Welcome to OKCThunderGround!

Exremely cold out here at the Deer Creek mini-ranch this Sunday. Just a little over zero this morning as I ventured out into the frozen tundra to feed ‘our’ deer and turkeys.

I had the additional task of breaking ice on the two small watering ponds on our property this morning. Deer Creek itself is frozen solid as are the three fishing ponds in our community. The deer and turkeys are at this point keenly aware MJ is looking out for them during this second Oklahoma artic front in the past three weeks.

Trump gives his inaugural speech inside tomorrow because most of the lollipop fake tough guys who voted for him can’t handle Vince Lombardi ‘frozen tundra-like’ weather. If you’re one of these Trump caucasian fake tough guys feel secure in knowing….it will be your specific demographic I will be assailing as this second Trump presidency evolves. You lazy, entitled motherf—–s at this point will have no further excuses as to why you can’t thrive in a Darwinian supply-side economy.

Great Vince Lombardi weather in three of our four divisional playoff games this week-end.

Mahomes, of course led the Chiefs to an expected win over CJ Stroud and the Houston Texans. Then…Jaden Daniels and his group won over America’s collective football heart with their second straight road win in these playoffs. Detroit finally surrendered to all of the defensive injuries, but let me write this…Jaden Daniels is the second LSU otherworldly QB now in the league ranking behind only Joe Burrow and Mahomes.

It’s a shame the Chiefs tanked in their last game of the regular season to in essence keep the Bengals out of the playoffs. But that of course..signals how much Andy Reid thinks of Joe Burrow as a potential spoiler of this threepeat his Chiefs are pursuing.

So we have Baltimore vs. Buffalo and the LA Rams vs. Philadelphia in our two games today. Both games will be played in Lombardi-like conditions. I like both Philly and Buffalo.

In closing…let me share with you two of my favorite Lombardisms which I have fallen back on every day of my Stage 4 cancer journey along with my faith in God.

1 The harder you work, the harder it becomes to relent and surrender.

2 Do not succomb to fatigue and allow it to compromise your courage and integrity.

You Trump fake tough guys who have struggled grasping the American Dream in America to date…please refer to this blog for further inspiration as Trump’s second term shows itself.

Eternal love, MJ

Somewhere former college hoops coach Nolan Richardson is smiling. Because let MJ tell you this…what the Thunder did last night in that first half versus the incredibly shell-shocked Cleveland Cavs was vintage Nolan Richardson 48 Minutes of Hell ballin’.

Holy shit…..134-114 and it really wasn’t that close.

This game was over maybe six minutes into the first period when it became apparent Cleveland was going to ignore the fact the Thunder minus their best two bigs were prone to being exposed inside the paint. Instead, the Cavs decided they would try and run with these college greyhounds and toy with Forty Minutes of Hell on the road in front of a sellout blood thirsty crowd inside of Paycom Arena.

Some advice to Cav head coach Kenny Adkinson…in the event your team beats Boston to advance to the NBA Finals opposite this Thunder team if they indeed advance…I think it might be worthy of a rethink to consider slowing the pace inside of Paycom Arena next time you face these dobermans with a national audience watching.

I mean, without a single point or rebound from either Chet or Isaiah the Thunder made your team look like the Portland TrailBlazers or New Orleans Pelicans. Maybe….you can get away with running with the Thunder at home when you get friendly whistles, but I think a different type of ball should be considered next time you visit Oklahoma.

I love this. Because it’s now apparent to me the OU men aren’t ready to play big boy SEC hoops yet…so for me this kills two birds with one stone as an Oklahoma hoops addict. But let me say in behalf of the OU women…they minus South Carolina I think are going to do okay in the SEC minus games played against South Carolina. Jenni has that program headed the right direction.

Now back to the greyhound-dobermans.

So what did this game last night mean? For me it meant Shai is now clearly the front runner to unseat Jokic’s hold on the regular season MVP trophy. Shai on TNT showed the basketball world he currently is playing the best basketball in the world on a team which if he and Dub stay healthy are going to flirt with the 70 win plateaus of the ’95-’96 Bulls and the ’15-’16 Warriors…. which by the way both included Steve Kerr.

