Thunder Win Opener in Charlotte, 109-107

It was a very entertaining game for the most part. Two teams who will finish in the bottom third of the league went at it for forty-eight minutes and were tied with nine seconds left in the game.

OKC came out of the timeout… got the ball in Shai Gligeous-Alexander’s hands as he then basically nailed a two pointer to win the game, 109-107.

The game never should have come to that last shot by SGA as in a two minute and ten second span the Thunder were outscored 18-5. It was a display of total point guard dysfunction during this span as the ball was turned over five times while close out free throws were missed. But in the end on this night against a team of Charlotte’s caliber the Thunder escaped with a win.

I’m not dissing Shai. I think he’s good player who’s a hybrid guard who’s not a primary ball handler. A hybrid guard who would fit nicely with Cade Cunningham running the point for the Thunder.

Five Thunder players scored in double figures on the night with Shai leading the way with 24 points. George Hill was next in line with 21 points and some much needed maturity on the floor.

Darius Bazely had a rock solid night from my view and very much looks the part of a player who’s going to be more than just a role player as his game evolves. Kid has one of those Tyler Herro smirks. Darius could have gone to John Marshall High School. Trust me.

Lu Dort had 15 points and Mikey Muscala added 14 points and was a real positive for the Thunder. Muscala should play twenty minutes a game at least every game this season.

Theo Maledon struggled but showed some glimpses of what he can be as a guard at the NBA level.

Big Al Horford didn’t shoot much and had an unusually quiet game.

Kenrich Williams was the tenth guy and was a genuine spark plug for Coach D. I could come to love Kenrich Williams as he plays every minute like it might be his last before being cut. Kind of like Lu Dort played last year before he finally got a contract. TSN (Toughness, Smarts, Nasty… drips off of Kenrich and for that reason he’ll probably along with Dort keep me watching the Thunder as we get into the tough parts of this transitional season for the Thunder.

The Serbian Express played 11 minutes and in those minutes he was a team worse -16 and 0-6 shooting threes. He apparently doesn’t shoot anything but threes. Not one of his shots even remotely came close to the cylinder of the rim, but he keeps jacking them. They must not shoot two point shots in the Greek B league.

But otherwise I thought it was a night of positives as I watched the game imagining what Cade Cunningham and Evan Mobley would look like replacing George Hill and Al Horford next season in the Thunder’s rotation.

The only real negative for me was the Greek Serbian’s shot selection. He actually deflects a lot of balls with that reach of his. We might need to start charting his deflections on the defensive end to be fair to him.

The Thunder are 1-0 and above .500 heading into Game 2.

I think the Thunder play Utah next. The real question heading into Sunday is if the Cleveland Browns can beat the New York Jets without four of their receivers. This could only happen to the Cleveland Browns.

Enjoy the 1-0 while it lasts.

Hope Everyone Found Some Christmas Peace In This Year Of Chaos

Even on Christmas we have to deal with the situation in Nashville as a country. First thing I thought of when I saw this was the tragedy back in 1995 with the bombing in Oklahoma City when our country seemed relatively sane compared to now.

My dad was filing legal documents at the Oklahoma County courthouse and was two blocks away from the explosion when it occurred. I was working six miles away in northwest Oklahoma City and could hear the blast. These were the first things I thought about when I heard about Nashville yesterday. I hope it turns out no one was killed.

The people who did this will be brought to justice and we should all pray we don’t see too much more of this in the coming weeks throughout our country in these times of acute internal division.

We can only hope when its made public who perpetrated this act it doesn’t inflame or divide the country even moreso.

Hope everyone found some inner peace and enjoyed the Xmas time with their families.

I did. Yet when even on Christmas we have to deal with these issues of division in our country it makes me fear where the next month could take us.

Be safe and be grateful we all live in the greatest democracy with the most freedoms and liberties in the world.

NBA Rolls Out Monster Christmas Day Lineup

What a lineup of five Christmas Day games the NBA is providing all of us who are hoops junkies. Just a superb lineup of games which will help us deal with the fact the Thunder aren’t part of the NBA’s XMas day package this season.

For an addict like me..each of the five games brings something to the table.

Game 1:The New Orleans Pelicans vs. the Miami Heat gives us a matchup of the two most intriguing youngs teams in the NBA. Lest we forget the Heat are the defending Eastern Conference champions and the Pels with new head coach Stan van Gundy with a deep and talented roster could turn out to be the darlings of the West. I can’t wait to watch this game.

Game 2: Golden State Warriors vs. Milwaukee Bucks could be a view of the Golden State Warriors’ end of being relevant in the West. Steph without Klay is something we haven’t seen much of at the NBA level. The Western Conference isn’t like playing college ball at Davidson. I’ll just write this…Draymond Green, Andrew Wiggins, and Kelly Oubre all three better start bringing their big boy games to the arena because Klay Thompson did a lot of unsung things which helped make Steph Curry a two-time MVP. Being a Splash Brother isn’t the same thing as being a singular Splash Dude. Andrew Wiggins step up or start playing non-contact hockey.

