Month: April 2025

Several key NBA playoff games last night as we whittle the overall field to eight teams. Both TNT games very much held my interest, while sadly Giannis’s season for the second straight year ended in the first round as the Bucks choked a five point lead in the final minute to be eliminated in Game 5 by the not to be overlooked Indiana Pacers.

Milwaukee’s situation in the coming years could prove to be tragic as they don’t hold the rights to their own first round picks for the next six seasons. I wouldn’t excactly want to be Doc Rivers right now. If you know what I mean?

Conversely, the upstart Detroit Pistons seemingly have a great future in front of them as they upset the NY Knicks in a road Game 5 thriller to take their season to a home Game 6 versus the Knicks.

Bernie Bickerstaffstaff was my Coach of the Year and nothing I’ve seen from the Pistons in post season would tell me I should have instead picked Kenny Atkinson of the Cavs who was second on my list. Great coaching jobs by both, but I think the way the needle moved as massively upward as it did in Detroit is too much to ignore for me.

So…in the East we have Cleveland, Boston, Indiana, and the eventual winner between Detroit and New York. Personally…I’m tired of seeing the Knicks on television and would love to see the Cinderella Pistons advance.

In the West, of course we have the Thunder waiting for the bracket to be filled. For me, I clearly want to see a Thunder vs. Denver matchup on one side and given the Lakers issues with rim protection and their overall defense…I think the best series would be Minnesota vs. Golden State.

Last night at Ball Arena in Denver, the top six guys on the Nuggets answered the clutch game call and defeated the Clippers by a score of 130-114. I watched every minute of this one. In reality, only eight guys played for the Nuggets when the game was still in doubt. The top six with Russell coming off the bench, and then Peyton Watson and DeAndre Jordan. A solid 23 point game by Russell. Nice job, buddy.

I thought DeAndre played some very nice minutes to spell Jokic and that might be the way Coach David Adelman plays it going forward. Kind of like DeAndre playing the Jeff Green role off the championship squad from two years ago.

Adelman seems to have a very comfortable feel with these guys and personally I’ve seen nothing in these last nine or so games from Denver which would indicate to me they’re missing Michael Malone all that much

Never, ever, ever, forget the First Axiom of Coaching: Player Makes the Coach. Always. Steph Curry made Steve Kerr. Michael Jordan made Phil Jackson. Timmy Duncan made Pop.

Player Makes the Coach.

Jokic, and Jamal Murray playing like he’s played of lated with healthy legs won Michal Malone a ring…not the other way around. And anybody who tells you diffrently is bullshitting you.

However, I might suggest this, if SGA and the Thunder win it all this season…I would have to somewhat amend this and give Sam Presgi and Coach Mark a nod. Because what they have carefully put togther and with great thought is craft the perfect set of guys around Shai which make him possibly the second best player in the league only behind Jokic.

But, of course, Shai is still my regular season MVP.

Obviously, I’ll be hanging with every minute tonight as we see if Golden State can close out the still learning Houston Rockets in five games. I would think Minnesota at home will close out the Lakers in Game 5.

In closing, a shout out to my 5.5 year old grandson, Robert. Mimi told me she reveived a text yesterday from Elaine explaining you fell out of your bed on Monday night and had to be rushed to the doctor to get four stitches. I know you’ll handle this with calm and if any of your classmates ask…just tell them you’re a hockey player and four stitches aren’t that big a deal. You’ll heal quickly and the scar might not be a bad thing to flaunt in mini-mite hockey in Denver. Just sayin’. Love, Mike

Enjoy the NBA games tonight.

MJ

As a radical left Antifa-socialist Yankee who voted for Gerald Ford, John Anderson, Bush 41, and Bob Dole this Paul Theroux-like Deep South trip for me was completely fascinating. Putting aside Redneck Rivera decadence there at the merging points of Orange Beach and Florabama…I pretty much loved every minute of the thirteen day journey.

I couldn’t quit thinking about Anthony Bourdain because there were Waffle Houses literally everywhere in the Deep South. I mean…everywhere. Everytime I saw that beautiful yellow Waffle House golden glow… I thought of Bourdain’s epic episode from that South Carolina Waffle House with super chef Sean Beck.

