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NBA Preview

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The Oklahoman's preview of the OKC Thunder and the upcoming NBA season
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Page 1: NBA Preview
Page 2: NBA Preview

Nick Collisonstood in theThunder prac-tice facility a

year ago and talked abouthow tough comes pro-gress in the NBA.

“You don’t pick up 30games just like that,”Collison said.

Collison proved proph-etic in truth but not inspirit. The Thundergained 27 victories, risingfrom 23 to 50, creating atremor that rumbles intothis season.

National pundits de-clare the Thunder thenext great team. Cityfathers map out routes forchampionship parades.Thunder fans settle in fora decade-long cruise toNBA glory.

But before OklahomaCity starts taking aim atTitletown, USA, let’s goback to St. Nick. He fun-damentally was right.Progress is tough to comeby in the NBA. Cham-pionships are not award-ed, they are earned.

Hard-earned.Which is why the

Thunder might not con-tinue its meteoric rise inYear 3 in OKC. Why theThunder could, egads, fallback into 40-somethingwins. In fact, I’m picking49 victories, because noway can the Thunderhave the health it had ayear ago.

“Odds are, probablynot,” Collison said. “Pret-ty unprecedented run ofhealth.”

Four Boomers startedall 82 games, and NenadKrstic started 76. Thingsdidn’t turn out that wellon Marcus Welby.

But even if the Thunderavoids injury, there’s noguarantee this young teamkeeps posting advancedwin totals.

This is a league of pa-

tience. Take two steps up,one step back. A stepforward, a step sideways,another step forward, astep back.

That’s the way it is.And just because the

Thunder took about 68steps forward last seasonis no reason to believe theteam is immune to theother laws of NBA phys-ics.

“You really can’t skipany steps,” Collison said.

That’s why the Thun-der could be better in2010-11, yet its victorytotal could fall. A littlebad luck is due in OKC.

“We had a lot of thingsgo our way last year,” saidThunder coach ScottBrooks. “Last year was agood year. We can’t be-come a complacent team,and we haven’t been ... it

remains to be seen if we’llbe a better team.”

Truth is, we all need totake a deep breath on theThunder. It’s a fun ridethe Thunder has started,and it could take us mostanywhere. But the ideathat Oklahoma City is onthe fast track to the NBAFinals is misguided.

There is no divine rightto a championship.

Ask the Dallas Maver-icks, who have won atleast 50 games 10 yearsrunning but have madejust one NBA Finals anddidn’t win it.

Ask the Utah Jazz, whoturn out a quality squadvirtually every year, evenhad Karl Malone and JohnStockton together on theroster for 18 years, andstill didn’t win it.

Ask the Phoenix Suns,who have had three gen-erations of contendingteams but still seek theirfirst league title.

A perennial contendercan be great fun but canalso break your heart. TheThunder figures to doboth before that paraderoute is needed.

Berry Tramel: Berry can be reached at(405) 760-8080 or [email protected]. He can be heardMonday through Friday from 4:40-5:20p.m. on The Sports Animal radionetwork, including AM-640 andFM-98.1. You can also view hispersonality page atnewsok.com/berrytramel.

COMMENTARY

[email protected]

Veteran Thunder forward Nick Collison called OKC’srun of health last year “pretty unprecedented.”

PHOTO BY CHRIS LANDSBERGER, THE OKLAHOMAN

LIMITED VISIBILITY IN HOOPS, LIKE WEATHER, THERE ARE NO 100 PERCENT CERTAINTIES

DATE OPPONENT TIME

OCTOBERWed 27 Chicago 7 *Fri 29 @ Detroit 7Sun 31 Utah 6 ***

NOVEMBERWed 03 @ L.A. Clippers 9:30 Thu 04 @ Portland 9:30 **Sun 07 Boston 6 ***Wed 10 Philadelphia 7Fri 12 Portland 7:30 *Sun 14 San Antonio 6Mon 15 @ Utah 8Wed 17 Houston 7Fri 19 @ Boston 6 *Sat 20 @ Milwaukee 7:30 Mon 22 Minnesota 7Wed 24 Dallas 7Fri 26 @ Indiana 7Sun 28 @ Houston 6 ***Mon 29 New Orleans 7

DECEMBERWed 01 @ New Jersey 6Fri 03 @ Toronto 6Sun 05 Golden St. 6Mon 06 @ Chicago 7Wed 08 @ Minnesota 7Fri 10 @ New Orleans 7Sun 12 Cleveland 6Wed 15 Houston 7Fri 17 Sacramento 7Sun 19 Phoenix 6 ***Tue 21 @ Charlotte 6Wed 22 @ New York 6:30 Sat 25 Denver 7 *Mon 27 Dallas 7Wed 29 New Jersey 7Fri 31 Atlanta 7

JANUARYSat 01 @ San Antonio 7:30 Tue 04 @ Memphis 7Thu 06 @ Dallas 7 **Sat 08 Memphis 7Wed 12 @ Houston 7:30 ***Thu 13 Orlando 7 **Mon 17 @ L.A. Lakers 9:30 **Wed 19 @ Denver 8Sat 22 New York 7Mon 24 @ New Orleans 7Wed 26 @ Minnesota 7Fri 28 Washington 7Sun 30 Miami Noon****

FEBRUARYWed 02 New Orleans 7 ***Fri 04 @ Phoenix 8Sat 05 @ Utah 8Tue 08 Memphis 7Sat 12 @ Sacramento 9Sun 13 @ Golden St. 7 *Tue 15 Sacramento 7Sun 20 All-Star Game

(@ Los Angeles)Tue 22 L.A. Clippers 7Wed 23 @ San Antonio 7 *Fri 25 @ Orlando 7 *Sun 27 L.A. Lakers 1:30 ****

MARCHWed 02 Indiana 7Fri 04 @ Atlanta 6:30 Sun 06 Phoenix 6Mon 07 @ Memphis 7Wed 09 @ Philadelphia 6Fri 11 Detroit 7Sun 13 @ Cleveland NoonMon 14 @ Washington 6Wed 16 @ Miami 7 *Fri 18 Charlotte 7Sun 20 Toronto 6Wed 23 Utah 7Fri 25 Minnesota 7Sun 27 Portland 7 *Tue 29 Golden St. 7Wed 30 @ Phoenix 9

APRILFri 01 @ Portland 9Sat 02 @ L.A. Clippers 9:30 ***Tue 05 @ Denver 8Wed 06 L.A. Clippers 7Fri 08 Denver 7Sun 10 @ L.A. Lakers 8:30 ***Mon 11 @ Sacramento 9 ***Wed 13 Milwaukee 7Fri 16 NBA Playoffs

Begin

› Note: All games are broad-cast FSOK (Cox 37) and carriedon WWLS-AM 640 and FM98.1.

