TrueHoop Network
An ESPN Affiliate

Daily Thunder.com

Memphis tops Oklahoma City, 99-91

by Royce Young on October 7, 2009 at 8:24 pm 15 Comments

(AP Photo/Lance Murphey)

First off, it’s preseason. We all know this and much like the Summer League, it’s smart to keep things in perspective. But the Thunder played a competitive game tonight where score was kept so there are definitely things to take away from it. Of course, we didn’t get to watch but going off of Matt Pinto’s scintillating call and the box score, there are a few observations to be had. It’s always better to win than lose, but I think Scott Brooks was fine coming out on the bad end in order to get a little experience for his youngest guys.

I’m honestly just relieved we made it through this thing with everyone alive. After Dez Bryant being declared ineligible today, I wondered if this sports year was just cursed in Oklahoma. What was built up to maybe be the biggest year of sports ever in this state has now seen Sam Bradford get hurt, Jermaine Gresham get hurt, Ryan Broyles get hurt, OU lose two games, OSU unexpectedly lose to Houston and now Dez Bryant out for the season potentially. I honestly feared for Kevin Durant’s life tonight. One down. 88 more to go.

Guys that did good
He may not have scored a lot (five points on 0-4 shooting), by when you look at Russell Westbrook’s name in a box score and it says 10 assists and just two turnovers, you should celebrate like it’s 1999. If that’s a sign of things to come, then we’re going to be fine. And by fine, I mean pretty good. In Orlando, it looked like he had slowed down and begun to understand the game. And by all appearances tonight, that’s carrying over to this season. Keep Reading…

Thunder at Grizzlies: Preseason pre-game primer (and chat)

by Royce Young on October 7, 2009 at 11:35 am 65 Comments

vs.

Oklahoma City Thunder at Memphis Grizzlies

TV: None : (
Radio: WWLS The Sports Animal (98.1 FM, 640 AM)
Time: 7:00 CST

View from the enemy: 3 Shades of Blue

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. /satisfiedsigh

We have basketball again. Granted, it is the preseason and it doesn’t really matter, but alas, it’s nice to at least have something. Knowing I have a box score to look at makes me warm and fuzzy on the inside. Shame we don’t get to watch, but we’ll make do.

No sense in deconstructing anything that has to do with anything about this game because 1) It doesn’t matter 2) We don’t really know anything about these two squads yet 3) We don’t know who will be seeing most the playing time and 4) It doesn’t matter.

Injury update: Thabo Sefolosha didn’t travel with the team as he’s sitting out tonight’s game with a mild concussion. Allen Iverson isn’t playing because of a hamstring injury. We probably won’t see any Nick Collison. But good news, James Harden is set to play. Keep Reading…

Wednesday Bolts – 10.7.09

by Royce Young on October 7, 2009 at 8:00 am 28 Comments

Thunder! Basketball! Tonight! Woo.

Reader Dylan sent along this amusing anecdote: “Fun fact: On NBA2k10, Hasheem Thabeet is a 57 overall. Taylor Griffin is a 62.” Your second overall pick everyone!

Somewhat interesting for all you wealthy Thunder fans: “The Ford Center, home of the NBA’s Oklahoma City Thunder, today announced Levy Restaurants as its new premium dining and hospitality partner. The partnership includes management and operation of foodservice in premium areas including the club level bars and restaurants, suite level including the new terrace suites and lounges, courtside club and new bunker suites on the lower level.”

