Did I wake up from my slumber and get the date wrong? Surely Oklahoma City isn't fighting for a playoff spot in 2010, so all the nasty Midwest weather must have set the clocks ahead 2-3 years at the very least. A belated Happy New Year to all, and the Thunder don't look to be waking up either any time soon.
Kevin Durant likes winning a lot, and he could be a strong factor in how free agency is approached by the surprise team in the NBA. OKC resembles the visiting Spurs more and more every day, and it will be an exciting contest tonight. Both teams sport 8-2 records over the past ten games and have momentum on their side.
San Antonio took the defending champs to the cleaners last night, knocking out Kobe and the Lakers by 20 points points at home. But if the Spurs have one main weakness, it appears to be on the back-end of playing consecutive games. That bodes well for a Thunder squad who is refreshed after a light five games this month.
Durant's All-Star like play isn't the only thing that should drive San Antonio crazy, but OKC does want to make its star happy no matter what. Enter my drum-beating for an out of left field approach starting as soon as the current campaign ends. Jeff Green is a nice complementary piece, let me just say that from the start. He can play the PF or SF role, as the last two seasons have proven.
The problem is what to do with Green and KD....and Russell Westbrook while not forgetting about everyone else on the roster. To me the answer is push Green to the 6th man role next year and bring in the perfect piece to the Thunder puzzle. I have said this before, but Chris Bosh can really do very little wrong on the court.
Pairing two of the hardest working, toughest-to-guard players on the planet doesn't guarantee a championship (see Jazz, Utah) but can you imagine the lineups you could throw out there on a nightly basis!
Oklahoma City can't help but have fun right now, and that is okay. What GM Sam Presti has to do, however, is look across the Ford Center tonight and remember where he got his start. San Antonio never stopped trying to improve the ENTIRE roster, and you only get one chance to make a first impression.
