Welcome to OKCThunderGround!

In my own NBA basketball mind/heart I’ve been trying decide where my loyalty will be this coming NBA season. It’s complex for me in that I don’t love my hometown Thunder, but I don’t hate them either.

Fact of the matter is….I love their players. I love Shai. There’s not one player on the Thunder roster I don’t like. So it’s not like I’ve got a hardon against the Thunder… it’s just that I’ve moved on from a team twenty minutes from my front door which is being picked by quite a few people to play the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals this coming season.

The analogy would be like when I was young and single and somewhat immature there was this beautiful young woman and we met and had sex. Then we had a series of shallow conversation and I just decided the sex didn’t warrant me having to hang around and continue with the conversation. That’s where I’m at with the Thunder. I’ve moved on. Sam Presti, Royce Young, and Little Nick Gallo do not tittilate MJ’s interest. They bore me to death with their homery brand even though they may indeed have the best team in the Western Conference.

So there’s that…an honest explanation of my feelings about this upcoming Western Conference NBA season.

So probably my passion this season will go in this order…1 Denver Nuggets, 2 Golden State Warriors, and 3 OKC Thunder. But if OKC were to emerge and make the NBA Finals vs. the Boston Celtics then I would clearly be rooting for the Thunder while praying it wasn’t Donald Trump hosting them for the White House congratulatory welcome.

Now…Russell Westbrook. This Dan Patrick podcast on Russell’s legacy is pretty much spot on as far as I’m concerned.

To me Russell’s legacy is this… he will go down as a great NBA regular season player who has amassed some gaudy stats in games against bad to midling teams in regular season play which for the most part don’t mean all that much.

Post season is where it’s at as far as establishing a legacy. What a player does in any sport at the goal acheiving portion of the season should define their legacy.

Think about this…Russell to date has played with Kevin Durant, James Harden (twice), Bradley Beal, LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Kawhi Leonard, and Paul George (twice) and only made it to a conference final or an NBA Final with one of these players.

That player would be Kevin Durant. Four times Kevin carried Russell Westbrook on his back and made it to the Western Conference Finals. One time, in 2012, Cupcake, as he’s still called in Oklahoma City by their basketball ‘intuitive’ fanbase…. carried Russell to the NBA Finals opposite the Miami Heat.

The legacy Russell has defined by his erratic play is Kevin Durant’s, not his own. For Kevin Durant to carry a team to the heights he did in OKC speaks volumes as to Kevin’s greatness…not Russell’s.

But despite what I’ve just written…I like Russell Westbrook and I’m praying for him to take this opportunity with Denver and redefine his legacy. I’m fervently praying Russell can clean up his game and give Mike Malone 18-20 minutes a game of smart, winning, consistent basketball as a role player off the bench.

I love Russell. My OU boy Austin Reaves said Russell was the best teammate he had when he made the LA Lakers as a free agent his rookie season. He said Russell took him under his wing so to speak. Knowing this…how can I not love Russell Westbrook?

What Russell primarily needs to do is QUIT shooting three point shots because he sucks at this skill as far as NBA players go. Last season while playing for the LA Clippers..Russell did not shoot 30% from any spot on the floor along the three point arc. Not even from either baseline which is usually the easiest location to make three point shots.

Denver desperately needs Russell Westbrook to be a level, mature, heady player since both Bruce Brown and Kentavius Caldwell-Pope have moved on since the Denver championship season. Christian Braun is now the fifth starter and he needs to fill KCP’s minutes.

Mike Malone can only hope Russell, Julian Strawther, Dario Sarcic, and Peyton Watson can give him some semblance of a bench this upcoming season.

So I’m genuinely hoping Russell can make the most of this opportunity to re-write his own legacy.

Good luck and God bless, Russell.

Mike J

In reality this turned out to be a one touchdown game if you don’t take the points off the board on OU’s successful first two point conversion attempt. Vegas called it a one touchdown game and that’s exactly what it turned out to be in a second half of which OU won 12-6 with Michael Hawkins taking over for a shell-shocked Jackson Arnold.

The positives….

1 OU’s defense was superb from the beginning of this game to the end. They overcame all the first half blunders by Jackson Arnold and in reality only gave up 23 points on the night. The OU defense also created two recovered sack fumbles which in a normal game would have at the least translated into +10 points if not for the play of Jackson Arnold.

