Thunder 103, Hawks 94
Nuggets from my notebook from Friday’s win over Atlanta.
- There was a quick glimpse of Thunder U just before tip-off. With the Thunder unveiling a new pre-game introduction video, James Harden, Eric Maynor and D.J. White stood shoulder to shoulder with their arms around each others neck as they stared up at the big screen. I thought that said a lot.
- Jeff Green got off to a great start. With Marvin Williams out, the Hawks started center Jason Collins instead of another wing player. That left Nenad Krstic to defend Collins and Green matched up with Al Horford. And that’s when Green’s value offensively really showed. Green sucked Horford out to the perimeter and drained jumper after jumper. It was a complete mismatch. Green even held his own on Horford defensively in the first quarter…Then the wheels fell off and foul trouble limited Green to 20 minutes. He didn’t score again after the first quarter.
- Harden is here, folks. Is he here to stay is the question. Tonight, he was huge. He shot the ball with confidence and absolutely no hesitation. He finished December averaging 14 points on better than 45 percent shooting.
- Josh Smith is a lot bigger than I remember. The guy is thick. I can’t imagine how tough of a cover he is for opponents. He’s skilled enough to take you outside and wide enough to have his way inside. There was a possession in the first half when I actually felt bad for Nick Collison trying to defend Smith out at the 3-point line. That was an impossible cover for Collison.
- Smith’s poster dunk on Serge Ibaka midway through the second quarter made me stop what I was doing for about three possessions and try to wrap my mind around what I had just witnessed. Smith is one of the highest fliers in the league. But he was clearly jacked to flush one on Ibaka. That tells me that Ibaka’s name is ringing out throughout the league. He’s sixth in the NBA in blocks per game with 2.21, but Smith’s reaction proves people outside of Oklahoma City are starting to know about it.
Thunder Welcoming Newborn Babies
This is the single greatest marketing strategy I’ve ever seen from the Thunder.
Starting on Saturday, the team announced today, the organization will welcome newborn 2011 babies into this world.
Thunder mascot Rumble the Bison will visit some of the newest Oklahomans at 2 p.m. Saturday at INTEGRIS Baptist Medical Center. Rumble will present each family he visits with a Thunder newborn kit that includes newborn hand warmers, bootees, a hat, bib, blanket, certificate and an exclusive Thunder frame.
The Thunder will continue to provide a newborn kit to every baby delivered at Integris for the entire year. In 2010, Integris delivered 2,539 babies, and on average the hospital’s labor and delivery unit welcomes 48 to 50 babies a week. The Thunder estimates it will provide 2,600 kits to newborns this year.
Now think about that.
The Thunder is turning babies into fans from the moment they’re born.
You just know that one of these precious little boys or girls in 2041 is going to be a 30-year-old fan who still has pictures of him or herself in Thunder bootees and bibs as a newborn. No one could ever question little Johnny’s fanhood.
Meanwhile, the babies’ parents fall head over heels in love with the franchise for coming to see their expanding family in the hospital and providing some useful and cool clothing and trinkets. You can bet those parents, especially if they have older children, are going to start following the Thunder. Some will buy merchandise. Some will become regulars down on Reno Ave.
It’s genius. And it’s something we haven’t written or talked much about. But this is what new franchises like the Thunder must do to slowly grow its fan base. One baby at a time, the Thunder is building its community.
Free bibs, bootees and blankets now could mean big bucks later.
-DM-
Durant gets a big head
We never thought it would happen, but Thunder forward Kevin Durant has gotten a big head. Given all his success, hey, it’s understandable.
Surprisingly, Durant has noticed he’s gotten a big head and doesn’t seem to object one bit.
We are talking, of course, of the NBA’s “big head” commercial theme this season. The ads are thoroughly entertaining to fans young and old, including Durant himself.
“Yeah, I like them,” Durant said with a smile. “The NBA does a great job with that stuff.”
For your viewing pleasure, in case you’ve missed them:
TNT Crew Weighs In On The Thunder
While most of you who work traditional hours were nestled in bed last night, the TNT crew on Inside the NBA held a lively debate about the Thunder. Apparently, the preseason hype that surrounded this team is wearing off. That or the lofty expectations we heard and read about OKC coming into this season are now being replaced with more realistic projections.