*Game broadcast nationallyon ESPN (Cox 29)

**Game broadcast nationallyon TNT (Cox 31)***Game broadcast nationally

on NBATV (Cox 256)****Game broadcast nationallyon ABC (Cox 8)

2010-11 THUNDER SCHEDULE

HOME AWAY

Page 3: NBA Preview

It was seen in the exhi-bition opener, when hetoyed with a first-teamAll-Defensive selectionlike some scrub off thestreets.

It was seen two nightslater, when he spent thegame’s opening quarterschooling the reigningback-to-back MVP with aseries of offensive movesthat left everyone thinkinghe has become indefensi-ble.

It was even seen in thestands, where so manysported his No. 35 jerseyand scooted to the edge oftheir seats each time hetouched the ball.

Kevin Durant’s basket-ball brilliance manifesteditself in a myriad of waysthroughout the Thunder’spreseason. Now, braceyourself for those samebrushes over 82 games.

This, Durant’s fourthNBA season, projects to bethe Thunder star’s mostsuperb year. Fans, like sci-entists studying a solareclipse, could be in for arare treat — only it will bemuch easier to enjoy Du-

rant’s exploits.Find your seats early,

whether the Thunder ishome or away, and you’llexperience crowds showerDurant with a hearty ova-tion during pregame in-tros. You’ll feel fans nowhold their collective breath

as Durant sizes up defend-ers from the wings or, hislatest hot spot, the lowblock.

Durant showed glimps-es of greatness in theThunder’s preseasonopener in small-townFayetteville, N.C., against

Charlotte and award-win-ning defender Gerald Wal-lace. Durant jab-steppedand pump-faked andthreatened his sneaky rip-through move. Wallacewas completely clueless,unsure which way Durantwas going. Two nights lat-

er, inside the Sprint Centerin Kansas City, Mo., Le-Bron James didn’t fare anybetter. In a head-to-headmatchup with James, Du-rant displayed an im-proved all-around gamethat included playmaking,posting up and blowing

past James off the dribble.It was these subtle, yet

stellar plays that provedyou were watching a star.

“I’m just trying to growand find a variety of waysto help my team win,” Du-rant said. “If you guys seethat game in and game out,that’s how you’ll see I’vegrown a little bit. Just sitback and watch.”

Durant said his only goalthis season is to prove tohimself and his teammatesthe Thunder can make itback to the playoffs. ThatOklahoma City can ad-vance farther once in theplayoffs.

Everything else, all theindividual improvementand all the anticipated ac-colades, will come withwinning, Durant said.Even Durant’s statistics, aseye-popping and record-setting as they were lastseason, will be used as onlya small measure of his suc-cess this season.

“I don’t judge him bythe stats,” said Thundercoach Scott Brooks, whodid note he will track Du-rant’s assist-to-turnoverratio. “I judge him by howhe plays. You can tell a guyplaying good basketballand he did that a lot lastyear. He has to just contin-ue to put multiple gamestogether of good basket-ball.”

Like an eclipse, the an-ticipation is the best part.

Darnell [email protected]

THUNDER

Thunder star Kevin Durant has shown his brilliance throughout the preseason and is preparing to begin whatshould be his best season yet.

PHOTO BY CHRIS LANDSBERGER, THE OKLAHOMAN; PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY PHILLIP BAEZA, THE OKLAHOMAN

SOLAR ECLIPSEWATCHING KEVIN DURANT COULD BE A RARE TREAT FOR THUNDER FANS DURING THE 2010-11 SEASON

Page 4: NBA Preview

The way Thunder coachScott Brooks sees it,there’s a world of differ-ence between nine and 10.

Brooks knows how toconsistently rotate nine ofhis players into a game, buthe struggles with how torotate 10.

During the Thunder’smagical 50-win seasonlast year, nine players aver-aged at least 16.5 minutesper game and eight ap-peared in at least 73 games

with the Thunder.Brooks said he doesn’t

precisely know how longthis nine vs. 10 predica-

ment has existed. Heknows it was there duringhis decade as an NBA pointguard and has existed dur-ing his first decade as anNBA coach.

“It’s hard to get a 10thguy into the game,” Brookssaid while shaking hishead. “It’s not just my phi-losophy. Some teams onlygo with eight (players).Mike D’Antoni only wentwith seven for a long timewhen he was in Phoenix.”

Not only did Brooksknow which players hewanted on the court lastseason, rarely were theyunavailable. Brooks wasblessed with players whowere talented, young, ath-letic, energetic, disciplined… and healthy.

Health-wise, the law of

averages never caught upto the Thunder last year,which is why everyone in aThunder T-shirt is pain-fully hesitant to discussthe matter in fear of jinxingsuch good fortune.

Whenever he is askedabout his team’s supremehealth, Brooks cringes abit, quickly raps hisknuckle on whatever sur-face is nearby and utters,“Knock on wood.”

According to NBA sta-tistician and historianHarvey Pollack, only ninetimes in league history hasa team’s starting lineupmissed fewer starts thanthe Thunder did last sea-son (six games). Though hehopes for similar goodhealth this season, Brooksknows such astounding

good fortune can not beexpected or taken forgranted.

Four Thunder starters —Kevin Durant, RussellWestbrook, Jeff Green andThabo Sefolosha — startedall 82 games. The otherstarter, center NenadKrstic, missed just sixgames due to injury. That’s404 of a possible 410 startsfor the same five players.

Brooks now must figureout which nine to play thisseason, which could bepretty simple because thetop nine players returnfrom a year ago.

There were the offsea-son acquisitions of 3-pointrainmakers Daequan Cookand Morris Peterson.There is new veteran lead-ership in guard Royal Ivey.

The Thunder drafted big-time defensive potential inrookie center Cole Aldrich.Backup center Byron Mul-lens has notably improvedfrom last season. D.J.White rarely misses anopen jumper.

Did anything happen atthis year’s training camp toalter Brooks’ nine-manphilosophy?

“Probably not,” Brookssaid. “We’re still thinkingabout different players,different minutes. If theminutes are there, we haveenough bodies capable ofplaying the minutes.We’ve got some depth.Guys have to play well andhave to continue to earnthose minutes.

“But it’s just hard to getthat 10th guy into a game.”

John [email protected]

THUNDER | NBA

Thunder coach ScottBrooks said it’s tough toget a 10th player into hisregular rotation.

PHOTO BY SARAH PHIPPS, THEOKLAHOMAN

WHAT IS THE NBA’S UV INDEX?THERE IS LITTLE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN NINE AND 10 ON THE ULTRAVIOLET INDEX; NOT SO IN NBA ROTATIONS

Page 5: NBA Preview

sy questioning whetherWestbrook would evolveinto the Thunder’s perma-nent point guard duringhis rookie season, theteam’s decision-makersessentially shook theirheads, smirked and said,“Just wait.”