2 Special teams for the most part were solid…especially the coverage teams and the punt team.

3 MICHAEL HAWKINS was excellent…. he looked like he belonged on the big stage under the bright lights. Deion Burks, Jasquez Pettigrew, and the other receivers held on to the ball and shined with Hawkins in the second half. Plus… RB Devontae Barnes, OC Seth Littrel is going to have to continue to explore ways to get Barnes the ball in space since it appears Nic Anderson still has an injury issue.

The negatives….

1 Jackson Arnold was unplayable deep into the second quarter. The coaching staff is going to have to make some tough decisions this week. I’m not giving up on Jackson, but you cannot have those mistakes and be a competitive team at this level of play. I felt for him. It was one of the worst QB performance at OU in this century. I would liken it to Landry Jones’ woeful performance in the 2011 Bedlam Game in which Landry gifted 21 points to O State on a rainy night.

2 The offensive line wasn’t all that much better. The coaching staff’s decision of Michael Hawkins should be made easier given how his speed will help alleviate some of the O line’s woes.

All in all though…I’m proud of the OU effort. They competed their asses off for sixty minutes and never surrendered even through one of the worst QB performances in contemporary OU football history.

On that light I’d go….1 Landry Jones vs. O State in 2011, 2 Jackson Arnold vs. Tennessee, and 3 Paul Thompson in 2005 vs. TCU.

Here’s the deal though…two words…’Get Better’ this week in practice and go see if you can beat a struggling Auburn team.

If you’re a competitive person like I am…this is when you find out about yourself and your inner core.

Boomer!

MJ

At home in Norman…of course OU has a puncher’s chance of winning this game even though Vegas has Tennessee as a 7 point road favorite.

Am I picking OU to win? Not really, but I think if the OU offensive line gets enough players back today from the injured list to play a functional game the Sooners should be able to compete in this game.

OU’s defense is pretty good, the kicking game seems to be fine, and for me the QUESTION is will OU’s patchwork offensive line be able to give Jackson Arnold enough time and space to keep the OU offense on the field.

I’m not down on Jackson Arnold at all. He should be better with Nic Anderson and A Anthony back on the field. I was incredibly impressed by Jackson when after throwing the pick six against Tulane… he picked himself up, didn’t pout or go into a shell…and basically made winning plays against a good Tulane team in the final eight minutes of the game.

Tulane > NC State, Kent State, and Chattanooga. Ya.

Has Tennessee beaten anybody to date as good as Tulane?

No they have not. They’ve beaten Chattanooga, Kent State, and an NC State team which isn’t any good on a neutral field.

BTW….pedstrian Clemson which was obliterated by Georgia is a ten point fvorite over NC State today. And look what Kentucky did at home versus the previously thought to be unbeatable Georgia Bulldogs.

Just saying.

Tennesse hasn’t played anybody, in fact they may not have played anybody to date as good as power five Big 12 Houston.

So what I’m saying is…we all know OU’s offensive line is a problem, but in reality how much difference is there bewteen Temple, Kent State, and Chattanooga?

OU fan base… you dudes need to bring your AA game to the stadium this evening. The teasippers need to stay home or bring their AA game to the stadium because our team needs you to be special tonight.

MJ is jacked.

Play like a champion and be real fans tonight and cheer like champions.

BOOMER!!!

Mike J

My grandson (Robert) turns five on Sunday…OMG! I love that kid. I love his spirit and passion. And his younger sister (Aubrey) is pretty cool as well. I know he’ll be wearing crimson and watching the game on Saturday night in Denver.

Great news yesterday from Norman…both pre-season All-American WR Nic Anderson and WR burner A. Anthony look to be a go together for the first time this season.

In honor of RJ2’s birthday this week-end and the Sooners’ game on Saturday night… I’m playing his favorite pre-workout pump up workout song this morning before I hit the gym.

What a great day alteady!!!

MJ

Huge week for OU football as two Top 15 teams square off in OU’s first ever home SEC opener in Norman.

OU is a 7 point home underdog currently and rightfully so given the Sooners’ inconsistent play on the offensive side of the ball so far this season.

Until I see who’s coming back for OU this week on offense from an injury standpoint I’m going to wait a day or two to write too much on this game.

I’m not one of these OU teasippers who bails out on his team. I’m not your average OU fan. This schedule is going to be tough even with Nic Anderson, A. Anthony, and the offensive linemen back in place.

The world has not come to an end for me because OU played parts of the second halves versus Houston and Tulane at what I feel is two levels below ‘A’ game level.

‘A’ game level play will pretty much be needed in place the remainder of this season minus the Maine game if OU wants to attain a record of 8-4. Simply put….OU needs to markedly improve this Saturday evening in Norman.