With the exception of the fact I think Trump is a vandal, a con artist, a trust fund brat, a rogue, and a hustler who really doesn’t give a shit about anyone but himself…..there’s quite a bit about the South I actually love.

The overall beauty of the South is majestic from east Texas or Arkansas all the way to Florida. The trees are simply amazing. For a person like me who loves trees and shrubs the South has no equal. That’s why I wanted to drive…to make sure we didn’t miss a thing.

In Alabama I have never seen so many pecan trees, live oaks, and magnolias. The sheer beauty of the flora blew me away every single day. Plus, the simple goodness of the people.

But beyond that…it was the Easter service which will never leave me for the rest of my life. Especially considering it was held in the same Seaside church Chris and Elaine were married in ten years ago. And on this Easter service there were Robert (5) and Aubrey (4) in the church with us. Yeah…I cried.

Truly a miracle.

I know how much the odds were stacked against me in the beginning for me even lasting to this point in my journey.

But faith is an amazing concept. Unfortunately, for so many of us…. we don’t even seriously attempt to harness our faith until we’re faced with a dire situation of some sort.

To say I’m in a very secure special place right now would be an understatement.

I feel blessed and the steps forward for me are the same. Wake up every morning and be kind while trying to be the best version of myself in dealing with others.

Be kind to others…that’s all. It’s not that tough of a thing to do on a daily basis.

‘He does not fear the sword. He is afraid of nothing. His soul is secure and at peace with the heavens and the universe.’

Eternal peace. Mike J

This is what MJ wants to see more of in our NBA Playoffs in 2025. This is the passion, the urgency, and the physicality the pussiest league in pro sports sorely needs more of so as the TV ratings keep the league relevant.

This is why MJ in no way fretted missing OKC’s predictable first round sweep over the the docile Memphis Grizzlies. This is why we spent time on the beaches in Seaside, Water Color, Perdido, Florabama, Orange Beach, and Alabama Point. Plus, of course, we got to spend the most meaningful Easter of my life with our family in the very Seaside church Chris and Elaine were married in almost ten years ago.

This is why an experinced NBA blogger like myself…so much different than the sissy fairies who allegedly cover the NBA for the Daily Thunder….could never understand or even want to understand.

This kind of violence and gamesmenship is what Adam Silver sorely needs in the NBA game to evolve back to in the regular season. Nobody really gives a shit about the now two year old regular season tournament.

Nobody.

This is what real NBA fans want to see… more CARING from their players and the oppossition players during the too long 82-game regular season.

I wonder if the Thunder can be mentally tough and salty enough when they start playing real NBA Top 8 level talent in this year’s playoffs?

The truth of the matter is…in the SGA era the Thunder have still yet to win a playoff series over what I would consider a legitimate NBA playoff caliber team. This isn’t in any way a knock at the Thunder’s extremely talented roster, just a truthful observation from an objective NBA blogger on in reality the only OKC Thunder blog which in fact writes the objective truth in its Thunder content pieces.

Michael Dunleavy Jr. right now is possibly looking like the GM who won the trade deadline if he can keep Steph and Jimmy Butler healthy…and keep Draymond Green within the Zone of Reason.

BTW…that was a picture pefect screen Draymond set on the play which for some reason got under the skin of the youngish Rockets. That was an NBA Playoffs screen. Good job, Draymond.

To me…the Denver-LA Clippers and the Warriors-Rockets are so far the two series which have captivated my interest.

Be careful in Stillwater and eastern Oklahoma today and don’t be that dumbass who drives into standing water. Seriously…be smarter than the water.

This is for the crazies at Orange Beach and Florabama Beach. I’ll say this…thank god I never went to either of those beaches during my college days because I never would have lived through it to become an old man. I love their spirit there on the Alabama-Florida line. Truly.

Peace, MJ.

We’re back from the beaches of Alabama and Florida. I feel rested and serene. I did not watch ONE NBA Playoff game during our 13-day journey. Nor did I watch One Word come out of Donald Trump’s mouth as well.

And I will say this, due to the above latter…I think this is the best I’ve felt in the past two-three years during my cancer journey.

I did watch five minutes of the Thunder’s Game 1 route over the Memphis Grizzlies and henceforth did not watch anymore of that series because that was the one series I was bullish on from the start of this year’s bracket which I thought would be a four game sweep.

