Monthly Archives: August 2018

Thunder At A Glance – 24 August 2018

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img_4063Dan Feldman (NBC Sports) on the Thunder’s spending ways this offseason: “Oklahoma City is on pace to pay more than $93 million in luxury tax next season, which would be a record. Perhaps, the Thunder will stretch Kyle Singler. That could drop them below the $90 million-plus the Nets paid in luxury tax in 2014. But Oklahoma City is in the same range despite not nearing Brooklyn in market size.”

Shannon Sharpe (Fox Sports)on Russell Westbrook’s unfair reputation. Continue reading Thunder At A Glance – 24 August 2018 →

Thunder At A Glance – 23 August 2018

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img_4063Charlotte Edmonds (The Observer) with a piece on Russell Westbrook that will have many of us nodding our heads in agreement: “I’m not trying to suggest that Westbrook is a great player by virtue of his commitment to one team. By that logic, Udonis Haslem would’ve been inducted to the Hall of Fame by now. Rather, I’m arguing that players like Westbrook represent one of the things that are still great about sports — standing by a community instead of trading in a “sacred legacy for cheap jewelry,” in the words of Reggie Miller.”

Micah Adams and Scott Rafferty (NBA.com) look at Kobe Bryant’s top 40 rivals as he turns 40 years of age: “Some of the biggest names in today’s NBA see shades of Kobe when they watch Westbrook. Even Kobe sees it. According to Lakers Nation, Kobe said Westbrook is the player who reminds him the most of himself. “When I turn on the TV and I watch players play, the player that plays with the same kind of emotion and grit and competitive intensity is Russell.” Continue reading Thunder At A Glance – 23 August 2018 →

Thunder At A Glance – 22 August 2018

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img_4063Alex Kennedy (HoopsHype) interviews Jerami Grant about this upcoming season: “I’ve definitely had my ups and downs when it comes to my shooting. I’ve shot the ball well one year, then [my percentage] may go down a little bit the next year. Then it may go up again and then down again the following year. One thing I’ve learned from experience is that you have to get game reps in during the summer. This summer, I’ve been trying to get as many game reps in as possible, shooting the ball quickly and trying to get a lot of pick-up in to simulate real-time game speed. There’s a big difference between shooting in workouts and shooting in games, which is why I’m trying to get games reps this summer.”

Nick Gallo (OKCThunder.com) on Jerami Grant, the finisher: “To be fair, some of Grant’s growth is just natural, and has come with physical maturation and added experience. He was just 22 years old when he joined the Thunder on November 1, 2016. Heading into his third year, he’s a 24-year-old with 6,621 minutes of regular season playing time in 303 professional games. Confident in his role and his abilities, Grant has earned the trust and formed bonds with team leaders like Russell Westbrook and Steven Adams, along with Paul George, who also re-signed with the Thunder this offseason.” Continue reading Thunder At A Glance – 22 August 2018 →

NTTB Thunder Rumblings – 21 August 2018

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img_4063The Thunder will continue their long-standing relationship with WWLS: The Sports Animal: “The Sports Animal has been a tremendous and loyal partner since our inception in Oklahoma City in 2008. The station’s strong listener base and powerful reach have made it the ideal radio partner. We are excited to continue this successful relationship,” said Dan Mahoney, the Thunder’s vice president of broadcasting.”

Brady Trantham (The Franchise) on how new assistant coach Bob Beyer could help the Thunder: “With the Pistons, Beyer was pivotal in influencing the switch from a heavy based pick-and-roll offense for the first three years of his tenure in Detroit into a motion attack.” Continue reading NTTB Thunder Rumblings – 21 August 2018 →

Thunder At A Glance – 8.20.18

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Steven Adams strumming a guitar because, of course, how could this guy not be more awesomer?????

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Russell Westbrook had himself some fun at the JH (James Harden) Town Charity Basketball Game in Houston. A couple observations: For those of you wanting Westbrook to take it easy in the offseason, he isn’t listening to you. And number two, I’m saddened that we never got to see Westbrook and Harden develop into their primes together.

NTTB Thunder Rumblings – 20 August 2018

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img_4063Nick Gallo (OKCThunder.com) on the resilliency of Andre Roberson during his rehab process: “At the beginning of August, he joined some teammates in Los Angeles for informal workouts, participating in what he could. A couple weeks later, he ran. He didn’t get very far, but that’s because his sprinting came on a high-speed treadmill. It was a proud moment that Roberson showed to the world on Instagram, and a sign that even if Roberson isn’t completely back to 100 percent, both his health and his confidence are heading that direction.”