Now, the Thunder isreveling in Westbrook’srise.

“We expected Russell tobe really good,” said coachScott Brooks. “We draftedhim at a high spot to leadour team. And he did apretty good job as a rookie.We expect Russell to con-tinue to lead our team.”

Ask anyone how West-brook has done so well sofast and a two-word an-swer becomes the default

response:Hard work.“He works out two or

three times every day inthe summer,” Brooks said.“He’s our first guy on thecourt. When we’re meet-ing as coaches and youhear the ball bouncing, youknow it’s Russell. He’s outthere waiting for coach(Maurice) Cheeks to work

with him.”Westbrook has taken his

growing popularity with agrain of salt.

“It’s a good accomplish-ment,” Westbrook said.“But at the same time, Ifeel I haven’t done any-thing yet. I still got to getbetter and make that nextjump and try to make myteam better.”

Speaking about RussellWestbrook for NBA TV’sOklahoma City Thunderseason preview, Hall ofFamer and current analystKevin McHale remindedviewers of the doubt thatsurrounded the team’spoint guard leading up tothe 2008 NBA Draft.

“When he played atUCLA and we scoutedhim, him and Kevin Loveon that team that went tothe (NCAA) Final, Icouldn’t believe how dy-namic the kid was,”McHale said. “He did ev-erything really well. I neverthought he’d be this goodin the NBA. I thought he’dbe a stat stuffer, but not tothe extent that he is.”

Westbrook, who hasblossomed into a border-line NBA All-Star, admit-ted he’s surprised himself,too. Just four years ago,Westbrook was an over-looked high school pros-pect who lucked into alast-minute scholarshipwith the Bruins. Now,Westbrook is in the middleof a meteoric rise that nev-er was in his game plan.

“Growing up, I never re-ally thought about it,”Westbrook said. “Every-body wants to play in theNBA. But I was kind of justtrying to get to school somy parents wouldn’t haveto pay for it. I had to figure

something out to get toschool. And then I was justtrying to be the best I couldbe.

“I didn’t see none of thiscoming. It all happened sofast for me. I just try to stayhumble and try to makethe next jump. I’m justwaiting to see what elsehappens.”

While pundits were bu-

BY DARNELL MAYBERRYStaff [email protected]

The pundits questioned Thunder officials when they selected Russell Westbrook fourth overall in the 2008 NBA Draft, but he continues toprove his worth as he works his way up the list of elite point guards. PHOTO BY CHRIS LANDSBERGER, THE OKLAHOMAN

SUPERCELL STORMRUSSELL WESTBROOK HAS EMERGED FROM LAST-MINUTE SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENT TO POTENTIAL ALL-STAR

Page 6: NBA Preview

Two words could hoverover the Thunder’s 2010-11season like a dark cloud:

Contract year.It’s the first time Okla-

homa City has been facedwith two of the NBA’smost worrisome words.Fourth-year forward JeffGreen has involuntarilybecome the pioneer, as itappears likely he will playthis year without a con-tract extension.

The team has until Nov. 1to come to terms on a newdeal. But if no agreement isreached, Green will be-come a restricted freeagent next summer.

Many players through-out NBA history havespoiled promising seasonsthrough selfish play whileseeking new contracts. Butthe Thunder’s coachingstaff and front office viewsGreen as more of a con-summate teammate than ateam cancer.

“Hasn’t even crossedmy mind,” said Thundercoach Scott Brooks.“There’s no doubt thatsome players I played with

or that I coached, that isthe agenda. But with Jeff,that has not even crossedmy mind.”

Brooks was asked whynot. What makes Green sodifferent?

“Maybe because I knowhim,” Brooks said. “I knowwho he was when he cameinto the league, and hehasn’t changed. He stillworks every day in prac-tice. He still tries to getbetter. He still tries tomake the right play. He’snot forcing shots. He’s nottaking bad shots … Hehasn’t forced anything incamp. He’s a pro and he

likes being on this team.”As an assistant during

Green’s rookie year in2007-08, Brooks was as-signed to oversee Green’sdevelopment.

Brooks had to work outGreen every day. Theyspent time together, drill-ing before and after prac-tice. Brooks got to knowGreen on a more personallevel.

“There’s no doubt I havea special bond with all theguys,” Brooks said. “ButJeff, I like him. I like whathe’s about. I like what hedoes for us. He sacrifices.And he has to do that. We

have some good players onour team. But not every-body can be the leadingscorer. Not everybody canbe the high-assist man …Jeff is a teammate thatguys like because theyknow that he brings effortevery night and he’s con-sistent and he doesn’tchange his habits.”

At the team’s media day,Green promised to be asassertive as he’s ever been.But Thunder general man-ager Sam Presti cautionedto not read into Green’svow the wrong way.

“When he talks aboutbeing more assertive, we

take that to mean he will beassertive defensively, of-fensively, and in all areas ofthe game,” Presti said. “Ithink he will bring that as-sertiveness to areas beyondthe offensive end.”

Green ranked second onthe team behind Kevin Du-rant in minutes played lastseason. He also finishedthird in shot attempts andpoints per game.

Brooks said he hasn’thad to pull Green aside totalk about focusing on theright things.

Their conversations,Brooks said, are strictlyabout playing basketball.Presti echoed his coach,saying he isn’t concernedabout Green’s perform-ance.

“We have great confi-dence in Jeff as a playerand a person,” Presti said.“Team success is whatdrives him and is the pri-mary reason we feltstrongly about adding himto our program in 2007.What has made him whohe is through his career,and now with us, is anability to contribute invarious ways, not just onone end.”

BY DARNELL MAYBERRYStaff [email protected]

If Thunder forward Jeff Green doesn’t sign a contract extension by Nov. 1, he willbe a restricted free agent next summer. PHOTO BY CHRIS LANDSBERGER, THE OKLAHOMAN

PARTLY CLOUDYWHAT EFFECT COULD JEFF GREEN’S EXTENSION SITUATION HAVE ON THE SEASON?

› Sports EditorMike Sherman› Asst. Sports EditorsScott Munn, Hayley

Riggs, Ryan Sharp, DarlaSmith› Thunder/NBA coverage coordinatorJason Kersey› WritersJenni Carlson, Darnell

Mayberry, John Rohde,Berry Tramel› DesignersBill Bootz, Jason Kersey› Copy editorsPhillip Baeza, Kevin

Kersey, Dirk Linenberger,Doug Simpson› PhotographersChris Landsberger,

Sarah Phipps, HughScott, Bryan Terry

SECTION CREDITS

The best Thundercoverage isn’t confinedto the newspaper. VisitNewsOK.com daily forthe latest news, opinionand analysis.