So after I see who’s back for OU from the injured list I’ll be back on Friday perhaps to give a more specific take on what I think OU needs to do to have a chance to win this game in the last four minutes of the game.

Take care. I’m headed for the stationary terrain bike and then the basketball court. BTW…last week I attempted my first experience on a real moving bike with tires minus training wheels and it was at best a sketchy performance on my part. So I know what it is to know your ‘A’ game is just around the corner.

Take care and God bless.

Mike J

It was a beautiful Tuesday for me for certain. One I’ll never forget. Just like when the little boy and his mom saw me at Dr. Showalter’s office and then by sheer luck ran into me at the water fountain inside North Park Mall as he gave me his lucky penny with a prayer included. I don’t care who you are when you’re on a Stage 4 journey….its the human contacts which keep you going along with your own inner faith.

So I now finish the last fifteen minutes of my workouts on the basketball court. Five minutes of dribbling, five minutes of passing, and five minutes of shooting just around the arc of the free throwline. I still can’t shoot threes yet. I’ll get there.

So today I was finishing up and this woman walked up to me and said, ” I’ve been watching you in here for awhile. You’ve come a long way…a long way. What’s your story?”

So I told her my story.

She then asked, ” Would you mind if I prayed for you right here?”

I said, ” No…not at all. Please do.”

She took my hand and prayed for me to never surrender my faith and belief. To not give up.”

And then she turned and said while walking away, ” Keep up the good work, Mike. Don’t give up.”

And that was the best part of a beautiful Tuesday I’ll never forget.

“I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail.” Luke 22:32

Peace, Mike J

It was a great week-end for me. The OU Sooners not only beat sneaky tough Tulane, but pulled the Vegas line as well. Tenneessee comes to Norman this Saturday for the feature ABC Game of the Week. I can’t wait. Hopefully, OU gets three or four guys back from injury this week.

I had another great week-end of bass fishing at picturesque Lake Stroud in eastern Oklahoma. I’ll put the video of Lake Stroud up tomorrow. Clearly…one of Oklahoma’s underrated bass and crappie lakes. It was like me fishing on a this fairly large lake as if it were my own private pond. Total peace for me. Surreal.

And then I heard the jaw dropping news…..

Donald Trump purportedly had another ‘brush’ with death. Let me just say this…if the Dems are in any way associated with either of these attempts it would be truly revealing in that it would be complete and total proof none of their more extreme left wing policies are going to work for America moving forward. They can’t kill him.

I’m sure the fake Trump Christians are claiming divine intervention on this second near death ‘brush’ from an assasin’s bullet.

And should Trump put the ear bandage back on?

I would say … yeah. A shot wasn’t fired at POTUS 46, but his base will love the fact he has the ear bandage back on and when you get your ass kicked at a debate like he did….you gotta have something to change the narrative and the news cycle.

What can Mike J at this point say…either way. It is what it is.

Pray for our country. Seriously.

Have a blessed Tuesday, Oklahoma.

Mike J

I don’t have a cat and never have actually had a cat. I’m a big dog owner my entire life. A German Sheperd named Greta came first during my elementary school years. Then a lab named Honey for her color was our dog during my junior high and high school years.

When I was in college I didn’t have a dog because I was too wild to be a responsible dog owner for a few years. But when Mindy came back to godforsaken Oklahoma from almost as Auburn University…. dogs became the epicenter of our lives beyond our son who was the first epicenter.

We had a Siberian Huskie named Nikki. Then MJ, after reading Jack London’s Call of the Wild and White Fang, decided we needed two sled dogs in Oklahoma not just one.

So a beautiful female Alaskan Malamute named Aspen joined our family. Probably as far as dogs in my life go I would say Aspen and Pauli are pretty much in a dead heat as my favorite dog. Both had what I would describe as the perfect soul of a dog. Smarts, dogged loyalty, sled dog toughness when needed, and of course…. tail wagging unconditional love.

Then after Nikki’d passing another Siberian named Sergei named after the Russian hockey player Federov who wore No. 91 for the Detroit Red Wings and who skated like the Oklahoma wind joined our family.

My wife stopped the chain of sled dogs when she insisted our next dog be a Golden Retriever named Lindy…who of course we named after the hockey player Eric Lindross. Lindy was and still is my wife’s favorite dog. Lindy was her Pauli.