Joel Brigham of HoopsWorld lays out his annual 50 predictions: “1. Kevin Durant will crack the top three in scoring this season … 24. The Oklahoma City Thunder, who won only 23 games last season, will improve upon that total by 15 or more wins in 2009-10.” Keep Reading…

Atlantic Division Blog Previews

by Royce Young on October 6, 2009 at 8:31 pm 2 Comments

Every year, Jeff Clark of CelticsBlog rounds up the NBA blogworld and bands us together in a massive preview tour de force. Or something. The deal is we post our team preview on our day and also share previews for each division. This way you should be completely covered for every NBA team out there. So learn yourself about the Atlantic Division here today. Keep Reading…

The DT Break Room: Tuesday Talk Time

by Royce Young on October 6, 2009 at 12:50 pm 7 Comments

<a href="http://www.coveritlive.com/mobile.php?option=com_mobile&task=viewaltcast&altcast_code=5e08e1eb04" >DT Tuesday Chat</a>

Chat at 3 p.m. Central Standard Time

by Royce Young on October 6, 2009 at 11:39 am 6 Comments

Howdy Thunder groupies. Let’s chat amongst ourselves at 3 o’clock post meridiem. Is that something you might be interested in? Bring your questions, your comments and your silly hats. This will be fun in the sun methinks.

Tuesday Bolts – 10.6.09

by Royce Young on October 6, 2009 at 8:32 am 9 Comments

Another excellent feature from the NYT about OKC’s three “students”: “Westbrook, a second-year guard for the Oklahoma City Thunder, walked in late to a history class this summer at U.C.L.A. As the N.B.A. opens its preseason, Westbrook was among about 45 players — 10 percent of the league — who had traded gym bags for backpacks in the off-season. “The teacher just called my name out: ‘Hey, Mr. Westbrook. Nice to see you. Nice for you to show up,’ ” Westbrook said. “I had to walk all the way to the front and sit on the stage in front of the whole class the whole time. For two hours. I couldn’t go to sleep, couldn’t do nothing. For two hours.”

HoopsWorld nominates the likely Rookie of the Year candidates: “Harden comes to the Thunder after a standout career at Arizona State and should slide right in as the starting shooting guard in Oklahoma City. On a team with several proven scorers at the NBA level (Kevin Durant, Jeff Green, Russell Westbrook and Nenad Krstic to name a few), Harden won’t be anything more than the fourth option on most nights but his feel for the game and ability to catch and shoot should translate into immediate dividends for the Thunder. While he likely won’t wow anyone with eye-popping numbers, Harden should have a solid rookie campaign.”

And we will all respond by saying how “he’s like a little kid out there!” and that “he has so much love for the game!”: “not sure if Im a Favre fan but that highlight where he threw the pass then sprinted to hit the 49er LB was awesome … im now motivated to hit Russ with an outlet this season then sprint down the court and just lay out the opposing pg.” (@nickcollison4) Keep Reading…

John Hollinger on Kevin Durant (and others)

by Royce Young on October 5, 2009 at 1:00 pm 10 Comments

ESPN’s smart guy, John Hollinger, released his 2009-10 player ratings for the season today. He had something to say about every Thunder player, but his comments on Kevin Durant are what most folks are talking about. He said (Insider):

Durant projects to lead the league in points per 40 minutes and to log one of the league’s largest PER increases, a sentiment that most observers would echo based on how he performed in the second half of the season.

The fact he will score is unquestioned; it’s his development in the other phases of the game that will define how high his star ascends. Durant exhilarated observers with his scoring ability last season, but his inability to pass or defend didn’t translate into superstar production. If Oklahoma City is going to turn the corner, it has to start with its marquee player becoming more well-rounded.

Wow. Projects to lead the league in scoring per 40 minutes. Last year, KD averaged 25.6 per 40 minutes (which is basically his average). This year he’s got him at 30.6 points per 40. He’s got his numbers at 49.2 percent from the field, 87.5 from the line and true shooting at 59.2. Rebounds per 40 basically the same, assists about the same (2.8 to 3.1), his usage up to 29.1 and his PER going from 20.85 to 23.50. And as we’ve all said all year long, the second KD rounds out his game (he’s just 21!!!), the second he jumps out of this world. Keep Reading…

Oklahoma City Thunder at Memphis Grizzlies

Headlines