The NBA released the 2013 All-Star ballot and there are five Thunder players listed on it.
On the revamped ballot that has done away with positions and now just has “frontcourt” and “guards,” the Thunder are represented by Kevin Durant (frontcourt), Kendrick Perkins (frontcourt), Serge Ibaka (frontcourt), Russell Westbrook (guard) and Kevin Martin (guard).
You can vote daily on NBA.com, but for the first time ever, you can also vote for players via social media outlets such as Twitter and Facebook as well as Sina Weibo and Tencent QQ in China. Via an official NBA release:
Twitter voting will allow fans to tweet a vote for one player each day throughout the All-Star balloting period. The tweet must include a player’s first and last name, along with hash tag #NBABALLOT. Facebook voting will allow fans to fill out one full ballot (three frontcourt and two guards from each conference) per day, through a custom application on Facebook.
Both Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook were named All-Stars last season, with Durant being voted in a starter for a second consecutive year.
Balloting concludes Jan. 14 with starters being announced on TNT Jan. 17.
http://www.dailythunder.com/2012/11/wednesday-bolts-11-14-12/#more-22856
http://www.dailythunder.com/2012/11/wednesday-bolts-11-14-12/
Great autumn day in Deer Creek. The banner waves effortlessly in a gentle November breeze. Dakota is laying right in the middle of the turkeys and has never looked happier. KMart is Stevie Kerr. Life is good'
Winning is fun.
LET'S GO THUNDER!
i know its popular to dog on perk on here, but am I alone in thinking that I like him in the starting lineup? I think he sets the tone for the defense, and gives us a bit of ... something... that we wouldnt otherwise have. That being said, I don't like him staying in the entire first quarter. I think he should start the first 2 minutes of each half, and play spot minutes when we need him otherwise
@booles I'll be more than happy if OKC trades or amnesties Perkins..His screens are the one thing I hate with a passion..Garnett taught him well on how to use tough and sometimes illegal screens to free up players..watch this highlights...his a big part of the OKC's team IMO
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BR9NF5xK3ko
@kennygee90 @booles Did you just sullinger....yourself?
@BallSoHard @kennygee90 @booles lol yea i did..im about to delete the other one...It wasn't letting me upload the post
@booles i really dont buy this setting the tone thing. attila the hun would add toughness, but we dont want him in the starting lineup. at some point he has to add some tangible value.
@booles Thabo sets the tone for the defense.
@booles
missed rebounds and perk punts really set the tone.
I like some things Perk can do. But he rarely does them. He has a nice quick pass. He can bully most players. He can get to the ft line( because his wind up is SOOOOO slooowwww) but he rarely does them.
@PerkPunt @booles Yeah, booles, I think that Perk probably gets more grief than he really deserves. Most of the problem with his perceptions is how he is used. We use him as a first choice, while he would really be more useful as a reaction. If the other team has a big that is going off, we plug Perk in to stop it.
I think he is a good player to have on our team, and not a bad starter because he does set a tone, but is probably over used
I can't stop chuckling about Perk being on that list.
i mean. what would he do in an all star game? piss everyone off by trying to play defense?
@delolama
He'd run the point a la Shaq!
@D-MC @delolama
Horse. Who else can replicate the Perk-Punt?
@PerkPunt @delolama Rumors are he wants to be in the 3-point contest.
@delolama Give hard fouls. Can you even foul out of an all-star game? Would he pick up a tech in an all-star game to prove a point?
IF Perk can continue is his passing i'd like to see some corner giveNgo plays rans through him with Kmart and Russ.
Tonight will be a test. I actually think Perk (as terrible as hes been) has a big role tonight in this games outcome.
@Lambchop Indeed. If Randolph has his way, then we have a good chance to lose.
@D-MC Yes, hes been known to give Serge fits. Well see if Ibaks man on man defense had improved
@Lambchop @D-MC
is was on another thread.
@PerkPunt @D-MC Sorry if I missed that below
@Lambchop @D-MC
Like i said , if serge holds Randolph in check , then he has my vote for DPOY
I love knowing not only that the Lakers lost, but the winning shot was made with Kobe as the defender
MKG has had a good start to the season but his productivity is not sustainable the way he is playing right now. He's got nearly 20 USG% despite scoring almost exclusively at the rim. He's shooting 62% at the rim and 25% everywhere else. Unless you're a big man, you're not going to be an effective scorer on any sort of meaningful volume with that kind of split.
His blocks seems unsustainable, too. A seven game PER sample seems like a rash way to evaluate his game at the moment, and he wouldn't be a good replacement of Harden that's for sure.