Then I adopted a black lab puppy who was a refugee from a drug house and we named her Dakota. A great dog. She was out on May Avenue when I rescued her a second time when I just said to my wife..”This dog is not going back to those people again.” Dakota probably is right there on a tier in my heart just below Pauli and Aspen, and even with Nikita.

And then Pauli of course. My soulmate dog. Pauli was named after Adrian’s brother in the Rocky movies. Yo… Adrian. Pauli is the one I still cry about, the one who saved my soul when my dad was going through the last year of his life fighting cancer. She’s the one who told me to purposely get banned for life from the Daily Thunder message board. Smart dog, prescient in fact. Pauli seriously saved my soul. God acts in mysterious ways and there is not a doubt in my mind how Pauli came to be my savior.

So cats? My sister in Seattle has a cat named Zumi who is a very cool cat and of whom I bonded with on our receent trip to Seattle. My mother Janice has always had multiple cats and is referred to as the Cat Lady by some of her neighbors. They both disdain the sociopath Trump as much as apparently Taylor Swift and I do as well.

So if I decided to get a cat how could I in good conscious own a pet who at any moment could be eaten by a horde of Central American illegal immigrants out here on the mini-ranch in Deer Creek on a ‘eat the cats and dogs mission’?

This is how fucking stupid you Trump people are viewed by the rest of the country and most of the eight billion people in the world.

I know…I had been doing so well, with the F-bombs, but this is what you people do to me. Sigh.

Here’s what you people should do…call the office of Oklahoma’s own gutless James Lankford and tell him you want him to self-discover a set of balls and get that immigration bill of his passed immediately. You know…so as to save your cats and dogs.

You know..so as to save your cats and dogs from being eaten alive on your own property.

Save the cats and dogs…don’t eat them. Do the kind thing and buy these invaders a Subway sandwich and chips so they won’t eat your Trump dogs and cats.

Have a beautiful Saturday.

There’s Only One Oklahoma, baby! Some offense today would be nice.

BOOMER!!!

Eternal love, MJ

I need a different kind of song today to get me in the right frame of mind. Just witnessing the human filth which is Donald Trump and his pathetic ‘fake tough guys’ so closely this week because of the debate…. I need a more peaceful feel before heading to my workout this morning.

This song pretty much hits that mark for me.

I have had a blessed life, and I worked hard for it. Most of the time I’ve been kind. But there were several times I drew a line in the sand. I did. There might be one or two more. We’ll see. I’d like to keep experiencing more beautiful things if it’s in the cards. If not…I have nothing to bitch about. The American Dream has been kind to me.

It’s been a wonderful run.

Eternal peace.

Mike J

I’ve been pretty laid back about OU’s football season so far. I thought coming into this first SEC season for OU if they could go 8-4 with what I think is one of the four toughest schedules in the country that would be a fairly solid season all things considered.

So far the Sooners are a shaky 2-0 after home wins versus Temple and Houston. In reality, the Sooners were very fortunate they weren’t upset in Game 2 by the Cougars. In fact…I would say they stole a game they probably should not have won.

The offense in a word was horrible and could not run the ball, could not get out of third and long situations, and for the second week could not with any consistency convert third downs and stay on the field.

Offensive coordinator Seth Littrell’s play calling was bad, the Sooners couldn’t run the ball, and without Nic Anderson and Jahil Faruque it appeared Jackson Arnold couldn’t locate open receivers down field.

With the exception of the Maine game…the Sooners do not have an easy game remaining this season.

Tulane is the opponent this Saturday and the Green Wave are a very respectable football team.

Here’s one of the good things about being a Stage 4 cancer survivor still on the journey…your perspective becomes markedly different in regards to whether OU wins or loses on any given Saturday.

Obviously, I like winning more than losing, but I was prepared for struggles this season so for the rest of this season I just want to see weekly incremental improvement which will give he Sooners a chance to compete in every game ….. and maybe win seven,eight, or nine of those games.

And for that to happen…Seth Littrell, Jackson Arnold, the offensive line, the running backs, tight ends, and wide receivers have to play much better on every play. Figure out your own offensive identity and start to play with some cohesive confidence.

The defense has been solid. The punting game and kicking game have been pretty good.

Uncharacteristically…. the issue in Norman so far this season has been on the offensive side of the football field, not the defensive side.

Play call better and execute better. Do the things your players have the talent to do and for me that mean both Jackson Arnold and perhaps Michael Hawkins will have to run the ball quite a bit this season to help their offensive line create space and running lanes.

Let’s go.

Boomer!

Mike J