Daily Thunder.com

The preseason schedule is out (all times CST): Wed., October 7 at Memphis 7:00 p.m.; Sat., October 10 at New OrleanscTBD; Mon., October 12 vs. Phoenix 7:00 p.m.; Wed., October 14 vs. Miami 7:00 p.m. in Tulsa, OK; Mon., October 19 at Houston 7:30 p.m.; Tue., October 20 vs. San Antonio 7:30 p.m. in Austin, TX; Thu., October 22 vs. Sacramento 7:00 p.m.

Coach K raved about Kevin Durant’s play yesterday: “Pencil in Kevin Durant for a spot on the 2010 version of Team USA. Better yet, put it in ink. Team USA coach Mike Krzyzewski singled out Durant and showered him with praise following the first day of a three-day mini-camp for a group of 20 young players trying to make the senior national team. Durant was the most dominant player on the floor in the team’s 12-minute scrimmage after the squad spent the bulk of Thursday’s practice working on drills. Friday’s practice was expected to be more focused on scrimmaging.”

A nice story about KD and his developing leadership: “That definitely is not the case for Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder, who have developed a symbiotic duality that all teams wish to have with their franchise player. Durant, who told HOOPSWORLD at the Gatorade Player of the Year ceremonies that he plans to remain in Oklahoma City for the rest of his career because “that’s where [he] started,” has grown in front of everyone’s eyes and – at only 20-years old – has become the team’s leader and the face of the franchise.” Keep Reading…

Not so much a doin’ on the Thunder front today. But worry not ladies and gents, I found a few things for you to peer at on this lovely Wednesday.

A story on Dime about James Harden and his destiny to be  star: “Harden was known as being unselfish (sometimes too much) on an ASU squad that didn’t feature much depth offensively. This will be a huge added benefit to Kevin Durant and Jeff Green. Harden also has a reputation for deferring individual success and credit back towards his teammates. Doing this will not only help the Thunder have a calming presence on the floor, but will also solidify him as a player that teammates love to play with – and that, my friends, will lead to a lengthy career.”

NiceKicks.com has an interview with Kevin Durant: “Last week we caught up with Kevin Durant at the Gatorade Player of the Year Awards honoring the best high school athletes. In this interview, Kevin Durant discusses who inspired him on the on and off court, what he thinks about the controversial “1 year”, and of course a number of sneaker questions you would ask him as well.”

Tim Potvak of FanHouse on the NBA age limit rules: “Don’t you just love it when the politicians put their noses where they don’t belong, knowing they’ll probably screw up things? The NBA has been defending its age-requirement rule – a good rule that would be even better if another year was added — after Congressman Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.) strongly urged the league to scrap it.” Keep Reading…

Sean Deveney looks at who made some sort of impression in Vegas, whether it be good or bad: “Hasheem Thabeet has a long way to go. The fact Thabeet struggled offensively is no surprise. But the fact that he was whistled for 26 fouls while blocking just four shots is worrisome.”

Looks like DeVon Hardin is likely headed back overseas: ”Last year’s 50th overall pick DeVon Hardin could be headed overseas for the 2009-10 season. Hardin still hasn’t signed a contract with the Thunder, and the team might want him to continue his development abroad rather than add the raw 6-foot-11 post player to the roster. “I’m not sure, but I would imagine I’m probably going to have to do another year overseas and then come back and be ready to go next year,” Hardin said. “Of course it’s not exactly what I want to do, but if it happens it’s just another step on my journey.”

A nice little story about how Kevin Durant fits the superstar mold in more ways than one: “What goes into making a superstar NBA player? It’s obviously a combination of talent, size, discipline, intelligence (whether it’s IQ or the basketball version, it’s no matter), and coachability. Kevin Durant gets high marks in all of those categories, and then some. He even has the intangibles that everyone wants in their hometown superstar. He is great in the community, as you might expect, but you know that with Durant, it’s genuine. You know this because his parents are hard-working, intelligent people who raised their son correctly. You know this because he has spent his past two summers taking some summer school classes in order to get a little bit closer to earning his college degree. I don’t know about you, but if I was a multi-millionaire at 20 years old, I certainly would not be spending time in a classroom, earning a degree that I will never put on any resume’. He is a class act, but that’s just the beginning.” Keep Reading…

Kevin Arnovitz of TrueHoop writes about the death of the back-to-the-basket game: “Name one guy here who can can hit a jump hook over their left shoulder,” an NBA assistant general manager asked. “I can’t think of one.” Whether it’s the trickle-down effect of the European game, the rule changes implemented by the league a few years ago, or college teams appropriating Mike D’Antoni-style basketball, the vast majority of the young bigs who were in Las Vegas are face-up players who work either along the perimeter or out of the pinch post: Anthony Randolph, Earl Clark, James Johnson, Taj Gibson, Dante Cunningham, DaJuan Summers, Austin Daye, and even Blake Griffin. Is this a momentary trend, or will the pendulum eventually swing back? “If I were a big man about to enter college, I would develop that back-to-the-basket game,” the executive said. The implication: At some point, those skills will be at a premium, and that kid will be impossible to defend. Forward-looking teams are all about buying low and, right now, traditional post players are undervalued because they don’t conform to the current climate of the NBA game.” Obviously, I agree.

Darnell Mayberry asseses OKC’s youngsters: “Robert Vaden can really stroke it from the perimeter. The 54th pick out of Alabama-Birmingham wasn’t as consistent as he wanted to be this summer, but when he got it going you could see flashes of how the Thunder could use him as a specialist off the bench. The only question is whether Vaden can adapt to becoming an effective scorer while being presented much less opportunities. He struggled in that role in Orlando and Las Vegas, but if he can adapt he could be a great weapon off the bench down the road.” Overlooking the fact that Vaden hit just 8-23 from three and shot just 37 percent overall in 10 games, I would agree.

Nice big story on HoopsWorld talking with Sam Presti: ”We’re around Kevin Durant every day. None of us take for granted the fact that he’s a true team guy and continues to show that, whether it’s working out with guys in the offseason, coming to summer leagues, going through shoot-arounds in the summer leagues”, Presti said. Durant is just about as humble and real as they come. “I saw him do those types of things in his rookie year going back to the University of Texas during the all-star break when he could have been doing other things,” said Presti. “I think that’s just what he’s about.” Keep Reading…