It also to me shows Boston is still the team to beat in the East as the defending champions if Porzingus is still helathy come playoff time. Boston’s core knows what it takes to navigate these waters. They’ve gone through failure and then attained the ultimate glory of holding the O’Brien Trophy with confetti falling.

To me…winning the NBA Championship is like the journey of life. It’s tough. You get knocked down and have to learn survival skills. Soft doesn’t cut it in the journey of life or winning an NBA ‘ship.

I think the Thunder are tough for certain, but there’s this part of my basketball soul which questions if they’re ready to win sixteen games in April, May, and June.

So tonight in Dallas on a back to back with no Luka….I’m very interested to see if these guys can move from last night and bring their lunchpails ready to go from the opening tip.

I can’t wait another national marquee Thunder game to prelude the NFL Divisional Playoffs and Championship Monday between Ohio State vs. Notre Dame.

With more Arctic weather headed towards Oklahoma … I seriously doubt I’ll leave the house for three days minus feeding the deer and turkeys.

This is why you own your own blog. and never deal with another messageboard in your life.

One last Thunder thing…a shout out to the kid from Utah. Those two threes in that type of setting were impressive. We’ll see what he does in Dallas tonight.

Stay warm, Oklahoma.

Mike J

-Staff Reports-

I hate to hear this. Isaiah will be out of action for awhile with a calf strain. You never know how quickly some guys bounce back from soft tissue injuries.

Let’s keep this in mind for the Thunder tonight…since Isaiah came back from his broken hand injury—the Thunder are a league best 22-2 with him playing and Chet Holmgren still nursing his most recent fracture.

22-2.

Think about that. And within that span of games Jaylin Williams, the Thunder’s third center was not available for quite a few games with his own injury issues.

But tonight JWill along with JDubb will have to play most of the critical center minutes against a very big Cleveland Cavalier lineup.

And here’s the thing about Cleveland, they’re not only big, but like the Thunder, they enjoy playing at a fast pace. The 48 Minutes of Hell thing didn’t really play into the game last week in Cleveland. It was a scoring fest, not a defensive grind type of game.

So… I would think the Thunder with a smaller lineup are going to attempt to speed up this game as much as possible given one might think rebounding will be an issue tonight for the Thunder.

This intrigues me. Can Coach Mark with no real center tonight…turn this game into a high octance turnover fest with the Thunder scoring 24-26 points off of live turnovers and scoring quickly off of transition threes?

Maybe the big rookie kid Jones can step up and play some high quality minutes or possibly Dieng could up his physicality a couple of notches.

But beyond tonight…I hope this calf strain isn’t a factor for the Thunder’s season. Jamal Murray’s injury issues have been calf strain related for over a year now.. The other night in Dallas was purely an outlier game for Jamal this season. Not a turnaround game, but an outlier of sorts.

Isaiah, get well, buddy. I want to see you guys challenge that Chicago Bulls’ 70 game barrier. Otherwise, the Western Conference regular season is pretty much not all that interesting this season.

The Thunder game versus Philly was not worth watching last night primarily because Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, and Paul George were all DNPs on the same night. I don’t watch games with that dynamic in place, nor do I write about those type of games on my blog. Suffice it to say…the Thunder easily walked through the motions to extend their curent win streak to three games.

Cleveland is in town tomorrow night so I’ll save myself for that game.

However, the Denver Nuggets easy win over Dallas on the road was something I watched with interest. And what I witnessed is Jamal Murray scored 45 points and looked like the same guy who along with Jokic carried the Nuggets to the NBA championship two years ago in rather easy fashion while only losing three games in that entire playoff run.

If this Jamal Murray starts to bring his game…these Nuggets are not a dead team walking. Quite the contrary, with this Jamal the Nuggets could plausibly give the Thunder some concern once we get to post season play when the pace should start slowing down as teams lock down defensively.