Also, be sure to follow@DarnellMayberry,@NewsOKThunder and@NewOKSports onTwitter for instant up-dates.

MORE ONLINE

Page 7: NBA Preview

Weathermen aren’t al-ways right and neither arewe. But our resident Thun-der storm tracker DarnellMayberry projects eachThunder player’s seasonand the chance each has totake the league by storm.

COLE ALDRICH

› 2009-10 stats: N/A› 2010-11 projections: 2.8

ppg, 3.7 rpg, 0.7 bpg. › Chance of a storm: 15

percent› Darnell’s take: If he gets

enough of an opportunity, he’lllikely excel at his defensive role.

NICK COLLISON

› 2009-10 stats: 5.9 ppg, 5.1rpg, 0.6 bpg.› 2010-11 projections: 5.1

ppg, 5.5 rpg, 0.5 bpg.› Chance of a storm: 5

percent.› Darnell’s take: He’s con-

tent with being a glue guy, buthis playing time could take ahit.

DAEQUAN COOK

› 2009-10 stats: 5.0 ppg, 1.8rpg, 1.0 apg.› 2010-11 projections: 6.3

ppg, 0.8 rpg, 0.6 apg.› Chance of a storm: 20

percent.› Darnell’s take: He might

not see major minutes, butwhenever his number is calledhe’ll have the green light toshoot.

KEVIN DURANT

› 2009-10 stats: 30.1 ppg,7.6 rpg, 2.8 apg.› 2010-11 projections: 29.8

ppg, 8.1 rpg, 3.2 apg.› Chance of a storm: 98

percent.› Darnell’s take: If his scor-

ing takes a slight dip it’s be-cause his floor game will beimproved.

JEFF GREEN

› 2009-10 stats: 15.1 ppg,6.0 rpg, 1.6 apg.› 2010-11 projections: 16.8

ppg, 7.4 rpg, 1.5 apg.› Chance of a storm: 55

percent.› Darnell’s take: After a step

back in his third season, Greenis now focused on getting backon track.

JAMES HARDEN

› 2009-10 stats: 9.9 ppg, 3.2rpg, 1.8 apg.

› 2010-11 projections: 11.1ppg, 3.5 rpg, 2.2 apg.› Chance of a storm: 65

percent. › Darnell’s take: At some

point this season, he could takethe reins as the starting shoot-ing guard.

SERGE IBAKA

› 2009-10 stats: 6.3 ppg, 5.4rpg, 1.3 bpg.› 2010-11 projections: 8.1

ppg, 7.8 rpg, 1.6 bpg.› Chance of a storm: 80

percent.› Darnell’s take: He’s earned

consistent playing time, and afull season of steady minutesshould show his development.

ROYAL IVEY

› 2009-10 stats: 2.1 ppg, 0.8rpg, 0.6 apg.› 2010-11 projections: 1.8

ppg, 0.5 rpg, 2.1 apg, › Chance of a storm: 5

percent.› Darnell’s take: Any impact

he makes will be as a pest toopposing point guards on thedefensive side.

NENAD KRSTIC

› 2009-10 stats: 8.4 ppg, 5rpg, 0.6 bpg.› 2010-11 projections: 7.8

ppg, 4.9 rpg, 0.6 bpg.› Chance of a storm: 10

percent.› Darnell’s take: Krstic still

has great value in OKC, butyounger teammates arebreathing down his neck forminutes.

ERIC MAYNOR

› 2009-10 stats: 4.7 ppg, 1.6rpg, 3.3 apg.› 2010-11 projections: 5.9

ppg, 1.5 rpg, 3.8 apg.› Chance of a storm: 25

percent.› Darnell’s take: As Russell

Westbrook’s backup, Maynor’sminutes will be limited. ButMaynor is so effective andsteady that he could forceThunder coach Scott Brooks touse a two point guard lineupmore often this season.

BYRON MULLENS

› 2009-10 stats: 1.1 ppg, 0.8rpg, 0.1 apg.› 2010-11 projections: 2.3

ppg, 1.1 rpg, 0.2 apg.› Chance of a storm: 5

percent.› Darnell’s take: Mullens has

developed nicely over the pastyear. But unless injuries set inhe’s likely headed for another

stint with the Tulsa 66ers.

MORRIS PETERSON

› 2009-10 stats: 7.1 ppg, 2.7rpg, 0.9 apg.› 2010-11 projections: 3.6

ppg, 1.1 rpg, 0.4 apg.› Chance of a storm: 5

percent.› Darnell’s take: The 10-year

vet still knows how to score,but there are too many youngplayers who need time. Playingtime for Peterson could besparse.

THABO SEFOLOSHA

› 2009-10 stats: 6.0 ppg, 4.7rpg, 1.8 apg.› 2010-11 projections: 7.3

ppg, 4.5 rpg, 1.5 apg.› Chance of a storm: 30

percent.› Darnell’s take: After es-

tablishing himself as one of thegame’s best perimeter defend-ers last season, Sefolosha isseeking to expand his game onthe offensive end this year. Butdefense is where he’ll make hismark.

RUSSELL WESTBROOK

› 2009-10 stats: 16.1 ppg,4.9 rpg, 8.0 apg.› 2010-11 projections: 17.5

ppg, 5.1 rpg, 7.2 apg.› Chance of a storm: 85

percent.› Darnell’s take: Look for

better efficiency, fewer turn-overs and, as usual, tons ofhighlights.

D.J. WHITE

› 2009-10 stats: 4.9 ppg, 1.9rpg, 0.3 apg.› 2010-11 projections: 3.3

ppg, 2.4 rpg, 0.3 apg.› Chance of a storm: 5

percent.› Darnell’s take: Once again,

White is the odd man out ofthe rotation. He has a lot tooffer offensively, but he can’tcrack the lineup to put it ondisplay.

BY DARNELL MAYBERRY

THE WEATHERMEN

James Harden averaged9.9 points last year.

PHOTO BY CHRIS LANDSBERGERTHE OKLAHOMAN

Page 8: NBA Preview
Page 9: NBA Preview

1. L.A. LAKERS (54-28, PROJ.)

› Additions: F Devin Ebanks; FDerrick Caracter; G Matt Barnes;G Steve Blake; C Theo Ratliff› Subtractions: G Jordan Far-mar; F Josh Powell› Bottom line: Obvious choiceto win the West, but need ahealthy Kobe and Bynum.

2. DALLAS (53-29)

› Additions: G DominiqueJones; C Tyson Chandler; C Alex-is Ajinca; C Ian Mahinmi› Subtractions: C Erick Damp-ier; F Eduardo Najera; F MattCarroll› Bottom line: Nowitzki andChandler give them a chance towin the West title.