@justin_mia have you watched him play??? He has serious hops and athleticism...he should dunk more than he does now, he usually finishes in traffic with layups..that was his main scoring strength coming out of college...and who exactly in this league is going to be stopping him from getting to the rim?? His shooting is bad and he passes up shots alot ..His rebounding and defense will be at an elite level in a year or too.this dude dominates a game without even touching the ball..He'll be the best defensive sf in the league and his energy and hustle fuels a team...when he fills up his body like Lebron did he'll be a nightmare and terror for everyone..but he really does need to improve his shooting, but no one can stop him at the rim..
@kennygee90 @justin_mia In a year or two would not help the Thunder now. that means he'd have growing pains , yes? That was my argument . I like the kid, no doubt but as an immediate replacement for Harden we did okay. That was my argument .
@FF_pickups @kennygee90 @justin_mia
okay i was wrong about the last line....
@PerkPunt @kennygee90 @justin_mia "To take MKG would've ment giving up on the season or two. I wouldn't do that KD or Russ. That is why Lebron left CLE"
Revisionist history. LeBron left Cleveland because Cleveland DIDN'T try a sustainable tactic. They kept mortgaging the future for overpaid veterans who didn't pan out.
@kennygee90 @justin_mia
To take MKG would've ment giving up on the season or two. I wouldn't do that KD or Russ. That is why Lebron left CLE
@PerkPunt @justin_mia oh if your talking about this year then your right..i missed that..I would rather have K-Mart this year than him..His gotta alot of growing to do..his jumpshot is just too big of a weakness right now
@justin_mia " He's got nearly 20 USG% despite scoring almost exclusively at the rim. He's shooting 62% at the rim and 25% everywhere else."
" A seven game PER sample seems like a rash way to evaluate his game at the moment,"
So let me make sure I get this straight, 7 game samples aren't sufficient when they don't support your argument but they are plenty when they do? Got it.
@FF_pickups I'd say a seven game sample of performance that appears unsustainable would be a rash way to evaluate a player, yes. If MKG can maintain that efficiency and USG while not being able to make a jump shot that'd be very impressive, and he'd be a very unique player. Odds are he's just getting an inordinate amount of attempts at the rim.
@FF_pickups I agree with that. If Martin is allowed to walk I will definitely sour on the trade more than I already am. Either trade him for something at the deadline or re-sign him. I suspect he'll be re-signed. If he's not I'll be yelling about all this along with you.
@justin_mia "While he could be a very nice defensive player, I'm confident that he will not double his block rate from college in his first season in the NBA."
I'm not arguing that he's going to double his block rate. I'm not saying that I wouldn't rather have Harden. All I am saying is that I would rather have him for 4 years on a rookie contract than Martin for one year, Jeremy Lamb and 2 protected first round draft picks.
@FF_pickups While he could be a very nice defensive player, I'm confident that he will not double his block rate from college in his first season in the NBA.
@justin_mia "His current BLK% would also be a record for a wing player 6'8" or shorter."
Like I said before the draft, he's a can't miss player.
@FF_pickups His current BLK% would also be a record for a wing player 6'8" or shorter.
@justin_mia Let's say at the end of this season--everyone in the Thunder Nation is pretty happy at the way the season went...realisticly...what do you think KMart would be looking for in a contract to stay on a championship claiber team like OKC after all those years of playing for shitty teams in Sac and Houston? At the end of the day...I always say...Winning is fun.
@El Prez I don't expect anyone to take less than market value, but it's more likely that someone will after they've played out a a big contract already. If his health is reasonably good I'd shoot for 3/24, and hope for 3/30 or below. But it's possible he could get more elsewhere.
@justin_mia @PerkPunt @El Prez There should be more of a gap between the deserve the max guys and the next tiers down than there is.
@justin_mia @PerkPunt @El Prez At least half of the SGs making over $8 mil and overpaid / not good values right now.
@justin_mia @PerkPunt @El Prez I think it will take a biddding war for Martin to get much more than $8 mil / yr. But the Thunder will probably offer less than $6 mil /yr.
@justin_mia @PerkPunt @El Prez Sign n trade is a possibility.
@PerkPunt @El Prez No. Tony Parker signed for 3/37.5 so we can say he's lower than that. Steve Nash 3/28. Jeff Green and Thaddeus Young (both younger) 4/36 range.
Thornton and Afflalo both got 3/24 guaranteed. Martin's on a tier right above them. So I'd say 3/30 would be his value, considering age and injury history.
@justin_mia @El Prez
So in the 8-10 mil range. That's my projection. his current salary is not his value anymore.
@justin_mia MKG ceiling is probably scottie pippen lite, but that's his celing and hes far away from it anyway.
He does seem like he will be a good defensive player, but wing defenders aren't worth Harden IMO. Those are easier to find than an offensive talent like Martin.
@justin_mia "He does seem like he will be a good defensive player, but wing defenders aren't worth Harden IMO. Those are easier to find than an offensive talent like Martin."