It was a mismatch, much like OKC’s first round stroll past the Pelicans last season.. There’s no point to analyze those four games. The Thunder will next face either Denver or the LA Clippers, and that for me will be a good way to start ebbing back into the flow of covering the NBA Playoffs.

Both Denver and Golden State are hanging in there as their first round series…so I think I’ll follow both of those series leading into the winner’s conference semi-final against the much ballyhooecd and daunted OKC Thunder.

I can’t wait. I’m reset from the long 82-game regular season and the tough chemo regimen and this is when it should matter most for players, fans, and bloggers as we hit our stride entering the goal acheiving portion of the NBA Playoff Championship Playoffs.

It’s time for the OKC Thunder and their fandom to prove the talk and walk the proverbial walk.

I need to go mow the mini-ranch before it starts raining again tomorrow.

Enjoy the dry Monday, Oklahoma.

Peace, MJ.

I had my fifth PetScan yesterday since the beginning of the Stage 4 cancer journey and later this morning Dr. Showalter and I will talk about things. I expect it to be relatively clean just as the last three have been. I’ve come along way since the first scan which corresponded with my off the charts 1,212 PSA count.

These past two and a half years have been more than a journey, I’d say a reckoning, reset, and a redemption of sorts would be more accurate.

I feel blessed to just be here and have had the opportunity to grow spiritually while getting to know and love my two grandchildren…Robert and Aubrey.

I feel especially gratified God has given me this extra time and these opportunities to expand on being kinder, gentler, and more understanding of others.

We’re fortunate enough to get the opportunity to spend this Easter week in Seaside as a celebration of sorts.

I feel God allowed me to see the light when I was at my darkest moment and have faith in his omnipresent wisdom. And for that I am extremely thankful.

Have a beautiful Easter week.

2 Corinthians, 5.7

‘We live by faith, not by sight.’

Eternal peace, Mike J

It was a beautiful day for me. I got up early and drove down to the family Alex land and fished for the first time this spring season. The pond looked perfect. Absolutely perfect. My Walden’s Pond.

The land has been my refuge since my teenage years whenever I needed to get away and clear my mind from my parents’ seemingly always tumultous marriage. It’s where I learned solititude sometimes is the best medicine for a weary, wore-down soul. A place to block out the bullshit from the mind and reset.

I caught five black bass, four bluegill, and about a seven pound channel cat all on light tackle. The channel cat was a huge surprise given I was using a shad-like spinner. That was a rush for certain. I never keep fish at this juncture in my life. It’s all catch and release. So I said good-bye to the big cat and wished him well on his way.

Then I drove home taking in all the country-side in a very relaxed state of being. I was the most casual driver on the two-lane highways going through Blanchard, then Lindsey, then tiny Cole, then to the thriving metroplex of Alex. I always stay to the right though so as not to impede the speed of others. I just wasn’t in a hurry on this day. MJ was smelling the roses.

My Denver Nuggets won their third straight game to finish the regular season on an uptick with a record of 50-32. Jokic’s team now is the No. 4 seed in the West and will have homecourt versus the surging LA Clippers who btw now have a Kawhi Leonard who looks the best I’ve seen from him in quite some time. Pray for Steve Ballmer…god bless his basketball heart.

Then…the final round of this unbelievable Masters golf tournament which in my golf soul ranks somewhere in my top four golf tournaments of all-time in my lifetime. Maybe second only behind Jack’s late in life win at National Augusta.

I will write this to Justin Rose…dude, this was one of those times in life you didn’t lose. You in my mind won a green jacket just like Rory did late on Sunday afternoon. Your fight and grit was remarkable. It’s one of those Thomas Vincent Lombardi moments when you emptied your tank, but the stars and planets were aligned for Rory to finally get his career Grand Slam.

So… of course I cried. This was better than Robert Redford’s The Legend of Booger Vance.

My father’s favorite golfer is Rory…so you know what I did? I called my cousin-brother Mark’s cell number on Saturday just to see by chance if it was still a working number…and it is. I was so taken back about this fact…I had to make a second call just to leave a voicemail message to Mark. I basically just said how much I miss him and how much he’s loved…and then told him to make sure Bobby sees the rest of this golf tournament.

So when Rory was crying after the ending so was I. And I’m pretty certain Mark and Bobby were as well.

My beautiful Sunday.