Either way, two of the all-time greatest players, Charles Barkley and Chris Webber, on Thursday night stubbornly rejected the notion that the Thunder is one of the best four teams in the Western Conference. The matter stretched into a 4 1/2 minute debate during one segment after Kevin Durant responded to one of Barkley’s comments via Twitter.
If nothing else, the exchange between Barkley, Webber, Kenny Smith and host Ernie Johnson was entertaining. Here’s a link to the segment. And with the exception of a few impromptu jokes by the crew (such as Barkley facetiously asking if Oklahoma City had cable), here’s a transcription of the whole debate, with audio of the crew’s predictions after the jump.
CW: Let me just explain what I’m saying about them. Last year, they were the second best defensive team in the NBA without any shot blockers. This year, they got off to a slow start. I played for good, young teams before. We sipped the kool-aid. We come out, the veteran teams beat your butt like they did OKC early. I’m glad (Durant) is upset. You should be upset. But they haven’t played as well as I expected them to play earlier. They’re going to be good going down to the end. But we definitely believe in (Durant) and his teammates.
CB: First of all, (Durant) and Westbrook and Green, I love watching them. But defense and rebounding are they’re bugaboo. They’re not going to beat the big boys not playing any defense and not getting any rebounds…But they’re going to win some games because they’ve got three terrific players. But they’re big guys, they don’t take hard fouls. But they don’t play any defense and rebound. You can get through the regular season; but I told you, the three most important stats in basketball: No. 1, where you’re at defensively. You’ve got to rebound the ball and you can’t turn it over. And they play no defense and they don’t rebound the ball well.
KS: Well, I will say this in their defense. There are a lot of people who aren’t equipped to make the transition to be an elite team. They have the equipment. They have the assembly line to make the car to be a championship contending team. They have guys who can play defense. They have guys who can rebound. So yes. And, with all of this said, they’re one game from being a 3 seed. All of that said, they’re one game from being a 3 seed.
Mark Bryant’s Trick Shot
If you’ve ever gone to a Thunder game early to score autographs or watch players warm up, you’ve likely seen Thunder assistant coach Mark Bryant’s pre-game ritual.
Bryant is the coach who takes three back-to-the-basket, over-the-head shots from the corner 3-point line just in front of the Thunder’s bench. Three attempts are all Bryant gives himself. If he makes it before the third attempt, he walks away. If he misses all three attempts, he tries again the next game.
“Since I’ve been playing, I’ve always done that,” Bryant said. “Before I would run in before the game, I would grab a ball and try to fling it up real quick. I’ve been doing it since forever.”
Bryant, who enjoyed a 15-year playing career, is surprisingly accurate with the trick shot. It’s not unusual to see Bryant bury a bucket with his back turned to the rim while fans near the bench ooh and ahh at what they just witnessed.
Now, Bryant can’t stop.
“It’s just that superstitious type thing going on. I just have to do it,” Bryant said.
It’s a superstition with a twist.
“I don’t like when I make it, though, because I don’t think we have a good outcome when I make it,” Bryant said. “Sometimes I don’t even like doing it because I don’t want to make it. But I’ve been doing it forever.”
-DM-
Thunder 114, Nets 93
Nuggets from my notebook from Wednesday’s win over New Jersey.
- With the Nets completing their lone visit to OKC this season, it’s possible that Thunder heads will miss out on Carmelo Anthony altogether this year. And that’s a shame. Melo’s Denver Nuggets don’t come back to town until April 8, the second-to-last home game of the year. It’s almost a certainty that Anthony won’t be with the Nuggets at that point. And if New Jersey is indeed his destination, Oklahoma City will miss arguably the league’s best scorer. Even if the Knicks land Melo, New York comes to town on Jan. 22. Unless that trade goes down soon, it’s likely Thunder heads won’t be see Anthony at all this season.
