 'as-is' to contender status.
It seems that many comments at DT just assume that we don't have the pieces right now to be a Championship contender. We are the youngest team in the league and I've heard of no one that says we played poorly against LA in the first round of the playoffs. Can someone tell me why the perspective of DT commenters (many, not all) is that the Thunder aren't contenders right now? I think we are.
@Clifton...you're list of players is the exact thing that the thunder need to put them over the top and make 'em championship contenders. Like what Charles Oakley did with McGrady and Carter (if they had stayed together). He gave them toughness and veteran wisdom.
(That's the best example i can think of who was a young team that was on the rise that woulda had a chance if their stars had the same attitude as KD.)
BTW i am Tydude that they gave the shoutout to
good podcast again guys
Great podcast guys! Brian Davis is such a wonderful part of the Thunder organization, and I hope he stays for many years to come, to grow organically of course. I'm curious as to your thoughts on Tyson Chandler. He would appear to be a perfect fit for the Thunder. As for CP3, no thank you, we'd have to give up waaay to much.
I think we need one more year to develop talent, see what we have, then sign a few guys who will see thefloor and cut ties with some young guys who don't live up to excpectation.
I disagree on the topic of picking up veterans NOW instead of letting the chemistry continue building. I think Presti knows that championship teams don't just have veterans, but they have 1 of 2 types: either former elite players who are now old, or vets who have won championships and can offer guidance. The Heat had guys like 'Zo and GP, the Lakers always keep the Horrys and Fishers; the Spurs brought in guys like Steve Smith, Kevin "Raptor Arms" Willis, and the like. Even the late '90s bulls had Rodman, Salley and James Edwards from the 'Bad Boy' Pistons. My point is...who are those guys right now? I don't see any veterans with championship experience OR with great talent in the past. Unless you want Shaq........
I'd have expected Davis to have some better courtside stories.
Interesting stuff but I disagree strongly on Chris Paul. NOH wasn't doing anything to help that guy out and he's in a pretty rotten situation. LBJ had the best record in the league and a contending team, CP3 probably won't get that in NOH. Don't blame him at all for wanting out of there.