Have a miraculous Easter Week. I know I’m going to.

Mike J

We have one game left in this NBA regular season and I’m ready to cast my MVP vote regardless of what happens tomorrow afternoon in Houston between the Denver Nuggets and the Houston Rockets.

Please keep this in mind, I’m not even really an OKC Thunder fan all that much anymore. I don’t hate the Thunder, but they fall in a group of five or six teams I watch with regularity. Those being Denver, Golden State, OKC, LA Lakers (Austin Reaves), and the Boston Celtics. And maybe to a slightly lesser degree the Minnesota Timberwolves.

In the West…the No. 4 thru No. 7 seeds are still in flux heading into this final week-end of the season. The Thunder however are going to finish 68-14 unless an earthquake or some other Black Swan event occurs between now and their scheduled final game against the feeble New Orleans Pelicans.

The Thunder are also going to have homecourt advantage all the way thru the NBA Finals if they emerge as the Western Conference Champion.

So… How would my ballot look for this NBA regular season MVP award?

With great thought and deliberation …I would go 1 Shai, 2 Jokic, 3 Anthony Edwards, and 4 Cade Cunningham. I would add I think all this angst over what the NBA will look like following LeBron, KD, and Steph’s collective exits are in a way overrated. All four of my finalists still have a great deal of NBA basketball in front of them.

What Adam Silver and the NBA in general needs to be focused on is how tanking and load management have weakened their game day product for the person either attending or watching NBA regular season games on television. You know…the television rankings have dipped even with LeBron, Steph, and KD still playing in their golden years. And in reality…only LeBron is on a team which made my Top Six NBA Teams This Season with a chance to win the O’Brien Trophy. Golden State with Steph and Jimmy Butler is No. 7 on my list and Jokic by himself is No. 8.

I still don’t know what I think about the Houson Rockets. I’ll put them No. 9 with the thought the way they offensive rebound the ball could be of a potential concern to the Thunder. No. 10 would be the Clippers or Indiana Pacers.

I will write this about Joikic before I love on Shai, statistically…Jokic should be winning his 4th MVP this season for what he just accomplished. At this point he is only the third player in NBA history to record a season average triple double. His numbers are daunting…29.8-12.8 rebs-10.3 ast. Plus, he had career bests in 3-point shots made and 3-point percentage. And for good measure he had his second best career year in rebounds.

BTW…the other two players are Oscar Robertson who in ’61-’62 did the triple double average. Of course, our own mecurial Russell Westbrook accomplished this feat four times in his never boring NBA career. Russ did it three times with OKC and once with Scott Brooks in Washington.

One last thing in regards to Jokic’s season. He did all this with Jamal Murray and Aaron Godon because of injury issues not even remotely pulling their chains on their team link. Jokic, in effect was playing without his second and third best players on the court with him at their peak level much of the season.

Shai’s numbers this regular season are 33ppg, 5rbs- and 6.2 asts, plus he usually adds a couple of steals and deflections every game. I have to give it up to Sam Presti on Shai and JDub in that the Thunder GM went yard and beyond with the trade acquisition of Shai from the Clippers and the drafting of JDub from Santa Clara.

Shai’s team never flinched when Chet H went down for the second regular season in his three year NBA career. Plus, Caruso missed a lot of games as well. Yeah, Hartenstein was a great addition, but it was Shai who carried this team to within two games of a historic 70-12 season.

But for me, as a discerning NBA fan…Shai means so much more. This young man exemplifies total class in both representing his franchise, the NBA in general, and Oklahoma City. Here is a young black man from Canada playing in a city which in all honesty is by far the most radical right city in the entire NBA. Shai showed everyone who watches the NBA there might be hope for Oklahoma to grow up at some point. The collective NBA fandom thought of OKC will now be of Shai’s dignity, grace, and class…. and not of angry white people still booing Kevin Durant for leaving Oklahoma.

Could the state of Oklahoma have a better ambassador of good faith?

What parent or grandparent out there wouldn’t want their son or grandson to show the total class Shai exudes every game in which he plays wearing an OKC Thunder jersey?

Shai Gligeous-Alexander, buddy…you’re my NBA Regular Season MVP and it wouldn’t upset me a bit if you win a ring to go along with your MVP season. Maybe…if you guys did win it all you could go to the White House and pull Commander Fuckwit aside and explain some things to him about life in general.