If I were Michael Malone….if Michael Porter isn’t traded at the deadline…I think I would basically move Christian Braun and Michael Porter to the six and seven slots…and start Russell Westbrook and either Peyton Watson or Julian Strawther depending on the size of the opposing starting five.

Denver needs a nudge at the trade deadline. Something like a discounted version of either Bruce Brown or Kentavius-Caldwell Pope. We’ll see if GM Calvin Booth makes a move or stands pat. I would make a move so as not to piss away a season of prime Jokic.

A GM’s job is to give his superstar a chance when the championship window is open. Any team which has Jokic and A-game Jamal is in a championship window if the GM is doing his job. Sam Presti did not do this with Kevin Durant in 2016…and of course Kevin subsequently bolted to Steph Curry in Golden State. CALVIN BOOTH….this is your job, buddy. Find a way.

In closing, a shoutout to Russell Westbrook for his play so far this season in Denver. I like what I’m seeing. I hoped playing alongside Jokic and Jamal, plus playing for a strong-willed coach like Mike Malone would be the right chemistry. So far, so good. I’d give Russell a B+ at the halfway mark of the season.

A beautiful sunny January day in Oklahoma. You should take a hike or a run. I’m going to.

Etternal joy, Mike J

The Stage 4 cancer journey is going relatively well all things considered. I was telling a friend the other day, “In retrospect…me being diagnosed in the manner in which I was by Dr. Showalter was the best thing which could have happened to me at this juncture in my life.”

It grabbed my attention. It rebooted my sense of all the things I was taking for granted. I had to reset my life and remember all the things which are truly important in life beyond ego, money, and hubris.

It made me take the time to thank God for the absolute blessed life I’ve had and to never take a single day for granted. Not one.

I get up every morning and realize something great is about to happen. My grandson had his first mini-mite hockey practice this past Saturday at the University of Denver. My granddaughter amazes me every time I see her. I’m so grateful I’ve gotten to be a part of seeing them evolve.

My body has reacted better than I could have ever prayed for in this current stage of chemo. It hasn’t really knocked me down so far. I rode the terrain bike yesterday. I think I’ll do a 1.5 terrain hike today along the forest line on the Deer Creek mini-ranch this evening before the Thunder tip

Life is good. But I still need a dog. A real dog beyond my interim stuffed cancer dog named Buck from Call of the Wild. My soul needs a dog.

I feel God with me. Looking out for me. Steering me. Helping me understand my ultimate spiritual destination.

Everything has slowed down for me.

Why did I wait for this to happen to make me refocus on what is truly important in life?

Anyway…the journey is beautiful and there’s no regret. Just moving forward.

Mike J

I got a little bit off track with my coverage of this special Thunder season due to the College Football Playoffs and the NFL Wildcard Round. But that is behind me now and this Thunder team continues to amaze with three games left to the 41 game marker which signals the NBA regular season midway point.

Okay….let’s do the math. The Thunder are currently 32-6. Let’s speculate they win their next three games and improve to 35-6. Thirty-five is half of seventy unless that’s not how math still works in an uber red Trump state like Oklahoma.

So what is this poser MJ (me…real MJ pictured above) saying to you people in Oklahoma? What I’m saying is the Thunder are in the hunt for the first 70 win regular season since the 1995-96 Bulls went 72-10. I may need to recheck this though given I’m posting this in a state which is so committed to education they elevated a pimp like Ryan Walters as their educational czar of sorts.

Since I last posted a Thunder thought…the Thunder lost a close game in Cleveland, then proceeded to torture the NY Knicks and the pathetic Washington Wizards for two straight road wins. That means the 15 game winning streak is done, but heading into tonight’s game in Philly against the 15-22 Sixers the new win streak stands at two.

So how good is this Thunder team?

Of course…they’re not the Bulls of ’95-’96, but given the parity we are seeing in the NBA and the lack of what I would describe as a team capable of a dynasty…if the Thunder can stay away from anymore serious injuries I would think most have them in the top three odds category to win the NBA Championship in June.