Game 3: The Brooklyn Nets vs. the Boston Celtics is probably the game which will draw the highest ratings as an apparently healthy Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving begin their quest to win the East and attempt to unseat LeBron’s Lakers. Kevin Durant looked great in the opener against the Warriors. With Durant and Kyrie the Nets now have the NBA’s two most talented iso threats in the game. Surely…the Nets won’t bring James Harden on board.

As far Boston…with Tatum, Brown and Marcus Smart we know they’ll be good…but will they ever be able to take their games to the next level is my question. Because if they can’t get past the Miami Heat then what would make anyone think they’d beat the Nets in a best of seven series.

Game 4: Lebron vs. Luka. Do I need to write anything else? Has Mark Cuban put enough around Luka to make the Mavs a legitmate threat to reach the Western Conference Finals? Great coach in Rick Carlisle, great player in Luka…not sure about the supporting cast. Lakers actually appear to even be stronger on paper than the team which just won the title. In Oklahoma City the question is what do the Thunder get from the Lakers in exchange for Trevor Ariza.

Game 5: LA Clippers vs. Denver Nuggets. The Clippers were the biggest losers in either the NBA or NHL this past summer in the Bubble Championships these two leagues provided for their fans.

The Clippers choked on a 3-1 series lead versus these same Nuggets minus Jerami Grant who is now a Detroit Piston. Doc Rivers was rightfully fired and has been replaced with Ty Lue. Serge Ibaka..one of my favorite Thunder players is now a member of the Clippers.

One would think Paul George and Kawhi Leonard will be two highly motivated dudes this basketball season to at the least get to the Western Conference Finals.

The Nuggets in my view will miss Jerami Grant’s defensive versatility as the season moves along into post season play. This game should be a forecast of a rematch in the Western Conference semi-finals.

Even an NBA addict like me will not sit and watch five games in a row on Christmas Day live. I’ll be recording the games. But the two I want to watch live are Games 1 & 3.

Merry Christmas and hope you enjoy the best day of the NBA regular season.

Steph before Klay highlight mix at Davidson.

Stephen Curry Davidson Highlightsá´´á´° – YouTube

Christmas Eve Reflections

Carrie Underwood ft John Legend – Hallelujah | HBO Max – YouTube

What a year. Probably for most Americans the toughest year since 9/11 or maybe even beyond that realm given 325,000 have died in our country who didn’t have to exit like this.

I would suggest we only have thirty days left of the worst human being who’s ever held any public office let alone the United States presidency… so maybe just get through this last month together instead of saying some things you might regret.

Take the high road at Christmas. Because at Christmas we should take the time to be introspective and within ourselves look for a higher degree of human empathy…and just basic overall decency.

If you live in Oklahoma you at some point come to love ‘some’ country music.

Six Oklahmans are currently in the Country Music Hall of Fame. Can you name them?

Vince Gill, Garth Brooks, Toby Keith, Blake Shelton, Reba, and Carrie Underwood.

Allen Jackson is my favorite male country music artist while Tulsa’s own Carrie Underwood is my favorite female artist who just happened to marry a hockey player.

So let’s look for the good in one another this Christmas and bring out the best we have in ourselves so we can get through this year together.

Merry Christmas…hope you like the song.

Harden, Rockets Can’t Field A Team In Season Opener Due To COVID-19 Protocol

In fact– in this season of the tank by Sam Presti… any game against the dysfunctional Houston Rockets is a no lose proposition for the Oklahoma City Thunder this NBA basketball season.

If the Thunder lose the game they win. If the Thunder win the game they can’t lose.

Amid all the collateral Presti acquired in the Westbrook deal with Houston for Chris Paul there’s a 2021 first round swap using either the Clippers pick or Heat pick which is only protected 1-4 if I’ve read it right.

So here in Oklahoma City we should not only be hoping the Thunder can lose enough to maybe pick a Cade Cunningham or Evan Mobley with their own pick, but to also witness the Rockets implode to the point where that swap could conceivably land the Thunder another first round pick in the top half of the first round.

So I’m not really all that bummed the Thunder didn’t play tonight in Houston given the Rockets didn’t have eight players available for their home season opener.

While Trump was pardoning all of his friends mentioned in the Mueller Report…James Harden was setting the North American record for most lap dances ever during an NBA pre-season training camp. Hard to believe Harden has never received some sort of medal these last four years from the evangelical Pussy Grabber.

It must be a Houston thing. The Texans underacheive with stunning predictably. The cheating Houston Astros are a historical disgrace of Chicago Black Sox proportions. And now…James Harden’s dumbass piece of trash Houston Rockets are only outperformed in the dual arts of disgrace and debauchery by the human filth which inhabits the Trump White House.

In reality—it was a good night for Sam Presti and his rebuild here in Oklahoma as it appears the dumpster fire Rockets are on the cusp of unraveling and perhaps becoming a bottom third team in 2021.

Next up…the Thunder at the Charlotte Bobcats on December 26th.

Merry XMas!