- It took 33 games, but Tony Brothers finally refereed a regular season Thunder game. Thunder heads, of course, remember Brothers from this. Brothers did work the Thunder’s second preseason game, a road game against Miami in Kansas City. I didn’t hear any fans fire any mean-spirited comments toward Brothers. And I’m glad no one did. Everyone makes mistakes, and I’m sure Brothers is still kicking himself for his.
- Russell Westbrook had a brutal first quarter. In less than six minutes in the opening period, Westbrook threw three bad passes and had his shot blocked three times. He finished the frame with five points on 1-for-5 shooting with two rebounds, one assist, one foul and one turnover. His and-one on a left-handed layup, though, was sick.
- Thunder coach Scott Brooks gave Kevin Durant an uncharacteristically early hook with 1:35 left in the first quarter. Brooks replaced Durant with Thabo Sefolosha. Durant typically doesn’t get his first breather until a minute or two into the second quarter. I initially though Brooks was unhappy with a contested 3-pointer Durant had taken on the previous possession. But Brooks told me after the game that he’s looking to change things up a bit and give Durant more of a breather. With the way Brooks substituted tonight, Durant would get the quarter break as additional rest. It’s something we might see over the next few games. Brooks, however, said it will be determined by the flow of the game. That means, if the Thunder is getting its head kicked in, don’t expect Durant to come out. If OKC is up, look for KD to get a break.
Mavs 103, Thunder 93
Nuggets from my notebook from Monday’s loss to Dallas.
- There’s a reason Dirk Nowitzki last week called Jason Terry Dallas’ “closer.” We saw why tonight. But it should not have come as a surprise. Terry has made a career of canning clutch shots. He had 11 fourth-quarter points tonight and stole this win when comrade Nowitzki was back in the locker room nursing a knee injury.
- Terry was 5-for-8 in the fourth quarter. The Thunder was 4-for-18. That’s borderline embarrassing.
- As I wrote for Tuesday’s paper, it was a fan seated courtside that got Terry going. This guy, who’s a regular, gave Terry an earful all night. And he lit a fire under Terry. Next time, the guy probably should keep his mouth shut.
- Terry had some great quotes after this one.
- “Once we kept it close I knew that, in this hostile environment, we’d have the upper hand because we are a veteran team and we’ve been in this position numerous times.”
- “It just shows you how deep of a team we are and the veteran leadership that we have. We come in at halftime and Dirk says, ‘What’s the score?’ We said, ‘It’s tied up.’ He said, “Oh, you guys got ‘em. No problem. I’ll take the night off.’
- “Dallas is No. 1, and OKC is a close second as far as the best fans in the NBA. It’s unbelievable. They’re here early. They stay late. They’re cheering. They’re just unbelievable. And it’s great to know that in a small market like this you have die-hard fans. They’re some of the best.”
- “They’re still a great team. That’s a good young team there. They’re missing one or two veterans and that’s about it. But, hey, Oklahoma City, they’re tough.”
Thunder 114, Nuggets 106
Nuggets from my notebook from Saturday’s win over Denver.
- Tip of the cap to Thunder coach Scott Brooks for such a classy move after this one. Brooks began his post-game press conference by acknowledging the recent tragedy in Nuggets star Carmelo Anthony’s life. “First of all, my thoughts go out to Carmelo and his family,” Brooks said. “It’s a tough position for them to be in.”
- I thought this would be the night we finally saw Kevin Durant get 50. While it might sound crazy, it’s hard to believe he’s been in the league 3 1/2 years and hasn’t gotten it. That’s not a long time. But for a scorer like him, it seems he would have achieved that milestone by now. I’m going to go out on a limb (don’t know how far I’ll be out there though) and say he’s going to get it this season.
- Durant had a brilliant stretch in the post late in the first half. And it showed that his work in the post is paying off. With 4:53 left in the second quarter, Durant posted up J.R. Smith from left baseline. Rather than try to overpower the smaller but more likely stronger Smith, Durant bumped him once, spun the other way and fired. His jumper splashed straight through the net. Durant then hit Arron Afflalo with the same move on the Thunder’s next possession. Seconds later, the Thunder went back to the same play and the Nuggets sent a second and third defender. And when they did, Durant hit Russell Westbrook with a beautiful dime that would have ended in two points but Westbrook botched the layup.