3. OKLAHOMA CITY (52-30)

› Additions: C Cole Aldrich; GDaequan Cook; G Morris Peter-son; G Royal Ivey› Subtractions: C Etan Tho-mas; G Kevin Ollie; G MustafaShakur› Bottom line: With continuedimprovement and effort, titlecould be in near future.

4. UTAH (50-32)

› Additions: G Gordon Hay-ward; G Raja Bell; F/C Al Jeffer-son; F Jeremy Evans› Subtractions: F Carlos Booz-er; G Kyle Korver; G Wesley Mat-thews; C Kosta Koufos› Bottom line: Lost Boozer andKorver, but they still have a Hallof Fame coach.

5. SAN ANTONIO (49-33)

› Additions: G James Ander-son; C Tiago Splitter; G GaryNeal› Subtractions: C Ian Mahinmi› Bottom line: The Spurs are auniquely effective combinationof age and youth.

6. PORTLAND (48-34)

› Additions: F Luke Babbitt; GEliot Williams; G Armon John-son; G Wesley Matthews› Subtractions: F Juwan Ho-ward; F Martell Webster› Bottom line: Greg Odon’shealth is the key. A good teamwhen at full strength.

7. MEMPHIS (47-35)

› Additions: G Xavier Henry; GGreivis Vasquez; G Tony Allen› Subtractions: G RonnieBrewer› Bottom line: If defense catch-es up to offense, the playoffsawait this talented group.

8. DENVER (44-38)

› Additions: F Al Harrington; FShelden Williams; G AnthonyCarter› Subtractions: C Johan Petro;F Linas Kleiza› Bottom line: George Karl isbattling cancer with a teamthat’s ready to implode.

9. PHOENIX (43-39)

› Additions: F Gani Lawal; GJosh Childress; F Hedo Turkoglu;F Hakim Warrick› Subtractions: F Amar’e Stou-demire; G Leandro Barbosa; FDwayne Jones› Bottom line: New playersprobably not good enough to re-place departed Amar’e.

10. HOUSTON (42-40)

› Additions: F Patrick Patter-son; C Brad Miller› Subtractions: None› Bottom line: Yao Ming is back,but they play harder and mightbe better without him.

11. NEW ORLEANS (38-44)

› Additions: G Trevor Ariza; FJoe Alexander; G Marco Belinelli;F Quincy Pondexter; G MustafaShakur; F/C Jason Smith; G Wil-lie Green› Subtractions: G Morris Pe-terson› Bottom line: Even with ChrisPaul in charge, this doesn’t seemlike the right mix of players.

12. L.A. CLIPPERS (35-47)

› Additions: F Al-Farouq Ami-nu; G Eric Bledsoe; F RyanGomes; G Randy Foye; F BrianCook› Subtractions: G Steve Blake;F Drew Gooden; F Travis Outlaw

› Bottom line: Blake Griffin haslooked like a beast, but he needsmore help alongside.

13. GOLDEN STATE (32-50)

› Additions: F Ekpe Udoh; GJeremy Lin; F David Lee; C DanGadzuric; G Charlie Bell; F DorellWright› Subtractions: G C.J. Watson;F Corey Maggette; F KelennaAzubuike; F Anthony Randolph;C Ronny Turiaf; G Anthony Mor-row› Bottom line: Under the direc-tion of new coach Keith Smartadds to rebuilding stage.

14. SACRAMENTO (30-52)

› Additions: C DeMarcus Cou-sins; C Hassan Whiteside; C Sa-muel Dalembert; F Darnell Jack-son› Subtractions: C SpencerHawes; G Andres Nocioni; C JonBrockman; F Dominic McGuire› Bottom line: Cousins and Ty-reke Evans could become lethal,but will have growing pains.

15. MINNESOTA (28-54)

› Additions: F Wesley Johnson;F Lazar Hayward; G Luke Rid-nour; C Darko Milicic; F NikolaPekovic; F Michael Beasley; GMartell Webster; C Kosta Kou-fos› Subtractions: C Al Jefferson;F Ryan Gomes› Bottom line: Even with all theoffseason changes, still not outof the West cellar.

Kobe BryantLakers guard

AP PHOTO

1. ORLANDO (60-22, PROJ.)

› Additions: C Daniel Orton; FStanley Robinson; G Chris Du-hon; G Quentin Richardson› Subtractions: G Matt Barnes› Bottom line: Still the East’sbest overall mix of overall talent,but will it win title?

2. MIAMI (58-24)

› Additions: F LeBron James; FChris Bosh; F Juwan Howard; CJamaal Magloire; C Zydrunas Il-gauskas; G Mike Miller; C DexterPittman; F Da’Sean Butler› Subtractions: C JermaineO’Neal; G Quentin Richardson; GDaequan Cook; F Michael Beas-ley; F Dorell Wright› Bottom line: If this team fo-cuses on the same goal, it couldbe good for a long time.

3. BOSTON (50-32)

› Additions: C Jermaine O’Neal;C Shaquille O’Neal; G Avery Bra-dley; F Luke Harangody › Subtractions: G Tony Allen; FShelden Williams› Bottom line: Four hall-of-fam-ers on the roster and five playerswith 13-plus years.

4. CHICAGO (48-34)

› Additions: F Carlos Boozer; GKyle Korver; C Omer Asik; G Ron-nie Brewer; G C.J. Watson; F KurtThomas› Subtractions: F Hakim War-rick; C Brad Miller; G Kirk Hinrich;F Vladimir Veremeenko; F RobKurz; F Chris Richard› Bottom line: Appeared tohave an impressive offseason,but awaits Boozer’s return.

5. MILWAUKEE (46-36)

› Additions: F Larry Sanders; GDarington Hobson; F DrewGooden; G Keyon Dooling; F Co-rey Maggette; G Chris Douglas-Roberts; C Jon Brockman› Subtractions: G Luke Ridnour;

G Royal Ivey; G Charlie Bell; CDan Gadzuric; F Kurt Thomas; FDarnell Jackson› Bottom line: Double-checkthe Bucks roster. Lots of moves,despite making playoffs.

6. ATLANTA (44-38)

› Additions: G Jordan Craw-ford; F Josh Powell› Subtractions: G Josh Chil-dress› Bottom line: Are thereenough basketballs to goaround for the trigger-happyCrawfords?

7. NEW YORK (40-42)

› Additions: F Amar’e Stoude-mire; F Kelenna Azubuike; F An-thony Randolph; C Ronny Turiaf;C Jerome Jordan; G RaymondFelton; G Andy Rautins; F Lan-dry Fields; C Timofey Mozgov› Subtractions: G Chris Duhon;F Al Harrington; C David Lee› Bottom line: Knicks are on anupward swing, but still are inneed of more new blood.

