After The Lightning: April 2009 Archives

Gone but not Forgotten

By gforce on April 22, 2009 2:30 PM 0 0 Vote 0 Votes

The NCAA finally got a couple of things right when it comes to basketball. I like the two new decisions made about the draft, as college athletes will now have less time to decide their future. I love this one given that you should really know which way you are leaning before even making the leap.

Now the process will move along quicker and if you are staying in, one of three choices is left on the table. Either you get drafted, you go play overseas, or hello D-League! Taking away the option of returning to school is a bit of a head-scratcher, but I can understand their point. College teams can't afford to sit around and hold a scholarship just in case, and they need closure.

Much like a divorce, these two changes bring answers to the table, and that will help the NBA and teams like Oklahoma City the most. Now the Thunder can use second round picks on projects or foreign players instead of that tweener player that should have gone back to school.

I only wish the other change made would have secured the rights to Blake Griffin staying in his home state, but I will keep my fingers crossed that the lottery hits all OKC numbers!

Won it for Coach

By gforce on April 16, 2009 3:29 AM 0 0 Vote 0 Votes

As disappointing as April was for Oklahoma City, only good news made an appearance on the regular season's final day. The Thunder removed the interim tag from Scott Brooks, and his players treated the promotion with a franchise best.

Los Angeles has owned OKC this year, whether it has been the Clippers or the Lakers. The Thunder took out all the frustration and finally notched a victory to close out year one. The Clippers never knew what hit them, as the Thunder poured in 126 points.

It was only OKC's third win in 12 outings but showed that there is more to winning in the NBA than just the boxscore. Superstar Kevin Durant now knows who his boss will be for at least the next couple of campaigns, and that could be a key around the league.

The Thunder has a strong core of players and will only build upon that in the June Draft. GM Sam Presti should get a raise for looking ahead to an even bigger date given how far under the salary cap OKC sits. Now that Brooks is locked up, the final step to keeping KD currently resides north of the border.

Fast-forward to the summer of 2010, or better known as 'Free-Agent Heaven' , and Chris Bosh will be waving hello. He wants everyone to throw money at LeBron and D-Wade. Heck, I really hope all other teams focus on those two players. Because then the Thunder can make the smart move and pair Bosh and KD together for a very nice Championship run.

Wishful thinking...maybe. But show me one person who thought this team would pass the 20-win mark after the horrendous start. Most were banking on a new record for losing, and Head Coach Scott Brooks proved them all wrong. And that is good enough for me.

Season Finale

By Carbert3 on April 15, 2009 12:00 PM 0 0 Vote 0 Votes

After a long and painful journey, the Oklahoma City Thunder finally finish up their inaugural season with an away game in Los Angeles against the Clippers. The Clippers have won all three contests between the two teams this season, so tonight is OKC's final attempt to not get swept. If the Thunder do get swept, wins against OKC will account for 20% of LA's wins. That would be pretty lame for us.

Other than a few minor "moral" victories, neither team is really playing for much tonight. A win by either team hurts their chances in the draft lottery. If OKC wins and Memphis loses, we'll be tied with them. If the Clippers win and Washington loses, the Clippers move ahead of the Wizards.

Casting all that aside, it'd be really nice to end the season with a win, especially with how the past month has gone. This team needs whatever positives it can get if it wants to work it's way to being a playoff team within a couple years.

The Buck Stops Here

By Carbert3 on April 11, 2009 7:00 PM 0 0 Vote 0 Votes

The Thunder have played 79 regular season NBA games since they last played the Bucks. That game was both the season and home opener for OKC, and a game which I erroneously called a gift from the NBA. The Bucks went on to spank the Thunder 98-87, and Oklahoma City was off to a poor start to the season.

Returning to the present, both teams are out of playoff contention and are playing for little more than pride. The Thunder are coming off of one of their few wins over the past month while Milwaukee has lost four in a row and nine of their last ten. The Bucks seem to have checked out for the season, but with the only remaining games on their schedule against the Pacers and Magic, tonight's match up is their last real hope for a win. Expect them to come out strong looking to avoid a 7 game losing streak to end the season.

OKC still has games against Portland and the Clippers; both games though on the road. The Clippers game ought to be winnable, and with a win tonight, passing the Grizzles for 26th ought to be a definate possiblity.

I don't foresee the Bucks waking up for this game, and with the Thunder riding high after their close victory against the Bobcats, expect to see OKC take this one in a close one: 92-87.

