Russell Westbrook, Hamidou Diallo, Terrance Ferguson, Deonte Burton, Devon Hall, and Kyle Singler took their skills to the Rico Hines Run at UCLA. Can’t wait for the season!
And not to be undone, Russell opened up the gym to some of his Thunder teammates for an unofficial pre-training camp practice. If this doesn’t get you hyped for the season, then I can’t help you.
Torrey Hart (Yahoo Sports) on Kevin Durant doing Kevin Durant things.
(Complete sidebar: I love Twitter, but sometimes, when famous people “mobilize their stans” it can get ridiculous and almost threatening. This girl put out a tweet, KD responded knowing his followers would attack, and now there are people trying to hack into her account and threatening her. For as much as Kevin Durant talks of his disdain for Donald Trump, he sure does follow his Twitter formula.)
Colin Ward-Henninger (CBS Sports) grades every team’s offseason, and he rates the Thunder pretty high. Continue reading NTTB Thunder Rumblings – 02 August 2018
Bryan Kalbrosky (HoopsHype) on the possibility of Kevin Durant returning to the Thunder: “Westbrook and Durant played together on the All-Star team last season and they’re currently practicing alongside each other for Team USA. While it’s likely not something they’re constantly discussing, it’s hard to imagine the topic has not even come up in conversation while in such close proximity.”
The Thunder announce their 2018 preseason schedule.
Ti Windisch (FanSided) is not a big fan of Dennis Schröder playing alongside Russell Westbrook: “Billy Donovan will not have it easy with that decision. He might even catch the blame for those two not working together, which is tough. Schroder just isn’t useful without the ball in his hands, and he’s not nearly good enough to justify Russell Westbrook not having it when they’re on the floor together.” Continue reading NTTB Thunder Rumblings – 01 August 2018
Nick Gallo (OKCThunder.com) on the reliability that Raymond Felton provides to the Thunder: “Felton has played all but 4 games over the past three years, for the Mavericks, then the LA Clippers and then the Thunder. This July, the 34-year old Felton re-upped with the Thunder for another run to play behind, and sometimes alongside, Westbrook and newcomer Dennis Schroder in OKC. Few in the league play with as much passion, intensity and fire as the Thunder’s All-Star point guard, but Schroder and Felton provide a similar dynamic as the floor generals for the bench group. Felton and Westbrook built an incredible connection last season that helped shape the locker room.”
Erik Horne (NewsOK) with 7 highlights from Steven Adams’ autobiography: “One of Adams’ older sisters, two-time Olympic shot put gold medalist Valerie Adams, was the only family member with media experience. She suggested the best thing to do was for Steven to say nothing, even thought the stories circulating about his family didn’t accurately depict the caring unit of brothers and sisters who worked together to ensure his future.” Continue reading NTTB Thunder Rumblings -31 July 2018
Erik Horne (NewsOK) looks at Kenny McFadden, the man that make Steven Adams (and New Zealand basketball) what he is today: “The NBA has shifted to a small man’s league, but Adams has thrived because of McFadden, the man who went to New Zealand 35 years ago, dedicated his life to training youth basketball players, and eventually set the foundation for Adams to become one of the league’s most versatile centers.” Continue reading NTTB Thunder Rumblings – 30 July 2018
A couple videos from this past week involving current and former Thunder players at the Team USA Minicamp held in Las Vegas, NV. Enjoy!
There was a lot more Twitter participation on the podcast. Thank you for the questions and keep sending them in. It made for a longer show, but a more entertaining one. Keep it up!
On Episode 38 of the NTTB podcast, we discuss the following topics:
Intro/Outro music provided by OSC Productions
Thank you for listening. We will be doing a podcast once a week. If you have any Thunder or NBA related questions, make sure you hit us up on Twitter (@alexroig_NTTB or @Montero_A13).
We are on ITunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Spotify, and Tune In under the NTTB Podcast. Make sure you leave us a 5-star review if you can. As always, Thunder Up!
Marc J. Spears (ESPN) interviews Paul George on his decision to stay in OKC: “It was absolutely tempting,” George said. “Honestly, I wanted to come back home. But again, I got traded to Oklahoma. Loved the situation. Loved where I was at. I decided to stick around a little longer.”
Jemele Hill (The Undefeated) interviews Carmelo Anthony on his one season in OKC: “To get bought out, to get waived, you were looked at like, you’re done,” said Anthony, who was in Washington, D.C., to attend a private Nike event Wednesday night. “Now, it’s just almost like the norm. If something doesn’t work, go ahead and get a buyout or go ahead and get traded. That’s the new norm in our society in basketball. I had to get over that.” Continue reading NTTB Thunder Rumblings – 27 July 2018
Tim Bontemps (Washington Post) says the Thunder didn’t make a mistake in trading for Carmelo Anthony: “Before the Anthony trade, the Thunder was a franchise in a state of flux. Russell Westbrook had yet to sign a long-term contract extension, and there was no guarantee he would. Paul George had been acquired in a blockbuster trade with the Indiana Pacers three months earlier, giving Oklahoma City a second star to pair with Westbrook after Kevin Durant departed in free agency, but there was no indication George would stick around for the long term.”
Kevin O’Connor (The Ringer) on how the acquisition of Dennis Schröder may help change Russell Westbrook: “But Oklahoma City’s style needs to change, and Donovan knows it. The Thunder have ranked near the bottom of the league in passing metrics—from possession time to assists—during Donovan’s tenure, but he regularly says during his press conferences that he wants better movement.” Continue reading NTTB Thunder Rumblings – 24 July 2018
Adrian Wojnarowski (ESPN) on the Thunder trading Carmelo Anthony to Atlanta in exchange for Dennis Schröder: “Along with Anthony and his $27.9 million expiring contract, the Thunder will send a 2022 protected first-round pick to the Hawks for guard Dennis Schroder and forward Mike Muscala. The 2022 first-round pick is protected 1-14, and becomes two second-round picks if not conveyed in that first year, league sources said.”
Tamberlyn Richardson (Thunderous Intentions) with some takeaways from the Melo trade: “Despite adding two players to the roster (arguably upgrades) OKC will also save $73 million. Additionally, OKC shave their luxury tax hit from $150 million to $88.8 million, a $62 million savings in 2018-19. This could be reduced even further dependent on whether OKC make additional moves. Of note, teams final luxury tax is calculated based on where the team resides with player salaries on last day of season.” Continue reading NTTB Thunder Rumblings – 20 July 2018
Now That's Thunder Basketball 