Author: Mike

You can feel it throughout the city. There’s a feel. I’m just saying.

Even with the suspensions to Ronnie Perkins and Rhamondre Stevenson … I’m still upbeat about OU in regards to the upcoming Peach Bowl in the national semis.

Perkins is clearly a loss as you could make the argument he is OU’s best pass rusher. But what you could also say is that Jalen Redmon, Neville Gallimore, Kenneth Murray, Caleb Kelly, and Nick Bonito will just have to pick up the slack in getting pressure on Heisman winner Joe Burrow. You’d also have to say Alex Grinch should be coming into this game with multiple blitz packages in that no team this year has slowed down Burrow with him standing with time and space with the ball in his hands. OU HAS NOTHING TO LOSE. BRING THE KITCHEN SINK!

To me…the key to this game is OU’s offensive line and if Jalen Hurts can extend possessions with his legs and not leave the ball laying on the Peach Bowl turf in the process.

Stevenson only had 64 carries the entire season. Sure–I wish he could play, but he’s a luxury and TJ Pledger will have to suck it up to give some depth to Kennedy Brooks. But here’s the thing—Jalen Hurts was a 1,000 yard rusher this season. He doesn’t run like a quarterback. He runs like a hybrid somewhere between Kennedy and Trey Sermon.

Jalen either running the ball or going through his progressions is the key to the game for me. Plus, I think OU needs to be at least +2 in the turnover category.

Cee Dee Lamb touches are a thing I have circled as well. Lincoln Riley needs to get Cee Dee Lamb at least 12-15 touches in space excluding punt returns.

No one has stopped Joe Burrow this season. I’m not expecting OU to as well. Just make some key stops here and there. Get off the field and get the ball back in Jalen Hurts’ hands to run the ball and the clock. As in shortening the game and limiting possessions to Burrow’s and Co.

Does OU have a chance? Vegas says no as they’ve installed LSU as a 14 point ‘home’ field favorite in Atlanta at an SEC venue.

I think OU has a puncher’s chance. Everything has to follow script so to speak. LSU clearly had the best regular season of any team in college football this year…but this is why you play the games.

To see if an underdog can land a sweeping uppercut and follow it with a knockout.

Here’s the thing—even when OKC was down by eighteen points in this game—I never felt nervous about the fourth period. This team of late is playing with such poise you don’t lose yourself with worry. You expect Chris Paul and guard mates Dennis Schroder and Shai GA to make plays when it matters. It’s a beautiful thing to watch when a team’s roles start to evolve like this.

Such was the case again on Sunday night inside Chesapeake Energy Arena as the streaking Oklahoma City Thunder came all the way back from 18 points down and took care of the LA Clippers by a 118-112 count.

The Paul George coming back to OKC deal was a not a thing for me. He left on great terms and will always be treated well by the fans. Same with Westbrook and Harden. Maybe with more time all these oil and gas Trump evangelicals will find it in their hearts to move on with Durant as well. Such as we now see Little Mini Putin quoting Corinthians in between dissing sixteen year old girls and trolling grieving wives at campaign rallies.

Here’s the thing though—the Thunder are pretty good if they can keep Chris Paul healthy and figure out the best way to maximize Big Gallo’s value with his expiring contract.

There is no need for the big death march tank in Oklahoma City if Presti can continue to swim the waters of reset with nuanced guile.

He can’t tank. Period. The fans have fallen in love with this team. This group of guys even have Jim Traber cheering for them. I mean, there’s no need to tank.

For the second game in a row Shai GA scored thirty two points and looks like the next big thing in Oklahoma City as far as Thunder hoops. Dennis Schroder did it again in the fourth period. Chris Paul is leading with the deftness of say Howie Kendrick of recent Washington Nationals fame. Steven Adams is at peace within himself with his game. There’s some significant good karma floating around here with this team all the sudden.

Billy Donovan is still smacking his gum in the fourth period like a nervous car hop, but otherwise he all the sudden looks like John Wooden with Russell Westbrook now with Harden in Houston.

It’s like watching a Hallmark Channel chick flick with everyone being happy at the end.

