Somewhere Over Thunder's Rainbow...

Ironically, a team that comes from one of the most rain-prone cities in the US, now finds itself being pounded by Thunderous losses, night in and night out. While teams like Boston, Clelveand and Los Angeles have 6 or less losses, Oklahoma is hoping to get that many wins right about now. Definitely a team in transition and in search of identity, but not a team without potential cornerstones for success.

USA Today takes a look at one of the few bright spots amongst the hurting Thunder, with rookie Russell Westbrook. Westbrook earned rookie of the month honors in December, and admits he didn't even know such an award existed. Still the rookie doesn't mind winning it as his play alongside Kevin Durant's has given the team some hope for the future. Right now last year's 4th overall draft pick, Westbrook, ranks third in scoring for rookies, right behind two ROY candidates in Derrick Rose & OJ Mayo. Westbrook's name isn't part of the talks for that season award quite yet, but should he continue his current path he might have a shot.

Currently, OKC is bottom of the NBA barrel, winning just 4 games, while losing 30. They've become that team that other teams see coming up on the schedule and realize they can breathe easy and pick up an extra W. Just the other night, Kevin Durant did showcase a bit of that competitive nature though, and hit a huge 3 against Denver in the final seconds. The only problem was Denver's Carmelo Anthony came right back to seal the Thunder's fate, hitting a game winning 3 of his own. The Nuggets left the court all smiles while once again the Thunder could simply shake their heads.

But this is to be expected from a team that is in all senses of the term, an expansion team. Their coach Scott Brooks even had a taste of that expansion life when he played for the Minnesota Timberwolves, who ironically are slightly better than Oklahoma is this season. Over at TheSpoof.com they go as far as to fake a rumor that Kove Bryant might be traded to the Thunder, but only when Cuba becomes our 51st state. While they don't have a household name like Kobe, the Thunder's Westbrook and Durant are stars in the making who definitely give life to a young, talented squad and show promise for the future. The New York Times has a recent article which mentions that even if W's aren't there in Oklahoma, fans still show up but they're only concerned with the home games.

From NYTimes:

“Our fan base is still really not in tune with the rest of the league and even our team on the road,” Cornett said. “I don’t get the sense that if you walked into a restaurant and our team is playing a road game, that it’s a given that they are going to be playing it on TV. The market just hasn’t matured in that respect. To them, the N.B.A. is 41 home games, and the rest will take time to develop.”

So the fans are half into the team. Now the team needs to get more than just 2/5 of the team to give way more than 50% effort to cross that .500 mark within a few seasons.

Read Westbrook's honor gives dismal Thunder a bright spot at USA Today

PJ Carlesimo feels the Thunder!

When it rains it pours, especially for the Thunder. The Oklahoma City NBA transplant from Seattle axed head coach PJ Carlesimo following Friday night's loss to New Orleans. The game televised on ESPN saw the Hornets bench play out the fourth, en route to a 105-80 drubbing of OKC. The Thunder currently have a 1-12 record, one of the worst, if not worst in the NBA. The team's bright spot is Kevin Durant, who outdid most rookies most of last season, while playing for a dismal Seattle Sonics team. Eventually it was approved for the team to change cities for 2008-09, bringing basketball back to Oklahoma City once more. The Hornets played games there in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and may give inspiration to the turnaround of a team in dismay. Last season saw the young, talented New Orleans squad take San Antonio to the limits in the playoffs.

Taking over for Carlesimo will be his assistant Scott Brooks, former NBA player who won a championship with Houston in 1994. Assistant Paul Westhead was also let go with Carlesimo. Oklahoma has been playing in a new home with new uniforms and relatively young talent, such as Kevin Durant. The team had plenty of buzz heading into the season, with season tickets selling out in just 5 days. To his defense, Carlesimo inherited a team that was hurt by the trades of big name stars, Ray Allen & Rashard Lewis. Expecting the type of quick turnaround that New Orleans had is a bit unreasonable for now. Their squad benefitted from the addition of ultra-PG Chris Paul, as well as Peja Stoyakovic, Tyson Chandler, David West and Morris Peterson. It's already been made known by the Thunder execs that Scott Brooks will finish out the season with the Thunder as head coach. Brooks will most likely inherit the continuing struggles of a team in transition from city to city and veteran stars to rising stars.