A great piece by Brett Dawson (NewsOK) on how the last 10 years of Thunder basketball have helped shape Oklahoma City: “According to data provided to the Thunder by the city, each home game translates to $1.5 million in economic impact for OKC. That’s almost $700 million since the team arrived in 2008. Since the Thunder arrived, downtown’s residential growth has outpaced the city’s as a whole. There are more than 5,000 residential units downtown, a dramatic increase since 2008.” Continue reading NTTB Thunder Rumblings – 20 August 2018 →

The Thunder’s Summer of Love

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abrines dre weddingIf the Oklahoma City Thunder’s summer could be encapsulated into one word, that word would be “love”. Not that smooshy, Barney-inspired “I love you, you love me” love. No. What the Thunder have shown this offseason is love that is running hand in hand with their maturing nature. This isn’t a bunch of 20-somethings planning how they are going to get laid on a Saturday night. It’s not Thunder U, anymore. The Thunder’s core is past the point where words like love, marriage, and monogamy are just reserved for the 12-year vet at the end of the bench. They are, in a word, getting older.

As fans, we sometimes view athletes as overgrown teenagers with huge allowances. Man-children looking for the next great thrill after the game. A player gets into a bar fight: Oh, that’s just boys being boys. A players ends up with 8 children from 6 different women. Welp, that’s athletes for you. We celebrate the man’s man, living the single, athlete life vicariously through our favorite ball players. Continue reading The Thunder’s Summer of Love →

NTTB Thunder Rumblings – 16 August 2018

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img_4063Lawrence George (Thunderous Intentions) on why the Vegas odds differ from those of ESPN’s Kevin Pelton: “Westgate lines from Vegas and Pelton’s projections tell two different stories. Vegas expect Oklahoma City to improve while KP predicts the Thunder to be the same or slightly worse despite trading Anthony and acquiring a number of young assets.”

Brian Mazique (Forbes) on Russell Westbrook’s 2K rating: “This just might be the most accurate representation of Westbrook we’ve seen in any sports video game. Previous years, we’ve seen some questionable renders surface for Westbrook, but this one is probably the benchmark. Westbrook is coming off his second straight season averaging a triple-double.” Continue reading NTTB Thunder Rumblings – 16 August 2018 →

NTTB Thunder Rumblings – 15 August 2018

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img_4063Tamberlyn Richardson (Thunderous Intentions) on Corey Brewer’s interview with Aaron Torres: “Brewer says Russell Westbrook is one of the most positive players he’s ever had as a teammate and what people say about Russ being driven isn’t just idle talk. It’s often been discussed by his teammates, but Brewer mirrors the notes of how incredible of an athlete Russ is.”

Steven Adams made the richest New Zealander list for the first time (via NewsHub): “Adams is included for the first time, coming in at the bottom of the list with a net worth of $50 million. He’s halfway through a four-year $145 million dollar deal with the Oklahoma City Thunder in what is the largest contract ever signed by a New Zealand athlete.” Continue reading NTTB Thunder Rumblings – 15 August 2018 →

NTTB Thunder Rumblings – 14 August 2018

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img_4063Erik Horne (NewsOK) on the Thunder signing Tyler Davis to their final 2-way contract: “Davis (6-foot-10, 265 pounds) averaged 13.4 points, 7.4 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game in three seasons at Texas A&M. Davis’s signing was first reported by Shams Charania of Yahoo! Sports.”

Alex Miller (Dallas News) looks at Tyler Davis’ draft journey: “Davis went undrafted in June’s NBA Draft, but soon signed a deal with the Brooklyn Nets and stayed with the team through Summer League action. In four Summer League games with the Nets, Davis averaged 11.0 points and 4.5 rebounds per game.”

Berry Tramel (NewsOK) on the Thunder having a case of the Mondays: “One side effect is more games on week nights. One benefit is fewer home games bunched together. One of the major commitments of Thunder ticket-holders is time. When the Thunder hosts three or four home games in a seven- or eight-day span, it taxes fans’ ability to get to the arena.” Continue reading NTTB Thunder Rumblings – 14 August 2018 →