Note: I did the Steve Kerr, MJ, and Scottie thing above just to stoke you Thunder people a little more. And let me add this…I was doing my elite championship level mountain bike ride yesterday at the OKC Wellness Center and a ‘very reliable’ Thunder source confided in me it won’t be that much longer before Chet is back on the floor.

Here’s what none of us know to date…how good can this team become if Chet melds seamlessly back into the fold with Isaiah playing at the same high level he’s playing at currently?

Think about that you Thunder zealots. Think about that one.

Philly tonight on the road. If the Big Boy plays it could be an interesting night of NBA hoops. Before I sign off here today…I’d like to give a shout out to Cleveland backup point guard Ty Jerome for his excellent performance in the Cavs win over the Thunder last week. It’s good to see that young man getting his NBA career on the track it should be.

My current NBA championship poll top four…1 Boston, 2 OKC, 3 Cleveland, and 4 Dallas. Let me close with this additional thought though…let’s see if the Denver Nuggets do anything of significant substance at the trade deadline before we count them as a dead team walking circa 2025.

Eternal love, MJ

Some more tough days ahead for LA County as the winds and fire dangers kick up again. Just horrific to witness. Even worse than the fires which engulfed Maui. In total…I think I’ve visited Lahaina five times in my life to date. Four times when I was single, and another time with my wife early in what is now year forty-four in our marriage.

In total…I’ve been on the Islands six times and all the four major islands each at least twice.

But California cuts closer to home for me. I was born in San Diego when my father was a lieutenant in the U.S. Navy. As a kid we made the trek back several times. As an adult I was back in 2003 for the OU-Washington State Rose Bowl game. I was back again in 2007 when my son played in an ice hockey tournament in downtown LA.

I’m still kicking myself for not making the 2017 trip to the Rose Bowl when OU played Georgia in that historic double overtime game in the national semis. In reality, that was the last OU team which had a real chance of winning the national championship.

But on the two previous trips I made the trek along the Ventura Highway from Del Mar all the way to Pasadena. You have not lived as an American if you’ve never made that drive in a convertible with the top down on a sunny day.

My cousin Jan, who in reality is my older sister, at the end of this very January will retire from the Gates Foundation and move from Seattle to Del Mar. I hope that as long as I keep navigating my cancer journey we’ll be able to visit her at least once a year..if not maybe twice. I’m hoping that’s a big part of my journey as I head down the runway of the final chapters of my experience here on earth.

So, yeah… my heart is with California right now. But let me add this in closing…the other part of my heart will always love Oklahoma despite some of the snarky things I’ve written on my blog during these Trump years.

Consider this when you judge me…during these Trump years I had to navigate my father’s death from cancer, my mother’s final grievances with my father, I had to deal with the angst of Trump even being a candidate, my ‘brother’ Mark’s completely unexpected death this July, and then of course… now, as Trump re-enters the White House as Time Magazine Person of the Year no less.

But let me tell you this…when those Crimson and Cream jerseys come bounding out of that tunnel at the Cotton Bowl… this heart is all Oklahoma. When I’m out fishing or just taking in one of Oklahoma’s seventy-seven counties this heart of mine is all OKLAHOMA.

Pure Oklahoma.

Have a nice Monday in sunny Oklahoma today.

Mike J

Editor’s Gift to Reader: Here…drive it and feel it yourself.

Two great national semi-finals in our inaugural 12-Team College Football Playoff. Two very smart, tough, and deserving football teams who will enter Championship Monday as the No. 7 and No. 8 seeds off the original bracket.

Two great programs, two excellent coaches…but most importantly the two teams playing at their best at the goal acheiving portion of the season. Anotherwords….neither left their best football behind them in October.

I told you people on my blog…Penn State and Texas had sugardaddies on the selection committee. I wrote as much. In fact Texas probably should have been beaten by Arizona State when that horrific non-targeting call saved the high dollared Horns.

Like me….the football gods took note. Penn State and Texas….Take the Walk of Shame you pampered pussies….you’re going home where you deserve to be.