Read Yahoo News piece on Carlesimo's firing here.

Oklahoma City Prepares for Thunder!

Oklahoma City expect heavy Thunder in your sports forecast this 2008-09 NBA season! The once Seattle Supersonics have moved to Oklahoma City. The team will no longer be called the Supersonics, but instead the Thunder. New place, new name, new jerseys as well. The personnel has stayed the same for the most part, with franchise superstar, and last year's ROY Kevin Durant, still on the team.

According to AZCentral.com, news of the new name and logo leaked early:

The local ABC affiliate reported in mid-July that Thunder had been chosen as the nickname. Then the NBA Web site listed NBA.com/thunder as a link to the Oklahoma City team's page. Then the Orlando Magic's site listed games against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Even the logo and colors leaked out over the weekend. Then, prior to the 5 p.m. announcement, Thunder merchandise started showing up on the NBA's online store.

Early reaction to the name is it may sound a bit like a NBDL or WNBA team's name and will definitely take some getting used to. The Seattle Supersonics name bring up memories of players like Gary Payton, Sean Kemp, Nate McMillan and other stars from the past. Recent Celtics superstar, Ray Allen, also called Seattle home for most of his career, breaking Reggie Miller's 3 point record while playing there. The Sonics are coming off a disappointing 2007-08 campaign, despite the bright spots Kevin Durant supplied. But now come rain or shine, there's always Thunder in Oklahoma City!

As mentioned bove, there's already Thunder merchandise available at NBA.com which features the new look logo and jerseys. See the merchandise at the new Oklahoma City Thunder NBA homepage!

Kevin Durant is 2007-08 NBA ROY

Congrats to the young fellow. On Thursday, the Seattle Sonics (possibly the Oklahoma City Sonics) Kevin Durant was named the 2007-08 NBA Rookie of the Year. The standout 1st year player led all rookies in scoring (20.3) and total assists, despite his team missing the playoffs. Durant was one of the few rookies constantly showing up in ESPN Sportscenter highlights with rim-rattling dunks. Second place went to the Hawks Al Horford who is currently enjoying a nice debut in the playoffs against the Boston Celtics. During his ROY award ceremony, Durant reflected on a fallen mentor, his AAU coach Charles Craig who died 3 years ago.

This for Charles Craig, he said.

"Yesterday when I found out that I won it, that was the same day three years ago that my AAU coach died," Durant said. "I just want to give it to him to show how much I worked hard."

Craig, Durant's former AAU basketball coach, was shot and killed April 30, 2005. He was 35 when he died, and Durant wears the No. 35 to honor his memory.

Read more at Seattle Times.

Durant may soon be adding another jersey to tear off under his Seattle one in his latest NBA store ad. The team is still in litigation to move to Oklahoma City where Mr. Durant will be the team leader next season. In good news the coach PJ Carlesimo has vowed to return to the sidelines next season, wherever the team may be playing.

Now questions are raised if Trailblazer Greg Oden is a lock for the award in 2008-09. Oden missed the entire past season due to knee/leg surgery. Next season will officially be his rookie year in the league, and it's hard to see any other drafted players outplaying the towering force in Portland.

The Sonics' New Home: OKC

Soon it will be the Oklahoma City Sonics, or whichever new nickname is given to the Seattle franchise. The Oklahoma House has already approved a tax incentive package and Governor Brad Henry has signed it to law. The next step will be NBA Team owners voting on the relocation request, and it's hard to see why they wouldn't.

According to Seattle PI:

If the team relocates, it will bring 170 jobs with a $74 million payroll to the state, according to House Speaker Chris Benge, R-Tulsa. The rebate will be about $4 million a year and $60 million over its 15-year life.

Six weeks ago, Oklahoma City voters approved a sales tax extension to fund $121.6 million in improvements to a downtown arena and build a practice facility, also to lure the team.

Supporters of the rebate plan said the team's relocation would have a $180 million economic impact on the state over 15 years and bring other intangible benefits to the city, which hosted the New Orleans Hornets for two seasons after the team was uprooted from its home arena following Hurricane Katrina in August 2005.