8. WASHINGTON (38-44)

› Additions: G John Wall; C Ke-vin Seraphin; F Trevor Booker; CHamady N’diaye; C Hilton Arm-strong; G Kirk Hinrich; F Yi Jian-lian› Subtractions: G Randy Foye;G Mike Miller; G Quinton Ross; GShaun Livingston› Bottom line: Wall will leadWizards to Promised Land, butwhat will Gilbert Arenas do?

9. CHARLOTTE (34-48)

› Additions: G Shaun Living-ston; F Dominic McGuire; C ErickDamper; F Eduardo Najera; FMatt Carroll› Subtractions: G RaymondFelton; F Theo Ratliff; C TysonChandler; C Alexis Ajinca› Bottom line: Bobcats lookedharmless and out of shape in thepreseason.

10. INDIANA (33-49)

› Additions: G Darren Collison;F Paul George; G Lance Ste-phenson; C Magnum Rolle› Subtractions: G Luther Head› Bottom line: Collison couldsupply spark the Pacers need topick up the pace.

11. PHILADELPHIA (31-51)

› Additions: G Evan Turner; CTony Battie; C Spencer Hawes; F

Andres Nocioni; F Craig Brackins› Subtractions: C Samuel Da-lembert; G Willie Green; F/C Ja-son Smith› Bottom line: New coach inDoug Collins, but familiar posi-tion out of playoffs.

12. TORONTO (30-52)

› Additions: F Ed Davis; F AmirJohnson; C Solomon Alabi; GLeandro Barbosa; F JulianWright› Subtractions: F Chris Bosh; FHedo Turkoglu; G Marco Belinelli› Bottom line: The off-seasonlosses far outweigh the Raptors’new arrivals.

13. CLEVELAND (27-55)

› Additions: F Joey Graham; FSamardo Samuels› Subtractions: C Zydrunas Il-gauskas; F LeBron James› Bottom line: A mass exoduswill take the Cavaliers from 60wins to less than 30.

14. NEW JERSEY (26-56)

› Additions: F Derrick Favors; FDamion James; F Travis Outlaw;C Johan Petro; G Jordan Farmar;G Quinton Ross; G AnthonyMorrow› Subtractions: C Tony Battie;G Chris Douglas-Roberts; F YiJianlian; G Keyon Dooling› Bottom line: Nets will winmore than double last year’s wintotal, from 12 to 26.

15. DETROIT (20-62)

› Additions: G Tracy McGrady;F Greg Monroe; G Terrico White› Subtractions: None

› Bottom line: Former BadBoys are just plain bad. Aver-aged 94.0 points last year.

LeBron JamesHeat forward

AP PHOTO

Your NBA extended forecast for 2010-11BY JOHN ROHDE, STAFF WRITER, [email protected]

Page 10: NBA Preview

Nov. 7 vs. Boston: The Celtics look like they have one more championship run in them. They reloaded with Shaquille O’Neal and Jermaine O’Neal this summer and should again be one of the best defensive teams in the league. It’ll provide an early test of where the Thunder is against some of the game’s biggest stars.

Dec. 25 vs. Denver: The team’s first Christmas game since the franchise relocated to Oklahoma City should be a dandy — provided Nuggets star Carmelo Anthony is still with the team. This game will be carried nationally by ESPN, and the Thunder’s home fans will be in a festive holiday spirit.

Jan. 30 vs. Miami: Consider this Oklahoma City’s first showcase game of the 2010-11 regular season. A Sunday afternoon crowd will witness two of the league’s hottest teams go head-to-head on ABC. It’s also the lone visit Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Chris Bosh and the Heat will make to OKC.

Feb. 27 vs. L.A. Lakers: Another Sunday afternoon tilt scheduled for ABC. This one serves up a rematch of last year’s riveting first-round playoff series and a small chance at a little payback for how the Lakers ended the Thunder’s season in the Ford Center in April. It’s the Lakers’ only trip to town in the regular season so Thunder fans will have to catch them while they can.

March 16 at Miami: The final 15 games after this second and final meeting with the Heat have some road blocks. But a road game against a Heat team that should be gearing up for the playoffs will be the final barometer for just where the Thunder is heading into the postseason.

DARNELL MAYBERRY’S 5-GAME FORECAST

The Thunder’s five biggest games of 2010-11:

Page 11: NBA Preview

OKC’S NEXT WAVEWILL THIS YEAR’S SOPHOMORES EMULATE THEIR PREDECESSORS’ PROGRESS FROM YEARS 1 TO 2?

The downside to rapiddevelopment is that itbuilds expectations.

James Harden, EricMaynor, Serge Ibaka andByron Mullens can thanktheir elder teammates forthat.

The Thunder’s quartetof second-year playersmust now follow in thefootsteps of Kevin Durant,Jeff Green and RussellWestbrook, each of whomshowed significant im-provement in their secondseasons.

Now, the pressure is onthis year’s sophomores tomake similar progress.

“We’re not really wor-ried about what everybodyelse expects us to do. Wejust got to go out there anddo what the team needs usto do to win,” said Maynor,the backup point guard.“Once you start worryingabout other stuff like that,I’m sure you’ll get yourselfcaught up in stuff.”

It’s not as if the youngguns didn’t set their ownbars as rookies last season.

Maynor proved from themoment he arrived fromUtah in a trade he is one ofthe steadiest reserveguards in the game, com-piling a 3.25 assist-to-turnover ratio in 55 gameswith the Thunder. Amongplayers who played at least50 games, only six PGs hada better ratio.

Harden, the No. 3 over-all pick in 2009, rankedfourth on the team in scor-ing and showed the mak-ings of a potent scoringand playmaking threat.

Ibaka, meanwhile, ex-ploded onto the NBAscene, bringing his jaw-dropping athleticism andshot-blocking skills toOklahoma City after a sea-son playing in Spain. Ibakaaveraged 1.31 blocks in just18.1 minutes. Only twoplayers — Miami’s Joel An-thony and Washington’sJaVale McGee — averagedmore blocks in less than 20minutes per game.

“A big jump? I’d just like

them to keep improving,”said coach Scott Brooks.

Brooks has cautionedhis second-year players tomaintain the same workethic and attention to de-tail they had last season.Losing sight of the funda-mental principles that firstallowed success is a sureway to have a disappoint-ing season.

“As a player, as a team,we can’t skip steps,”Brooks said.

“This league is so diffi-cult that if you think you’regoing to jump over stepsand have success that way,it’s not going to happen.Our guys are going to have

to come back mentallytougher and playing betterbasketball.”

The improvement wasseen throughout the sum-mer league and the presea-son.

Maynor ran the offensewith more authority. Har-den played with more ag-gressiveness.

Ibaka and Mullens’ skillson both ends looked en-hanced.