Best wishes, Mike J

What a week!

When Joe Biden left office the Dow was at boring 42,500 marker and things actually seemed somewhat boring and pedstrian as we were still the hope of democratic world. Russia and North Korea were our adversaries while Canada and Mexico were our bordering neighbors. Japan, South Korea, and Vietnam were in our orbit of global frienship and not leaning towards China. Greenland…really? Denmark was already our friends.

NATO and Europe still remember Hitler, Stalin, and Mussolini…so, yeah, they understand that in rea;lity it is somewhat stupid to follow this geopolitical plan of Donald Trump who never served his country because he had some bunions on his feet and a daddy with a trust fund.

So much for that boring bullshit. We needed to throw all that in the dumpster fire and in a Hitleresqe or Calvin Coolidge/Herbert Hoover manner become the most hated isolationist country in the world and undo pretty much everything our grandparents accomplished by winning WWII eighty years ago.

But then again what the f–k did our grandparents know as they pretty much took us from the disastrous policies of Calvin Coollidge, Herbert Hoover, and the Smoot-Hauley Tariff Act and through their grit actually embraced policies which created the greatest middle class in the HISTORY OF THE WORLD.

What then again, f–k that state of mind. The entire globe, 8 billion plus should all fall in line with Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and the concept of apartheid and make sure every white kid in America with a Sugar Daddy trust fund has everything set in his favor, while those of us who worked our asses off, played by the rules, and walked the walk of making sure our children had a shot at the American Dream should pretty much be treated with disdain and scorn.

The Dow opens at 39,500 today and will probably keep going in elevator mode as long as Trump in no way enunciates a clear message on WTF he is doing with his tarriff policies. Meanwhile, the the trading price of West Texas Crude has dropped from $70 a barrel to the high $50’s a barrel during all of this premeditated chaos.

My question to you Oklahomans at this point is…How has all of Trump’s buffoonish ‘Drill baby, drill’ bullshit touching your souls this Friday morning?

Good luck.

But you know what? I’ll be okay.And my focus is on just being a kinder, gentler person who takes the time to smell the roses and live the Golden Rule. A person who doesn’t brawl at a Thunder-Lakers game and catches that fluttering T-shirt in his right hand.

Have a nice weekend and enjoy the Masters golf tournament.

Mike J

David Adelman, son of former Trailblazer head coach Rick Adelman, led the Denver Nuggets to a road win over the Sacramento Kings last night to break a four game losing streak for the Nuggets. The win keeps the Nuggets in the hunt for the No. 3 seed in the West, which of course is what they covet so as to avoid the OKC Thunder in a possible second round matchup.

The video above is after the Nuggets closed out the Lakers in the second round last April in a game in which I was fortunate enough to sit on the first row on the floor on the baseline opposite Jamal’s game winner.

A memory I will forever cherish with my son sitting next to me. And, of course, Jamal hit the game winner over Austin Reaves, who I have loved since his OU days.

I was sitting next to a couple of Wichita State fans the other night at Pay.Com and we started talking about Austin and how he ended up at OU. I did not know the reason Austin had to leave Wichita State was the fact he was dating head coach Greg Marshall’s daughter behind the coach’s back. Oops. Hellow…Coach Lon Kruger and Boomer Sooner, baby!.

Of course, the rest is history for the Lakers current third best player who amazingly went undrafted after being 1st team All-Big 12 his senior season in Norman. Sam Presti missed that one and instead took O State’s Lindy Waters who is now with his third NBA team sitting on a bench.

But back to Coach Malone…he leaves Denver as the only Denver Nugget coach to win an NBA Championship and he leaves with a string of eight straight winning seasons as well.

Coach Malone will have no problem securing a good NBA head coaching job if he wants one. He was the 4th longest tenured coach in the NBA prior to his dismal by Josh Kroenke. Coach Malone and GM Calvin Booth were both fired…which I thought was somewhat weak because Calvin Booth didn’t build the Nuggets into an NBA champiohsip team. That person was Tim Connelly, who is the current President of Operations for the Minnesota Timberwolves.

I will be somewhat surprised if Calvin Booth is anybody’s GM next season in the NBA. But we’ll see.

It would appear after the horrific double overtime loss to the very same Timberwolves…the situation with Coach Malone and Calvin Booth became untenable moving forward.