"This is the perfect example of demand driving supply," said Rep. Tad Jones, R-Claremore. The Hornets regularly drew capacity crowds during the two years they were based in Oklahoma City, encouraging Bennett and his local ownership group to file the relocation request, Jones said.

Now Kevin Durant will become the face of the Oklahoma City franchise. Previously the New Orleans Hornets split their games between OKC and New Orleans due to Hurricane Katrina's wrath. Now that the Hornets are back in their rightful home area, giving way for OKC to adopt its own team.

Ben Wallace's Central Division Tour

Ben Wallace's Central Division Tour

The Cavs finally pulled the trigger on a move to bring in more talent to help out Lebron's quest for an NBA championship. On the final day of NBA trading, Cleveland orchestrated a 3 team trade involving 11 players total. The big name, Ben Wallace came to Cleveland as Drew Gooden went to Chicago. Here's a look at who each of the 3 teams got in the deal.

Chicago Bulls
Drew Gooden, F
Larry Hughes, G
Cedric Simmons, G/F
Shannon Brown

Cleveland Cavs
Ben Wallace, F/C
Delonte West, G
Wally Sczerbiak, G/F
Joe Smith, F
Bulls 2nd round draft pick (2009)

Seattle Supersonics
Ira Newble, F
Donyell Marshall, F,
Adrian Griffin, G

The trade is pending approval from the Commissioner's office. Charles Barkley on TNT's pre-game coverage Thursday night seems to like the trade for the Cavs as it gives them a much needed point guard and better defense/rebounding. Barkley added that Wallace should play better with Lebron James than he was in Chicago. However, it still remains to be seen if this brings Lebron and the Cavs back to the NBA Finals, but on paper it looks good for the Cavs.

See TheClevelandFan.com's analysis of the deal

It's also starting to look like Ben Wallace is on a seasonal tour of the Central Division as he's played for Detroit, then Chicago and now Cleveland. Indiana and Milwaukee take note; if Wallace doesn't pan out in Cleveland, go for the deal!

Here's some of the other trades completed Thursday:

¶The Portland Trail Blazers sent guard Taurean Green to Denver in exchange for guard Von Wafer.

¶The Detroit Pistons shipped center Primoz Brezec to Toronto for guard Juan Dixon.

¶The New Orleans Hornets acquired Mike James and Bonzi Wells from Houston, in a three-team deal in which the Hornets sent guard Bobby Jackson to the Rockets.

¶The Rockets, in a separate deal, acquired guard Gerald Green from Minnesota, in exchange for guard Kirk Snyder. (Source: NY Times)

Bottom of the NBA Barrel

A look at the worst teams in the NBA currently. From Worst to Best, the 5 worst NBA teams are:

Seattle Sonics 5-16
Minnesota T-Wolves 3-15
Miami Heat 5-15
Memphis Grizzlies 6-14
New York Knicks 6-13

No big surprises other than the Miami Heat here. The Knicks' fans have been chanting for Isiah Thomas to be fired or thrown in jail for weeks now. It's tough for them to be fans right about now. You could say that the Knicks and Grizzlies who round out that list have talented rosters but something just isn't gelling. You could blame it on coaching or that they aren't using their talent properly.

Perhaps the worst division is either the Northwest or the Central, where just two teams in each have winning records. Northwest of course holds many of the teams that have been scrapped or are in rebuild mode (Portland, Seattle and Minnesota). The Central is a surprise although you would expect Cleveland to fall below .500 without King James. The Bulls and Heat continue to remain enigmas, and you can't count either out for a push to the playoffs.

The best division in the NBA may be the Southwest. There you have the world champion Spurs and then New Orleans, Dallas and Houston with winning records. The Southeast may hold the most potential for a surprise or sleeper team in the playoffs as you have Washington, Atlanta, Charlotte and Miami all capable of making it, with the right effort, other teams' misfortunes and maybe luck.

View the full NBA Standings.

Kobe's Block Party & Celtics 7-0

You're going to get sick of hearing about a few things this season. One is how great the Boston Celtics are doing, and the other is the constant chatter about "will Kobe be playing in LA or somewhere else?" Right now those two topics seem to dominate the NBA.