We have a big family night on tap Thursday night at Chesapeake Energy Arena with Ja Morant and the Memphis Grizzlies coming to town to take on the streaking Thunder.

For what was supposed to be a dreary winter of NBA hoops in OKC all the sudden I’m starting to use Howie Kendrick references on my blog.

Sam Presti’s reset is going pretty well if you haven’t been paying attention of late. With his team’s 126-108 win over the seemingly always tanking Phoenix Suns on Friday night inside Chesapeake Energy Arena–the Thunder stand at 14-14 twenty-eight games into this NBA season.

The Thunder stand alone as the No. 7 seed a full game and a half ahead of Portland.

Like it or not—I don’t think the Thunder can tank even if they wanted to. I don’t know how you tell fans in a small market you’re going to tank when it appears you already have a playoff team in place. Plus, it’s a team which is creating a feel good story in central Oklahoma with their attitude.

People like this team. They like the fact the Thunder are no longer one of the dumbest teams in the league and are instead playing with smarts and heart galore.

Quite frankly—if the Clippers were the feel good story last season before they made their free agent haul in the summer…this Thunder team isn’t far behind that bunch. Fact of the matter is—this Thunder team has a little more firepower than the Clippers did last season.

Dennis Schroder is my Sixth Man of the Year so far. ‘THIS’ Dennis Schroder is the Sixth Man who Sam Presti has been looking for ever since the trade of James Harden.

Add to the fact—despite what I’ve written at times…Billy Donovan has these guys playing like a team. The ball moves. The offense isn’t stagnant with Westbrook dominating the flow. Quite simply—these guys have caught the fancy of the local market.

Despite the steady play of Big Gallo, SGA, Nerlens Noel, and Steven Adams…Dennis Schroder to date along with Chris Paul are my twin team MVP’ers heading into Sunday’s suddenly big game with the now superstar laden LA Clippers.

Of the six teams above OKC in the West currently–the Thunder have only one win over Utah against a top six team in the West to show for their grit.

I’m still not ready to say this Thunder team can be the Washington Nats or the St. Louis Blues, but they can definitely be last year’s LA Clippers or last season’s Portland Trailblazers. Their guard play isn’t that far off from what Portland as the No. 6 seed rode to the Western Conference Finals. Tell me Chris Paul, Dennis Schroder, and SGA can’t be for this team what Damian Lillard, my buds CJ McCullum and his dad, and Seth Curry were to the Blazers last playoff season.

So haven written this on December 22nd…I just don’t see how Sam Presti can go from reset to tank mode given how city is beginning to feel about its NBA team heading into Christmas.

The feeling is pretty clear according to my ticket broker…the ticket prices are trending and that’s a good thing for Oklahoma City given how bleak the outlook was for this season after Presti traded Jerami Grant to the Nuggets.

Andrew Johnson, Richard Nixon, and Bill Clinton never acted like this even in their darkest moments.

A new low even for the leader of the white trash free world and the evangelical new spiritual movement.

I guess, in retrospect, the McCain family should consider themselves blessed Mini-Putin didn’t carry on this way with Cindy McCain after John McCain’s death.

You look at these clueless people standing behind Trump and they haven’t a clue that both John McCain and John Dingell were both a hundred times the man Donald Trump will never be even in his delusional dreams.

Freeze this photo and this scene. It is an absolute microcosm of America’s decline. I have no idea how banning Muslims or building a wall to keep out Hispanics in any way cures what this photo clearly illustrates.

The caption should read: ‘White trash begats white trash.’

I won’t go any further. It’s pointless. Building a wall isn’t the solution for sure.

The first question is what do you do with these people who have nothing better to do with their time.

Ground zero for Trump and he doesn’t even know it. What a punk. I shouldn’t have written that. I can only hope Melania does read it and get on me for bullying our lost soul POTUS.

It had to be a very tough decision for Kendra Horn from Oklahoma’s 5th Congressional District to make this vote to impeach Donald Trump, but from my view it was the correct vote.

For the congresswoman to make this vote in rogue red Oklahoma took political courage. Which BTW is something sorely lacking from her GOP contemporaries in the House and Senate.

