Now that the season is over, I am already thinking about how this team might look come training camp in October. The particulars of course can not be known until they happen, but I thought it might be time to look at the odds of our four free agents coming back for next season or not.
I don’t have any special insight on these matters, I just thought I would examine the salary implications, the fit, and the intangibles surrounding each player and the team going forward.
Desmond Mason : odds for returning 30%
Desmond is in a unique situation in that he’s stated publicly that he would like to be back, and he has connection with the fans from his playing days at Oklahoma State and with the relocated Hornets. He seems to be a positive influence in the locker room, and despite his puny offensive production, the Thunder played some of their best basketball of the season in January with Des in the starting lineup. Des replaced Damien Wilkins as a starter for the Dec. 19th game against the Toronto Raptors. Prior to that game the team had lost 8 straight. As you may remember the Thunder got the win against the struggling Raptors that night. Over the next 6 or so weeks the team had some of it’s best success, but a closer look reveals there is more to the story.
Mason started 18 games during that stretch and the team was 8-10, which was a revelation for the team at the time. But during those 18 games, the Thunder also had it’s easiest schedule of the season. In those 18 games with Desmond as a starter, 10 of the teams we matched up against were sub .500 at the time, and 11 of the games were at home. It should also be noted that in the run up to that win against Toronto, the Thunder had been very competitive, almost getting wins despite Brooks experimenting with Wilcox in the starting lineup for 5 games and Petro for three; so there was a ton of roster changes during this time. Also, after the win against Toronto with Des as the starter, the Thunder lost five consecutive games. Keep Reading…

OKC Thunder will be much better next year. Kevin Durant will be an All-Star, and rookie Russell Westbrook will have another year of adjusting to NBA play under his belt. Imagine if the Thunder land another scorer in the draft?”
our “blogger” awards) I’d go Derrick Rose, Russell, Brook Lopez in that order. David Thorpe’s has had Westbrook as high as one for most of the season in his rankings and consistently in the top three. 




An early look at 2009-2010
I love the offseason. It’s really almost as much fun to me as actually playing games. Moving parts, roster changes, players working on their games, speculating… it’s fun. Time to start looking at who could be here, who might not be and just the overall (and very early) outlook for next season.
By John Mietus
Special to Daily Thunder
It’s a summer of reckoning for the Oklahoma City Thunder. Next season brings renewed optimism and expectation for the club. We as fans of the team must expect things to improve and we must expect to see major changes next year in the win/loss column. The players, who I and many others believe have the right talent to win at the NBA level must piece together “unexpected” victories and become a “surprise” team contending for the playoffs. Progress can only be measured in small increments, but this year’s version of the club has made significant strides during the course of the season. Scott Brooks has done an excellent job keeping the Thunder competitive to the very last week of the season, there is no question that the team had no interest in “tanking” in order to improve draft position. I believe this is good karma for both coach and ball club, not conceding an inch even when making the playoffs is a dream long dead. Brooks continues to demonstrate he is the right man for the job of leading the Thunder into next season.
With 18 losses this year coming by six points or less the Thunder seem primed to better their overall record in 2009-2010. Even a 50% improvement in “close games” would be a major leap forward in the standings. And this belies the fact that the club has yet to fully decide on its roster going forward. We’re sitting on a heaping pile of draft picks, right now based on record: three of the top 34. Considering the success with drafting Russell Westbrook fourth last year and the additions of Jeff Green and Kevin Durant the year before, there’s a good chance the team can add at least one, if not two contributors via the draft alone this offseason. In addition, the Thunder are so far below the salary cap that they’ve got plenty of room to maneuver in that area as well. The sun is shining on Oklahoma City. Keep Reading…