Without looking at any injury report as of yet…I’m installing Ohio St as my early 5.5 favorite to win the national championship.

I hate the Ohio State fight song. It’s the weakest part of their historied football program. Otherwise, I would have posted it on here.

Congratulations to both teams and their excellent fanbases.

MJ

I watched Jimmy Carter’s funderal service today and I thought it was done in a beautiful manner. My two favorite speakers were grandson Jason Carter and Andrew Young. They both knocked it out of the ball park as far as I’m concerened.

The 1976 presidential election was my first as an 18 year-old. I registered as a Republican who fashioned himself a social liberal, yet a pragmatic monetary conservative at the same time. A conservative with a kind, tolerant heart. Today people like me are considered radical left by the Trump supporters.

The kind heart and social liberal part has never changed with me. Although, in 2000, I changed my registration to Independpent because I was a John McCain supporter. Senator was beaten in the GOP primaries because he was pro-choice and the ‘faux’ evangelical Christians crucified him for being honest about his feelings in regards to womens’ rights.

I also firmly believe there should be a clear separation of church and state so as the dipshits wearing their faux Christian MAGA caps never have any leverage over American goverance. Attempting to connect those MAGA dipshit narratives I guess I’m at this point to assume hanging Mike Pence, Mitt Romney, and Nancy Pelosi wouldn’t from their view be a broken commandment of some sort. Three words apply here…. YOU CAN’T FIX STUPID.

Editor’s footnote: In an effort for Mike to be kinder and gentler to the fake Trump Christians…he will from this point forward use ‘faux’ instead of fake in matters of this regard.

I voted for Gerald Ford in 1976. In 1980, I voted for the fiscal conservative John Anderson who ran as an Independent. So, yes, even at this early stage in my adult development… I displayed a courageous streak which is so strikingly absent in the blind lemming faux Christians who have supported Donald Trump three times to date.

Jimmy Carter was not a great president, but he was a great man. He is someone who I have respected and admired from afar for quite some time. I would compare his one term presidency to that of fellow one-termer Bush 41. Both great men, but both one termers in fact because they actually had the audacity to take on their own party at times when they felt it was appropriate.

Ironically, for Jimmy Carter the U.S. hockey team did indeed go on to win the 1980 Miracle on Ice at Lake Placcid. But, then in that same year he prevented our athletes from performing in the Summer Games in Moscow because of the Soviet Union invasion of Afghanistan.

Yes, the American hostages were still being held in Iran. But as Jimmy Carter would later admit it was one of his biggest mistakes while in the White House. In essence, the ultimate opposite parallels of Jimmy Carter’s four year presidency.

But clearly, in the end, one of our greatest Americans during my lifetime.

Mike J

Ya…it was a glorious Monday here at the corporate office of okcthunderground.com. Very glorious.

Denver, Tampa, and Green Bay all are heading to the NFL Playoffs.

Baker Mayfield, dude. You are gold here at the Underground. Does anyone ever really care what Jim Traber thinks? Not MJ. That dude was QB on some O State teams which were so bad that was when Boone decided he had to step in with his buddy, Carl Icahn and actually purchase a state funded university in Oklahoma.

Ya, man, but there is no hate on the Underground. None. There is so much love. OU also decided to add Kendal Daniels on the same week-end R Mason Thomas declared he wasn’t going to the NFL draft, coupled with the return of Kendall Dolby and the addition of Florida State’s best edge rusher.

No hate here, man. In fact I would have to say O State is my third favorite college football team in Oklahoma behind Sooner Nation and UCO. It’s all love….ya, man. All love…eternal love in fact.

So yeah, a big week ahead for Denver, Tampa, and Green Bay. Green Bay worries me though. They’re sliding backwards into the playoffs. Not a good sign.

But for Tampa and Denver….they might win a game or two.

And for Baker…redemption. Total redemption.

Did you see the pathetic Cleveland Browns finish 3-14 this week-end vs. the Ravens. Karma is the ultimate bitch. Karma knows.

Have a beautiful day in frigid Oklahoma. Stay warm

MJ