Out with a Bang

By gforce on April 11, 2009 5:14 PM 1 0 Vote 0 Votes

The present and future surprises of the NBA played a heated battle to close out the first season at the Ford Center. When the dust settled, both teams found themselves out of the playoffs and moving in different directions.

Oklahoma City ended Charlotte's dream of making the postseason in an 84-81 victory that the Thunder almost gave away. Blocking the last Bobcats' hope, Scott Brooks now takes his club on the road to finish off the rest of the schedule.

The Thunder also find themselves fighting with Memphis in the lottery placement race. OKC sits one 'ahead' of the Grizzlies and two over the T-Wolves heading into the final week. It is never good to talk about losses, but I do thank David Stern for letting the season end away from home.

It gives the best possibility in every way to end things -- either the Thunder play well and surprise people or lose and secure a potentially higher draft pick. See, wins all around and now they just have to find a way to get the top selection in the Blake Race.

Home Finale

By Carbert3 on April 10, 2009 12:00 PM 0 0 Vote 0 Votes

For the final time in the 2008-09 season, the Thunder will play at home in Oklahoma City. Home has not been as kind and gentle as hoped this season with the team winning 14 of 40 games at home so far this year. Last year as the Supersonics, the squad finished with 13 victories, so there was improvement, but the louder home atmosphere has not translated in many more wins.

The Thunder have their final opportunity to improve the home record a bit while ruining the season of the Bobcats. While still quite the longshot, Charlotte is not officially out of the race for a playoff spot in the East even with a 35-43 record. A loss to the Thunder tonight will most certainly put the final nail in the coffin.

With their scant hopes still alive, the Bobcats will show up to play tonight. The last contest between the two which took place in Charlotte was a close one with the Bobcats edging out OKC for the 103-97 victory. If the Thunder can put together a solid effort tonight expect another close one only this time in OKC's favor. I'm calling this game 95-92 for the good guys.

A 'Good' Loss

By gforce on April 9, 2009 5:25 AM 0 0 Vote 0 Votes

In a mild surprise, Oklahoma City showed signs of life before falling in Denver. The fourth straight defeat was not a blowout for the Thunder and knocked them down in the standings. But it also put the team in position to possibly gain one of the top three picks in the upcoming NBA Draft.

Coach Scott Brooks has his OKC future up in the air, but he is doing all he can for the franchise. All three rookies and newcomer Shaun Livingston played key roles in keeping the Nuggets within striking range. The Thunder are built to win 2-3 years down the road, but they are not giving up on this season.

The question still remains -- why not save Kevin Durant and Jeff Green from a possible injury? Both played over 40 minutes in the 122-112 loss, and each has logged a tremendous amount of game action this campaign. I'm not saying shut them down completely, but the club has to be looking at all options with only a handful of games remaining.

Let the starters play 30 minutes and give the spare parts a chance to earn a spot on next season's roster. OKC will be bringing in at least two rookies with both possibly fighting to join the starting rotation very soon.

Currently the Thunder sit at 21 victories and are just 'outside' the bottom three record-wise in the league. Since a lottery will determine the picks, not everything is left in the hands of the players. But that doesn't mean a little more rest could hurt in the Blake Griffin sweepstakes, something every basketball fan in Oklahoma would love to see bounce the Thunder's way.

Five to Go

By Carbert3 on April 8, 2009 6:00 PM 0 0 Vote 0 Votes

Thankfully for the Thunder and their fans, the 2008-09 NBA regular season is drawing to a close. After the signs of life and potential displayed in January, I don't know how many more lifeless games I can take from OKC. We didn't play as poorly against the Spurs as we did the previous two games, but it seems like as of late, San Antonio is the only team OKC shows up ready to play against.

Tonight's game against the Nuggets won't be an easy one, and with their current standing at #2 in the West, Denver is going to show up ready to win. After two really close games in Oklahoma City, the Nuggets destoyed the Thunder during our last trip to the Mile High city. Denver will look to repeat that performance tonight, and based on OKC's play as of late, there's probably little the Thunder can do to stop it.

The Thunder are now two wins behind the Timberwolves in the race for 4th in the Northwest making the race all but over. We have a couple of winnable games left on the schedule, but it's hard to imagine the team will win 3 of the final 5 with Minnesota going 0 for 4. As things stand today, OKC is 27th with little chance of falling backwards. In a season where you're expected to be the worst, I guess fourth-worst isn't too shabby.

3 in a row?