“We worked hard thissummer,” said Maynor.“We just want to show ev-erybody what we workedon in the summertime …We got a bunch of guysthat love to work. ”

BY DARNELL MAYBERRYStaff [email protected]

Serge Ibaka showed flashes of his potential last season as a rookie. The devel-opment of Ibaka and the Thunder’s other second-year players will be crucial to theteam’s success in 2010-11. PHOTO BY CHRIS LANDSBERGER, THE OKLAHOMAN

Year 1 to Year 2Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and Jeff Green showed

significant improvement from their rookie seasons to theirsecond years. Here’s a look at those numbers, along withOKC’s second-year players’ stats as rookies a year ago:

KEVIN DURANT2007-08 (rookie) 2008-09

20.3 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 2.4 APG,.430 FG pct., .288 3PT pct.

25.3 PPG, 6.5 RPG, 2.8 APG, .476 FG pct., .422 3PT pct.

JEFF GREEN2007-08 (rookie) 2008-09

10.5 PPG, 4.7 RPG, 1.5 APG, .427 FG pct., .276 3PT pct.

16.5 PPG, 6.7 RPG, 2.0 APG, .446 FG pct., .389 3PT pct.

RUSSELL WESTBROOK2008-09 (rookie) 2009-10

15.3 PPG, 4.9 RPG, 5.3 APG, .398 FG pct., .271 3PT pct.

16.1 PPG, 4.9 RPG, 8.0 APG, .418 FG pct., .221 3PT pct.

JAMES HARDEN2009-10 (rookie) 2010-11

9.9 PPG, 3.2 RPG, 1.8 APG,.403 FG pct., .375 3PT pct.

??

ERIC MAYNOR2009-10 (rookie) 2010-11

4.7 PPG, 1.6 RPG, 3.3 APG, .418 FG pct., .310 3PT pct.

??

SERGE IBAKA2009-10 (rookie) 2010-11

7.8 PPG, 6.5 RPG, 2.0 BPG,.571 FG pct.

??

BYRON MULLENS2009-10 (rookie) 2010-11

1.1 PPG, 0.8 RPG, .386 FG pct. ?

IMPROVING CONDITIONS

Page 12: NBA Preview

The sixth-worst 3-point shooting team froma year ago is now stackedwith sharpshooters.

We’re about to find outwhether it makes a differ-ence for the Thunder.

But the offseason addi-tions of Morris Petersonand Daequan Cook are ex-pected to provide a shot inthe arm to a team thatstruggled to make shotsfrom beyond the arc lastseason.

“If you look at the teamlast year during the play-offs, that’s one thing theydidn’t have playing againstthe Lakers and they almostbeat them,” said Peterson,a career 37.4 percent 3-point shooter who cameover in a draft-night tradethat brought center ColeAldrich from New Orleans.

In its six-game first-round series against theLakers, OKC shot just 29.7percent from 3-pointrange. Russell Westbrook,a career 24.9 percentshooter from the 3-pointline, led the Thunder witha 41.7-percent clip.

James Harden was theonly other player that shothigher than 29 percent.

That’s why the addi-tions of Cook and Petersonare being billed as smallbut potentially significantacquisitions. Cook, a ca-

reer 35.8 percent 3-pointshooter, won the 2009 3-point shoot-out at All-Star Weekend. With Cookand Peterson joining amore experienced Hardenand Kevin Durant, theThunder, if nothing else,has more options.

“I have the confidencethat we can get the jobdone,” Peterson said.

“I think adding theshooters to the ones we al-ready have will make an

impact.”With added weapons,

coach Scott Brooks saidthe 3-point shot will be abigger part of the gameplan this season. But it willbe up to the players tomake the coach look good.

Cook showed off hissharpshooting in the pre-season, hitting 3s in prac-tice and exhibition games.

When the games start,Cook said, defenses willhave to make costly deci-

sions.“It’s going to increase a

lot more shots on the pe-rimeter, a lot more shotsfor us to make on the pe-rimeter,” Cook said. “It’sgoing to open up the gamea lot more for KD and theguys like James who like todrive to the basket.They’re not going to al-ways be able to doubleknowing you’ve got shoo-ters like me or Mo outthere.”

Guard Daequan Cook, acquired in an offseason trade with Miami, is a career 35.8percent 3-point shooter.

PHOTO BY CHRIS LANDSBERGER, THE OKLAHOMAN

RAINING THREES CAN DAEQUAN COOK AND MO PETERSON GIVE THE THUNDER A MORE EFFECTIVE PERIMETER GAME?

3’S POURING DOWN IN OKC?The Thunder added Daequan Cook and Morris

Peterson, each of whom could be a perimeterthreat for OKC. Here’s a look at the Thunder’s3-point stats from last season, along with thecareer stats for Cook and Peterson:

THUNDER 3-POINTERS IN 2009-10

› Team: 418 of 1229; .340 3-point percentage(ranked 25th in the NBA)

› James Harden: 93-248; .375› Kevin Durant: 128-351; .365› Jeff Green: 104-312; 333› Thabo Sefolosha: 41-131; .313› Eric Maynor: 22-71; .310› Russell Westbrook: 23-104; .221

NEW OKC SHARPSHOOTERS

› Daequan Cook career: 272-759; .358› Morris Peterson career: 1009-2701; .374

Morris Peterson is a career 37.4 percent3-point shooter. PHOTO BY CHRIS LANDSBERGER

THE OKLAHOMAN

BY DARNELL MAYBERRYStaff [email protected]

Page 13: NBA Preview

During the Thunder’sfirst season, all eyes wereon guard Thabo Sefoloshawhen it came time for a keydefensive stop. Thesedays, coach Scott Brookscan feast his eyes on morethan one option.

“Used to be Thabo hadto guard the guy we wereguessing, ‘This guy isprobably going to get the(last) shot,’” Brooks ad-mitted. “Now, I’m com-fortable with whoever isguarding the guy who getsthe last shot ... We havethe ability to switch on alot of plays at the end ofthe game.”

Sefolosha was a second-team all-defense selectionlast season, but no longerwas he blatantly flying solofor the Thunder.

Jeff Green has guardedfour positions. RussellWestbrook is arguably themost athletic player in theleague. Brooks continuallyheaps praise upon KevinDurant for his defensiveimprovement. Nick Colli-son was second in theleague in drawn charges(57).

OKC led the league inblocked shots last season,yet no one reached 100 re-jections. Rookie reserveSerge Ibaka led the waywith 97. The Thunder usedthe 11th pick in the NBADraft to obtain space-eat-ing, defensive-minded

center Cole Aldrich.With the 7-foot wing-

spans of Durant (7-foot-5), Aldrich (7-foot-4¾), Ibaka (7-foot-3), Byron Mullens (7-foot-1½) and Green(7-1¼), OKC is one of theleague’s longer teams.

