Daily Thunder.com

Nine days until the lottery. Go to your local Catholic establishment and find some holy water and start sprinkling it everywhere.

USA Today’s No Defense team: “G/F Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City Thunder: Made an incredibly strong run at No-Defense Player of the Year to follow up his very deserving No-D Rookie of the Year nod last year. I don’t get it-long arms, great talent . . . yet the numbers scream out that he’s an awful defender.”

A story about Shaun Livingston where he talks about his involvement with the movie industry: “When the credits roll to the motion picture “Next Day Air” there will be a familiar name that scrolls across the screen. Thunder point guard Shaun Livingston served as one of the film’s executive producers, which was released in movie theaters on Friday. The movie stars Mike Epps, Wood Harris, Donald Faison and hip hop recording artist Mos Def. “We had a hand in it,” Livingston said via cell phone from Miami, where he concluded a three-day workout with Thunder player development assistant Brian Keefe. “It was minimal, as far as creative control. But we were there and we were in it.”

Would you look at that – Livingston’s even got an IMDB page: He’s got two appearances on Rome Is Burning and is also a produer for 2009′s Pastor Brown. Quite a page he’s got there. Keep Reading…

I enjoyed the read over at NBAdraft.net on the main page today, it is full of little draft rumor gems. With the draft lottery just about  a week and a half away, I am getting pretty excited. I was trying to decide if this year’s draft will be more important to the franchise than last year’s draft was. I think after reflection the answer is that it depends. It depends on how we fare at the lottery. If we get the top pick or the second pick, then yes, I think it is. The player we get with 1 or 2 will likely be a 40 mpg player for us for years to come, and as important as any other player on the roster in years. If we get picks 3 through 7, it becomes less sure.

 At pick 3, a guy like Harden could be a bonafide starting SG for years, but maybe Presti makes us all fall out of our chairs with a pick like Hasheem Thabeet……I don’t think Thabeet will ever be a 40mpg player in the NBA, and if he is, it will be a few years down the road, that much is for sure in my opinion. Also at 3-7, a guy like Stephon Curry would help this team immensely with ball handling and shooting, but it’s not a sure bet that he would even start, or ever start consistently. He seems like an offense off the bench/backup point guard to me at the moment. 

For those reasons, I think last year’s high lottery pick of Westbrook, in a very solid draft was more important, but, if we get a top 2 pick this year, in a weak 2 man draft, then this year would be more important.

Anyway, according to the NBAdraft.net article, the rumor is that the Knicks have given guarantees to Curry Keep Reading…

Bill Simmons has started his campaign for the Timberwolves GM position and he’s got a plan – the Thunder model: “Guys I would build around: Jefferson, Love, Brewer, Foye, 2009 No. 1 pick. My game plan: Emulating how Presti rebuilt the [Thunder].” Seriously though, consider me as part of Simmons’ street team. I think it’s a great idea. This is one of those things that people can’t really decide if he’s completely serious or not, but I think he his. And I think he’d do a pretty good job. The guy knows basketball. He just does. Heck, he’s got a 700 page book about it coming out in a few months. Of course it could just be 700 pages of Teen Wolf and Shawshank analogies, but still. So much of being a GM is making well-executed moves that are crafted with purpose and vision (see: Presti, Sam). And I think Simmons could follow that route. As penance, you can make me assistant to the traveling secretary. I’ve always been jealous of George Costanza’s job.

Ah, bad news for Team Simmons: “The Minnesota Timberwolves have offered a contract to former Pacer’s executive David Kahn, and according to conflicting reports he could be named the new Vice President of Basketball Operations or he could carry some other title, with Fred Hoiberg being named VP of Operations. Neither the Wolves nor Kahn have been able to be reached for comment. However it seems Kahn will be joining the Wolves in a senior leadership capacity.”

The Thunder will play a preseason game against the Spurs in Austin: “The Oklahoma City Thunder will play the San Antonio Spurs in a preseason game next season in Austin, Texas. The Oct. 20 game will be played at the Erwin Center. It will serve as a homecoming for Thunder star Kevin Durant, who played one season for Texas before entering the NBA. The Oklahoma City franchise selected Durant with the second overall pick in the 2007 draft. The Longhorns retired Durant’s No. 35 jersey in February during a halftime ceremony of a game against Texas A&M.” Keep Reading…