You guys don't live in reality. We CAN'T SIGN Martin so it's not worth talking about. He'll be worth too much money. Just like we COULDN'T sign Harden. The question isn't who's better between MKG and Harden, it's what is the best that we can afford?
@FF_pickups @justin_mia Martin salary could fall within a wide range. It depends greatly on GM subjectivity, team situation and the way the overall marketplace shakes out.
@FF_pickups @justin_mia They will probably pay very little for SG next summer.
@El Prez "I'll say it again...Winning is fun. Ask Tony Parker if you doubt me."
I hope you are right but I wouldn't count on it. For every Tony Parker you can name, I can name you ten James Harden's.
Since we're into Chicago Bulls analogies on here today..we already have MJ and Pippen in KD (when he snarls) and BLD. We have our Horace Grant in Serge. What we may need is a Stevie Kerr when all is said and done who has ice water in his veins. Hello KMart.
Before we get too carried away on here determining what KMart's value is and isn't--he played his college ball at Western Carolina, then with the hapless Kings and Rockets...now he's all the sudden the fourth member of the Fab Four.....
I'll say it again...Winning is fun. Ask Tony Parker if you doubt me. Plus--I think KMart can live on less what without the yacht parties and having to make it rain in NBA city strip bars.
@FF_pickups @justin_mia He might get 11 mil/year 1st year of his contract with declining numbers after that. ( http://www.draftexpress.com/nba-contract-calculator?tsalary=30&years=3 look at the same team, descending contract).
@FF_pickups I really don't see the market for Martin that will pay him $12M a season, looking at the other contracts signed. Teams usually overpay RFA's, like Batum and Gordon - players who have upside. Martin doesn't, and he has an injury history. I don't see it.
@ou_sas @justin_mia
Trust me, I hope that I am wrong because I like Martin on our team but I will be very surprised if he doesn't get 12 m/yr
@justin_mia The argument that teams pay a certain amount for shooting guards is absurd. They pay for production. And Martin is going to be extraordinarily effective on this Thunder team
@justin_mia If the Thunder come even close to having the kind of success they've had the last 2 years (and I think they will), I think that Martin is going to be willing to negotiate. He's already said that he's always dreamed of being in a situation like this. I don't think he'll let go of it easily.
@FF_pickups @justin_mia Tony Parker is a max player. So why does he take less and play for San Antonio? Because winning is fun.
Two SG's a tier below Martin just got 3/24 (Afflalo and Thornton). The only two SG's that got max were RFA's an young (Gordon and Harden). Martin is somewhere in between those two, but I'm guessing closer to the 3/24 than the 4/50 considering his age and injury history. SG is not a position that teams break the bank for in the NBA right now.
@FF_pickups @justin_mia I felt Harden was likely a max player, and hoped that Ibaka would take 10mil/year... but wasn't optimistic about it. Martin's contract situation is something that we've not had to deal with yet on the Thunder - a vet player who's already made cash elsewhere but is more than a role player. Some of my suggested numbers (like 3/24, for example) may be pipe dreams, but I don't expect him to take in the 10.5-12 mil range again either.
@justin_mia Nash is a point guard who is almost 40. Tony Parker is a max contract player if he wanted it. Gerald Wallace isn't the offensive player that Martin is. People pay for offense.
@FF_pickups @ou_sas I was not saying that.
@ou_sas @justin_mia
Yeah and all of you guys were saying that Harden and Ibaka were 10 million a year players. Perception is not reality. It's not because you are wrong about their relative value, it's because there is a max contract. If there were no max, LeBron would get 40 million a year and Harden wouldn't get 15 but because LeBron can only make 16 million a year, they have to spend it somewhere, it's on guys like Harden and Martin.
@FF_pickups There's no way in the world Martin will get $12M a year as a UFA. Look at what other SG's got this offseason. Nash didn't even get $12M a year. Gerald Wallace made an All Star game and didn't pull $12M a year. Tony Parker's extension is barely more than $12M a year.
@FF_pickups @justin_mia He's also sliding from a staring role to a sixth man role, probably playing slightly fewer minutes. That should figure in somewhere. It probably depresses his salary expectations from what you're suggesting at least somewhat.
@justin_mia "Martin's next contract even if he pursues the best offer in UFA will likely be 1/2 or close to 1/2 of what James Harden got. What do you think Martin will get in free agency? SG's except the elite ones don't get huge contracts."
He makes 12.4 million per year and has a reputation of not being able to win. When the Thunder make noise in the postseason, that detraction goes away. He's going to be very efficient in this offense and he'll easily command another 12 million/year contract.
@FF_pickups Martin's next contract even if he pursues the best offer in UFA will likely be 1/2 or close to 1/2 of what James Harden got. What do you think Martin will get in free agency? SG's except the elite ones don't get huge contracts.