Brooks wants to utilizeall these defensive attri-butes in unison, which iswhy the outset of trainingcamp was roughly 70 per-cent defense.

Brooks continuallystresses the importance ofdefense. More specifically,team defense. The Thun-der’s defense, pretty muchany defense for that mat-ter, is most effective whenteammates help out eachother. When the Thunderuses its “shell” defense,there had better not be anycracks.

“There is a lot to workon as a team defensively,”Sefolosha said. “As a unit,you definitely want tomaster those. I think teamdefense definitely helps anindividual on defense.”

If a player wants to im-prove offensively duringthe offseason, he mightshoot until he makes 500shots and 100 free throwsper day. But how does aplayer become better de-fensively on his own?

When Brooks and hisstaff visit their playersduring the summer, theyinstruct them to do certaindefensive drills, breakdown their stances and al-so stress weight training.

In the end, defense isabout desire and effort.

“I’d say 80 percent of itis mental effort and 20percent is being in shape,”Sefolosha said.

“Pretty much everybodyhas the body to play de-fense.”

BY JOHN ROHDEStaff [email protected]

DEFENSIVEBAROMETER

Here is a look atthe Thunder’s sta-tistics in key defen-sive categories dur-ing the 2009-10regular season, withleague rank in pa-rentheses:› Opponent PPG:98.0 (11)› Opponent FGpct.: .448 (7)› Opponent 3PTpct.: .340 (3)› Opponent Turn-overs per game: 15.1(T-5)

OKC’s Kevin Durantdefends Utah’s KyleKorver last season.

PHOTO BY HUGH SCOTTTHE OKLAHOMAN

HIGH-PRESSURE SYSTEMGREEN, DURANT AND OTHERS ARE JOINING SEFOLOSHA AS CAPABLE DEFENSIVE STOPPERS IN OKC

Shooting guard Thabo Sefolosha has long been thought of as OKC’s go-to guy fora defensive stop. But Sefolosha isn’t alone anymore; the Thunder has several soliddefenders heading into the 2010-11 season. PHOTO BY CHRIS LANDSBERGER, THE OKLAHOMAN

Page 14: NBA Preview

FUELING THE STORM23-WIN SEASON IN 2008-09 STILL MOTIVATES CURRENT OKC PLAYERS

Just a couple daysbefore the Thunderopened trainingcamp, Sam Prestiheld a press confer-

ence to talk about thisupcoming season.

But he ended up talkingan awful lot about anoth-er season — the 23-wincampaign of two yearsago.

I had to check andmake sure that was reallyPresti in the designereyeglasses and the wrin-kle-free blue shirt. Afterall, the Thunder generalmanager would’ve just assoon mentioned thatdreadful season a year agoas worn saggy jeans and awife-beater.

It wasn’t just Prestiwho was averse to talkingabout that pitiful season.It was everyone in Thun-der blue.

The phrase “23 wins”was so rarely spoken thatyou’d have thought thosewere curse words.

No more.While the pundits and

the prognosticators areforecasting greatness forthis team, the Thunderseems to be trying todowngrade the brewingstorm.

“We’re really excitedabout starting, reallyexcited about what theseason holds,” Presti said.

But ...“We know there are

going to be plenty of upsand downs. That’s part of

an 82-game season.”The truth of the matter

is, the Thunder had veryfew downs a year ago.There were no majorinjuries, a fate that befellmany other WesternConference foes. Therewere few off nights. Therewere limited losingstreaks.

At the same time, theThunder saw severalplayers improve dramat-ically. Russell Westbrook,Serge Ibaka, James Har-den and even Kevin Du-rant made big strides onthe court last season.

Presti acknowledgedmany of those positives.

“With all that beingsaid,” he added, “we werestill the eighth seed in theWestern Conference.”

No doubt the marginfor error is razor-thin inthe NBA.

If the Thunder losteven one of its pillars toinjury for an extendedperiod — especially if itwere Durant or West-brook — the entire pallorof the season wouldchange. This team couldfind itself reverting back

to the 2008-09 version ofthe Thunder.

Wonder if Presti andCo. would be talking asmuch about that 23-winseason then.

Players have evenjoined in the chorus,mentioning that not solong ago people wonderedif the Thunder could be-come the worst team inNBA history. When theteam won only three of itsfirst 32 games two yearsago, visions of the 1972-73 Philadelphia 76ersstarted dancing in every-one’s heads.

Those days seem longago and far away, but intruth, they aren’t. Re-membering that isn’tnecessarily a bad thing.

Neither is saying it.“There’s been some

struggles over the lastseveral years,” Presti said.“I think there’s a genuinehumility with how fragilethis is. You can’t takeanything for granted inthe NBA.

“Having won 23 gamesthe season before last andhaving a lot of those guysthat went through that

season, I think they havea great deal of respect forhow difficult it is to winin this league.”

Perhaps in talkingabout that dreadful sea-son, Presti is trying tosoften the ground in casethe Thunder takes a tum-ble this season. The stormbrewing in OklahomaCity could weaken. Thethreat that the Thunderposes to the rest of theleague could dissipate.

But really, the more theThunder brings up thedisaster of two years ago,the more it sounds likemotivation.

That 23-win seasonshouldn’t weaken thestorm. It should fuel it.

JenniCarlson

COMMENTARY

[email protected]

Nenad Krstic is one of seven players who remain fromthe Thunder’s inaugural season in Oklahoma City. Theteam won just 23 games in 2008-09, and that stillserves as motivation.

PHOTO BY CHRIS LANDSBERGER, THE OKLAHOMAN

No. Name Pos. Age HT College/Country45 Cole Aldrich C 21 6-11 Kansas

4 Nick Collison F-C 29 6-10 Kansas14 Daequan Cook G 23 6-5 Ohio State35 Kevin Durant F 22 6-9 Texas11 Jerome Dyson G 23 6-4 Connecticut22 Jeff Green F 24 6-9 Georgetown13 James Harden G 21 6-5 Arizona State

9 Serge Ibaka F 21 6-10 Congo7 Royal Ivey G 28 6-4 Texas

12 Nenad Krstic C 27 7-0 Serbia6 Eric Maynor G 23 6-3 VCU8 Elijah Millsap G 23 6-6 UAB

23 Byron Mullens C 21 7-0 Ohio State42 Morris Peterson G 33 6-7 Michigan State

2 Thabo Sefolosha G 26 6-7 Switzerland0 Russell Westbrook G 21 6-3 UCLA3 D.J. White F 24 6-9 Indiana

› Note: Roster as of October 19

2010-11 THUNDER ROSTER

Coaching Staff› Head coach: Scott Brooks› Assistant coaches: Maurice Cheeks, Rex Kalamian,Mark Bryant, Brian Keefe, Dwight Daub, Maz Trakh


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