Carrie Underwood – Little Drummer Boy (Christmas Special) – YouTube

Vegas Western Conference Predictions

Season started last night so I’m a day late. But here’s how Vegas sees the Western Conference with the Thunder getting their season underway tonight. I’ve beaten Vegas in the West nine out of the last ten years with the exception being the LeBron groin injury season which screwed up my entire bracket. It happens.

Let’s go. This will be tougher factoring in COVID-19 considerations throughout the season. This will be challenging no doubt.

1 Vegas LA Lakers Me LA Lakers

2 Vegas Denver Me Denver Nuggets

3 Vegas LA Clippers Me LA Clippers

4 Vegas Dallas Mavs Me Dallas Mavs

5 Vegas Utah Jazz Me Portland Trailblazers

6 Vegas Portland Trailblazers Me Utah Jazz

7 Vegas Phoenix Suns Me New Orleans Pelicans

8 Vegas Golden State Me Phoenix Suns

9 Vegas New Orleans Me Golden State

10 Vegas Houston Me Memphis Grizzlies

11 Vegas Memphis Me Houston

12 Vegas San Antonio Me San Antonio

13 Vegas Sacramento Me Minnesota

14 Vegas Minnesota Me Oklahoma City

15 Vegas OKC Me Sacramento

Bottom six teams are really tough this time around.

After Dark Xmas Music Gala

Hawaiian Christmas Song (Mele Kalikimaka) – Bing Crosby – YouTube

I getting ready to do some serious XMas music binge posting these next seventy-two hours. I may put some antlers on Pauli to create a more intense Christmas effect.

Be kind, be safe, and pray for the Trump voters in the food lines who are about to become evicted from their homes. Dave Chappelle knows what I’m trying to say, but I’m not going to write it on my blog.

Like Michelle Obama… I’ll go high and stay there because it’s Christmas.

Peace.

It’s all about finding our inner peace and trying to help people who need our love.

2020-21 OKC Thunder Opening Day Roster

This will be fun as we now see the opening day roster for the tanking Oklahoma City Thunder as they embark upon getting a top five player from the NBA draft this summer. Plus, if I have all these first round draft picks OKC has coming their way one of the Houston picks which is only protected 1-4 is OKC’s this summer as well.

In all Oklahoma City has 18 first round picks stockpiled thru 2027, but with assets like Al Horford and Trevor Ariza still listed on OKC’s roster—the mountain of first round picks could get even higher.

Let’s put Trevor Ariza in what I’ll call asset escrow for right now before I list the rest of the roster.

Guard position…SGA, George Hill, Lu Dort, Theo Maledon, Hamidou Diallo, Ty Jerome–as ranked by me.

Forward position… Darius Bazely, Mike Muscala, Justin Jackson, Isiah Roby, Darius Miller, Kenrich Williams, Josh Hall (Ariza escrow) as ranked by me.

Center position… Al Horford, Aleksej Pokusevski aka as The Siberian Express, Moses Brown as ranked by me.

Let’s assume Trevor Ariza doesn’t play. Who are my top eleven players tomorrow night in Houston which itself could be tanking at some point this season?

My top eleven would be in this order… SGA, Al Horford, George Hill, Theo Maledon, Darius Bazely, Lu Dort, Siberian Express, Mike Muscala, Hamidou Diallo, Justin Jackson, Isiah Roby.

SGA, Lu Dort, George Hill, Big Al Horford, and Darius Bazely are my starting five.

Theo Maledon is my sixth man. I actually like Theo Maledon. He could be a nice player.

The Siberian Express is my project for the time being….which means he get twenty plus minutes a game no matter how many times he throws the ball away or clanks iron or looks like he should be in the G League. Remember–those turnovers will turn into Cade Cunningham, Evan Mobley, BJ Boston or Jalen Suggs at some point. Glass half full… plus Siberian Express might turn into something as a player himself two to three years from now when he has a more mature body.

Mike Muscala would get extensive minutes to maximize his three point shooting skills. If you’re going to lose big at least have some fun with your better shooters.

Then I’d use Diallo, Jackson, and Roby as minute fillers depending on the night and the opponent and the need to make sure and lose the game in the last eight minutes.

If I were coaching these guys and wanted to have some fun going 10-62 this is how I would do it.

Howie Kendrick Says Goodbye To Baseball

The Turning Point of the 2019 World Series (Nationals’ Howie Kendrick’s huge home run) – YouTube

I usually would never put something baseball related on my blog this time of year, but Howie Kendrick announced today he’s retiring from baseball after a glorious fifteen year career.

Howie in his fifteen year MLB career played for the Angels, the Phillies, the LA Dodgers, and of course the Washington Nationals where he closed out his career in dream-like fashion by leading the Nationals to the World Series championship and in the process winning the MVP.

Above is the video of Howie hitting his Series changing homer against the cheating Houston Astros.

What a magical post season Howie and the Washington Nats gave all of us in 2019.

I would say this home run and the one Joe Carter hit off Mitch ‘Wild Thing” Williams are my two favorite World Series home runs of all-time.

JOE CARTER 1993 Home Run with the call by Tom Cheek – YouTube

Howie Kendrick…thank you for the ride in 2019. Enjoy spending time with your family.