Friday Bolts – 11.13.09
The podcast returns later today. Have no fear lionhearted friends. You will soon hear my voice again.
Here we go again (@jimtraber says): “The pathetic Bill Simmons was at it again. He must nave pictures of someone at espn. He knows nothing about sports, and thinks he’s funny … Hey Bill… You work for GQ?? Iv’e seen you, and you need to stop dogging others looks, and clothes. Pathetic!! … You knew little dailythunder would come to the rescue. A dude who blogs on a sports he thinks he knows.LOL!! … dailythunder doesn’t listen to what I say, but he sure does listen everyday. I wouldn’t listen to someone I thin is so clueless. Nice life … OHHH, got me there nerd boy!! I guess little thunder boy is sending this to his idol, Simmons. Wow, thats scary.” Traber LOLs. Now that’s scary.
Kevin Durant, doing cool things via Twitter: “Ok ima have a lil trivia question…1st person to answer it right ima send u a nike package…4 pairs of shoes and some hoodies n all dat … Jus gave out like 20 pairs of shoes to some of my tweet fam..now im goin 2 gamestop..ima give summore out tonight to the biggest thunder fan.”
This really interesting piece by John Schuhmann of NBA.com suggests Kevin Durant is VERY clutch.
Everybody is talking about how LeBron James plans to switch his number from 23 to 6 in honor of MJ. As reader MartzMimic pointed out, nobody is currently occupying No. 6 on the OKC roster. Just sayin’.
As you know, the Hornets fired Byron Scott yesterday. Kind of strange because I think OKC folks all held a special place for Coach Scott. He’s a good coach and I’m sure he’ll find another spot very soon.
Zachariah Blott for Empty the Bench: “Although the team is 4-4, three of their wins came against clubs missing stars. Detroit’s Richard Hamilton, Orlando’s Vince Carter and Rashard Lewis, and the Clippers’ Blake Griffin and Eric Gordon never suited up against the Thunder in losses. OKC’s one other win was opening night against the Kings, who then downed the Thunder two weeks later without the services of Kevin Martin (31 ppg). That being said, they are a far cry from the 3-29 record they started with last year and they did manage to take the Pau Gasol-less Lakers to OT.”
Brian Spaeth who used to run the excellent Yay Sports has made a movie and it’s called Who Shot Mamba? It’s pretty solid. It has a very Naked Gun, Hot Shots type of feel. With basketball.
Chad Ford taking an early look at next year’s draft class (Insider): “There isn’t much room for Warren to move up right now. He was ranked by most NBA scouts as a surefire top-10 pick for the 2009 draft and with Blake Griffin gone from Oklahoma, he is now running the show. But it would be criminal if I didn’t point out that every NBA scout I spoke with raved about his performance at the LeBron James Skills Academy this summer. He was the best player there, according to everyone I spoke with. Warren is currently ranked No. 4 on our Big Board.”
Coach Fran has something to say too (Insider): “I always have fancied myself as something of a draft guru, and after 30 years of experience around the game of basketball, including 23 as a college coach and parts of two as an NBA advance scout, I’m positive I’m just as capable of being wrong as the next guy. Evaluating is not an exact science, and even the best miss the mark from time to time. If every NBA general manager nailed every draft selection, every team would end up at .500. Even an educated eye makes mistakes.”
I just feel the need to say it: Tyson Chandler so far this year: 26 minutes per game, 6.8 points per game, 6.9 rebounds per game and 1.25 blocks per game. I believe in Sam Presti.
On Hugging Harold Reynolds, some guy was convinced to be a Thunder fan: “Chris noted that the deciding factor came down to the fact that the team is a novelty and he can start somewhat fresh, “I’d rather root for a team that’s new. I can’t be a Celtics/Bulls fan. I’ll have to check the unis first.”
He was also quite fond of one line: “So welcome to the Thunder family. Have a seat anywhere.”