By Carbert3 on April 7, 2009 4:00 PM 0 0 Vote 0 Votes

The Thunder currently hold a 2-1 lead over the Spurs in the season series and tonight have the opportunity to finish the season with a winning record against one of the playoff teams. The Thunder have won the last two against the Spurs by 2 points and 1 point respectively. If tonight's game is going to be an OKC victory, expect it to be another close one.

The biggest thing keeping the Thunder from completing the series victory will probably be the "end of season" blahs. OKC has performed pretty poorly in their past two games, and a lot of that has to do with the fact that they really don't have anything to play for. Wins take the team farther out of the Blake Griffin sweepstakes (Griffin officially announced he's headed to the NBA next season). Fourth place in the Northwest really isn't that much of an accomplishment.

I think the NBA needs to rethink how it distributes balls for the NBA draft. This isn't a fully formed thought yet, but I think bonus balls should be awarded to teams that improve over the season. Give the teams bonus balls for wins in the second half of the season and more bonus balls for wins in the final fourth. Something to keep the teams motivated.

Back to the game, the Spurs will be without Manu Ginobili tonight (and the rest of the season actually). With the Thunder down to two home games remaining, expect the crowd to be out in full force. Riding the wave of the crowd, OKC takes this one 92-89.

In Silence

By gforce on April 5, 2009 8:30 PM 0 0 Vote 0 Votes

That is the only way I can react to the 'performance' given against Portland on Friday. And things are looking much the same today against the Pacers, so my question is -- where did the Thunder go?

Carbert and I are used to the ups and downs, but this is something much worse. It seems that both times Oklahoma City upset the Spurs in March, a dramatic let-down followed. There is still some time left to catch Indiana, but the Thunder will need a much effort effort than the first quarter that saw them trailing by 12.

Round 3

By Carbert3 on April 3, 2009 7:00 PM 0 0 Vote 0 Votes

With the season series tied at one a piece, the Thunder look to take the advantage by beating the Trail Blazers at home. Both games so far have been won at home with OKC winning the first match up 102-93 while Portland took the second 106-92.

The Blazers are hot right now winning each of their last three games by 20 points. They currently sit at 6th in the West but are within striking distance of 2nd. Home court advantage in the playoff would go a long way as they are currenly one of ten teams that only have single digit losses at home. They also have the second worst road record of the playoff teams in the West.

A big difference in the first two match ups between the teams other than locale was the play of Greg Oden. A lot of the hype surrounding the match up between the two teams was the face off between the #1 and #2 drafted players from 2007. Oden scored a mere 4 points in the first match up but rebounded with 16 in Portland's win. Oden has since be demoted to backup center for the Trail Blazers partially killing the hype. Durant outscored his counterpart in both match ups, but was much more impressive in OKC's win scoring 31 compared to the 20 in the loss.

A win tonight by the Thunder and a loss by Minnesota on the road in Utah would give the Thunder a 1.5 game lead over the Timberwolves for 4th in the Northwest. The Wolves still have games against the bottom three from the Pacific (Clippers, Warriors, and Kings) which are all winnable games for them. Improving to the 1.5 game lead now will be key for getting OKC some seperation in the race for fourth.

Stunning the Spurs

By gforce on April 2, 2009 1:52 PM 0 0 Vote 0 Votes

It might be unfair to label Oklahoma City as a younger version of the Spurs, especially since the teams are built in very different ways. But the results can not be ignored any longer. San Antonio welcomed the Thunder looking for revenge and came away with even more questions.

Pulling off another shocker, OKC won on the road and has a chance of upsetting a few more playoff-bound clubs down the stretch. Eight games remain on this season's schedule, and all but two involve squads fighting for either a playoff berth or seeding.

That gives Coach Brooks and his staff the perfect opportunity to pull out all the stops going into the off-season. The front office did its part, signing a player with unlimited upside in a position of need. Shaun Livingston now has the upper hand in securing the back-up point guard role, clearing up the draft for needs inside.

Livingston is healthy again and looking to prove the rest of the NBA wrong. What better place to do that than with possibly the best young core in the league. The Thunder brought him up from Tulsa and moved Kyle Weaver down to the D-League for the first time. Weaver has a future with OKC, but this will allow him to get more playing time.

In securing the second win in two weeks over the Spurs, Oklahoma City announced its intentions to be a competitor as soon as next year. Now they have the chance to keep a few other teams from meeting their goals and ending season one on a very high note.

April 2009 Archives