She may have just signed her own political death knell in Oklahoma, but she did the right thing and history will be kind to her.

I called her number and told the young man on the phone in her congressional office to convey this message for me to Kendra Horn and told him she has my vote in 2020 if for no other reason that unlike Lindsey Graham and Mitch McConnell she has a sense of patriotism and accountability. Unlike the two ‘hawks’ she walked the walk when it was appropriate to do so.

I’m proud of Kendra Horn.

The two GOP hawks in the United States Senate are another matter.

Just when you witnessed a first half which made you think it’s time for the Thunder to go full bore in tank mode, Sam Presti’s reset experience in Oklahoma got a serious shot in the arm.

At 11-14 and down to the rebuilding Chicago Bulls by as many as 26 points in the first half–the Thunder did their best imitation of Lincoln Riley’s Sooners in Waco when OU came all the way back from a 28-3 deficit with a perfect second half of play.

An NBA fan couldn’t have ask for two more different halves of play in an NBA game. The 26 point deficit was a tie for the largest Thunder comeback in their history. The comeback from 26 points was the biggest comeback in any NBA game this season. Period.

Some in the arena left at halftime thinking the Thunder were 11-15. But not to be as Chris Paul played the best half of basketball he’s ever played inside of Chesapeake Energy Arena either as a member of the New Orleans Hornets or the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Like Jalen Hurts in Waco–Chris Paul put the Thunder on his back and carried them to an improbable 109-106 win which puts Presti’s feel good Thunder in the No. 7 seed in the West twenty-six games into the season.

Chris Paul’s line of 30 points, 10 rebounds, and 8 rebounds was as good or better as anything seen in Oklahoma City during the recent Westbrook years of havoc and mishap in many a fourth period. This was point guard play which looked like basketball instead of a clusterfuck with a basketball. There seemed to be a reason for every action Chris Paul made with the ball.

So here the Thunder sit on December 17th as the No. 7 seed and with both Golden State and New Orleans both locked at the bottom of the West in full tank mode. Add to the fact the Portland Trail Blazers have been decimated by injuries as well.

Why do I mention this?

I state it because with these three teams mired at the bottom of the West— the Thunder’s playoff math is completely different in mid-December. A coherent argument now exists for the Thunder to not tank, but rather to play this out at least until the trade deadline in February and see what the playoff math looks like then.

Sam Presti has a team which isn’t terrible. You still can’t compare them to the Washington Nationals or St. Louis Blues, but they have our attention in Oklahoma City a week out from Christmas.

The Thunder are 11-14 and quite frankly I don’t give a shit about their season on this December 15th.

The House this week will vote on whether to impeach Donald Trump or not.

It should be a simple decision unless you hang a portrait of Roger Ailes above your fireplace and watch more Fox than should be medically allowed.

This is not complex. For those of us old enough…we learned this back in the fourth grade in history and civics discussions.

Mini-Putin has worn me out. His supporters even more so. Their duel dull wit and even duller sense of what the American presidency should be is not going to change.

This is Thomas Friedman debating this generation’s version of Ayn Rand. If you’re a millennial … google it and learn something today.

Discussions such as these won’t be found in the razor thin Daily Oklahoman. Pragmatic measured honesty isn’t promoted to their readers.

I’m to the point where it’s hard to write anything regarding Donald Trump. I mean…what do you even write or say?

As a country, as a culture, we’ve gone beyond Ground Zero. If we were some third world village somewhere in the world where’s there not access to books and things as such I would maybe understand it. But this is too much.

And the thing is…he’s probably going to be re-elected.

It’s stunning to observe the daily assaults on democracy in the genre of a worldwide reality television aired by MSNBC, CNN, and Fox on a 24/7 basis.

I give Trump this much…he understands Twitter, cable television and the power they can weld.

It’s so refreshing this season to see young guys like Diallo, Ferguson, and Lou D actually exerting effort on the defensive end of the floor as if they… you know… care.

You get these three in the rotation at the same time and you’d have some very interesting perimeter defense and athleticism. Shooting would suck, but you work around it if you can.

My new hero in Thunder blue…. Lou Dort.