Coach Malone wanted to stick with the veteran Russell Westbrook, and Calvin Booth wanted to move forward with a heavier role for rookie Jalen Pickett.

The two mental errors by Russell at the end of the Minnesota game were indeed unacceptable, but Coach Malone is old school and sticks with his guys.

I actually like Jalen Pickett and we’ll see how that goes. But here’s the bottom line with the Nuggets, unless Jamal can stay healthy it’s not going to matter how many minutes Jalen plays or what role Russell has moving forward.

Because for the Nuggets to be a serious contender of any sort in the West, all three youngsters, those being Jalen, Peyton Watson, and Julian Strawther have to grow up in big time hurry and become solid No. 8, No. 9, and No. 10 players in interim coach David Adelman’s rotation.

I seriously doubt a coach like Mike Malone could ever coach for a GM like Sam Presti though. Coach Malone has a very strong, direct personality and I could never see a coach like Mike Malone fitting the Scott Brooks, Billy Donovan, Coach Mark template.

Good luck, Mike Malone.

Mike J

What a basketball day for me as I attended my first Thunder game of the season as the LA Lakers were in town for what in essence was a three day road stay for the Lakers and a quasi back to back. Just like NBA Playoff basketball.

But first let me write this…the NCAA Tournament Committee released their television ratings for the mens’ Final Four and the ratings were not surprisingly…stellar. 18.1 million viewers watched the Final Four and Championship Monday which makes 2025 the most watched Final Four since 2017.

What does this tell me? It tells me there is still a market for mens’ college basketball when a quality product is being televised. As many problems as the mens’ college game has doesn’t change the fact basketball fans at the NBA level are tired of the tanking and the load management bullshit. Fans want to see quality, meaningful games with the best players PLAYING.

Okay…to last night at the Incomporable Pay.Com Arena. MJ had a blast. We had seat great seats just left of mid-court behind the Thunder bench, ten rows up.

The atmosphere last night outside the arena before the game and inside the arena was a playoff feel like I used to love when the Thunder first starting making the NBA Playoffs. I love that feel. MJ lives for that feel. That feel of post season relevancy.

Shai gave a nice little speech to the Thunder crowd before tip giving his thanks to the OKC fans for their support. The national anthem was superb by a former Miss Oklahoma. And the best part of all was that while I was pretty close to Michael Cage and Little Nick Gallo…I couldn’t hear one single word of nonsensical horseshit either uttered during or after the game. Plus, I think I found myself a rickshaw driver for the playoffs.

The game itself was great until the refs diminished it with 7:40 left in the fourth period when they gave Luka his second technical of the night. Total bullshit. Again…fans pay to see the best players play…not to see some oversensitive zebra ruin what up to that point was a second round caliber playoff game. There was talking going on all night, and I mean all night. Don’t take the game away from the fans who are paying to see the best players PLAY.

But despite this bitching from me…Shai easily from my view clinched the MVP last night. What a great young man Shai is and how lucky the Thunder fans are to have him as their face of the city.

A drunken brawl between some Laker fans and Thunder fans erupted not long after the ejection just five or six rows behind me. I mean…fists were flying, ‘Fuck yous, and fuck this, and fuck whatevers’ were being yelled at the highest decibels. Finally…some ushers in green jackets got over there and removed all of the human rabble from the arena. I mean… threw ’em out of the arena with about six minutes still left to play.

And amazingly…this ‘new’ MJ never said a word during the brawl. Not one ‘Sit your stupid fucking asses down and shut the fuck ups,’ came out of my lips. So get this…while the human rabble behimd me were rioting…the Thunder cheerleaders starting throwing and shooting Thunder T-shirts into the stands. And as if a message from the Gods of basketball heaven came down to MJ’s soul…a wrapped Thunder T-shirt fluttered into my right hand. Swear to God. The first time ever I’ve ever caught a T-shirt at a Thunder game.

So like Bill Murray in Caddy Shack via Carl Spackler said, “So…you know, I have total consciousness going for me as well. So there’s that.”

What a great Thunder night for Mike J… and on the same day Michael Malone and Nugget GM Calvin Booth were both fired. I’ll blog about the Nugget situation tomorrow.

Have a beautiful Wednesday.

Eternal consciousness, MJ