The Celtics of course is a great story in basketball. Some coaches and GM's from other teams even said they underestimated the Celtics being this good. But if you look at the 3 stars they have, they each offer a unique necessary component which a lot of teams lack. You've got probably the smoothest and most consistent outside shot from Ray Allen. You've got the consumate team leader do-it-all type in Paul Pierce, who's been in Celtics hell for years now. And then you add in former MVP Kevin Garnett, a guy who can rebound and, well you know the rest. Basically, they are the real deal at 7-0 and this is something great for Celtics fans.

Then you've got the Kobe story. Right now, he's still a Laker. There's been talk of him playing for Chicago, for Dallas, for Detroit. It's all talk. He's still probably one of the top 2 in the NBA, as the Lebron-Kobe debate continues. On the recent Houston trip the Lakers had, Kobe had blocks against two of the tallest stars in Texas. One block came with Kobe swatting Tim Duncan, and then a night later, Kobe flew up to block Yao Ming. Impressive stuff.

Oh, and the young kid Kevin Durant got his first win. He's been trying for it for 8 games. He finally has 1 up on Greg Oden, who isn't playing. Durant's win came at the expense of Riley's Miami Heat who are fading out of the playoff picture, and fast.

NBA Preseason Schedules

Several NBA teams have posted 2007-08 NBA Preseason schedules, including the Lakers, Blazers, Sonics, and Sixers. Here's a look at the Lakers' preseason schedule:

EL SEGUNDO – The Los Angeles Lakers have announced the preseason schedule for the 2007-08 season along with ticket purchase information. The Lakers will play host to two games at STAPLES Center, as well as games in Hawaii, Bakersfield, Anaheim, Las Vegas and San Diego. The schedule is as follows:

Tue, October 9th - 7pm Honolulu (Stan Sheriff Center) vs. Golden State Warriors

Thu, October 11th - 7pm Honolulu (Stan Sheriff Center) vs. Golden State Warriors

Thur, October 18th - 7pm Bakersfield (Bakersfield Rabobank Arena) vs. Seattle Supersonics

Pre-Season Shootout Doubleheader, October 20 &21
Sat, October 20th - 4:30pm Phoenix Suns vs. LA Clippers (STAPLES Center)
Sat, October 20th - 7:30pm Charlotte Bobcats vs. LA Lakers (STAPLES Center)
Sun, October 21st - 4:30pm Phoenix or LA Clippers vs. Charlotte Bobcats (STAPLES Center)
Sun, October 21st - 7:30pm Phoenix or LA Clippers vs. LA Lakers (STAPLES Center)

Tue, October 23rd - 7pm Anaheim (Honda Center) vs. Utah Jazz

Thu, October 25th - 7pm San Diego (San Diego Sports Arena) vs. Utah Jazz

Fri, October 26th - 7pm Las Vegas (Thomas and Mack Center) vs. Sacramento Kings

All Times Local

To check out the other schedules use the links below:
Trailblazers Preseason Schedule

Seattle Supersonics Preseason Schedule

Lakers Preseason Schedule

Philadelphia Sixers Preseason Schedule

Thomas the Tutor

The Seattle Sonics acquired Kurt Thomas in the offseason, after he comes off a career low of points per game with Phoenix. Despite this, Seattle believes he will fulfill the roles of defensive stalwart and tutor to its young stars. It is believed Thomas is close to retirement so Seattle is hoping he can mentor their new young stars, especially Jeff Green and #2 draft pick, Kevin Durant.

From NBA.com:

"The Sonics got Thomas not because he averaged a career-low 4.6 points in 67 games last season for Phoenix, but because he personifies the mentality new general manager Sam Presti wants on his rebuilt team. Thomas has averaged 7.4 rebounds per game in his career and is also known for a commitment to defense.

Defense is an area that freewheeling - and free-falling - Seattle hasn't embraced in years.

"Kurt really represents the identity we are trying to develop,'' Presti said last week.

Seattle also craved Thomas' respected presence and experience in a locker room that will look more like a Romper Room when training camp opens in just over two months. He will try to impart the advice he learned from Alonzo Mourning, Larry Johnson and Patrick Ewing, who mentored him a decade ago."

Read the full story: Mentoring Durant Could be Thomas' Final NBA Task"