- Durant’s passing throughout the game was on point tonight. The way he handled Denver’s double and triple teams was extremely impressive. He could have been selfish and tried to force his way to 50. But Durant made it a point after the game to do the exact opposite. Said KD: “I just didn’t want to force anything and mess the flow of the game up…The only thing I was thinking when I got the ball was hockey assists.”
- James Harden was huge tonight, too. When the Thunder went down by 10 early, Harden came off the bench and scored 14 of his 21 points in the second quarter. It helped pull the Thunder within two at the half. Brooks noted how much better Harden has been in December. “James has been good,” Brooks said. “He struggled in the first month. That’s well-documented. But in December, he’s playing the way we need him to play. He comes in and gives us some aggressive minutes on both ends of the floor.”
- Westbrook didn’t have the greatest game tonight. He finished with 19 points on 19 shots, many of them forced. But zero turnovers for Westbrook is always nice to see.
- The Thunder had just nine turnovers and dished out 22 assists. That’s a very nice ratio.
Courtside view: Thunder vs. Knicks
Additional courtside observations from Wednesday night’s 112-98 Thunder loss against the New York Knicks in Madison Square Garden:
* There was a huge difference between Tuesday night’s game at Charlotte and Wednesday night’s contest at New York, and it was more than the overall talent and atmosphere.
For the first three quarters on Tuesday, it was easy to surmise the Thunder should have cruised past the outmanned Bobcats, which OKC eventually did in the fourth quarter with a 31-12 pounding.
Against the Knicks, it was easy to see the Thunder was grossly outmanned at the center position, which is frequently the case when it comes to Amar’e Stoudemire, who might be playing the best ball of his career.
Serge Ibaka repeatedly got schooled – not due to a lack of effort or talent, but more to a lack of experience. The 21-year-old needs to pay closer attention to what will work, and what will not work during the course of the game. If somebody has figured out your head fake and blocked your shot, there’s a good chance he’s going to block it again, and again.
* Kevin Durant was scintillating with a 13-point first quarter during which two shots rattled in and out. The sellout crowd was sensing a big night from a big star.
Durant began 4 for 7 from the field in the first period. For the remainder of the game, he went 5 for 11 after the Knicks let it be known nothing would come easy.
“They made shots and we missed shots,” Durant said. “We’re a tough team on the road and tonight we just weren’t able to make shots.”
* In addition to Stoudemire, point guard Raymond Felton makes a huge difference for the Knicks. He’s unselfish, yet also a scoring threat. He finished with 12 points and 10 assists against the Thunder.
Asked if this was the Knicks’ best win of the season, Felton said, “It is one of them … not going to say the best, but it’s one of them. We played a great game against a really good team.”
* In the hall-of-fame career of Larry Brown that spans six decades as a player and coach, his final game might come against the Thunder.
Brown was inducted in the National Basketball Hall of Fame in 2002. It’s rare for an NBA coach to be inducted and still be coaching eight years later.
It was easy to see Tuesday the end was near for Brown, who stepped down as Bobcats coach Wednesday morning.
“It’s like going to the dentist right now,” Brown said before his pre-game interview when asked how he was doing.
When Brown spoke of the Bobcats, he shook his head. When Brown spoke of the Thunder, his expression changed for the better.
Thunder coach Scott Brooks on Brown’s departure: “It’s unfortunate. He’s a guy that I admire and I appreciate what he has done for the game. Unfortunately, that happens. We’re going to miss him in the profession. Hopefully he will bounce back and be fine. He’s one of the best coaches of all-time. He wins everywhere he’s gone. He’s accomplished a lot, both playing and coaching. It’s quite a career.”
Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni: “I hate it for him. Or it could be a blessing, depending on how you look at it for him. He’s one of the best coaches we have. It happens. Sometimes it’s nobody’s fault. Sometimes you need a different voice, but you’re not going to find a better coach than him. No way. He’s one of the best we have. Hopefully if he wants to, he can keep on going.”
Felton, who played for Brown at Charlotte: “My heart goes out to him. He is a guy who loves the game of basketball and always wants to be teaching and always wants to be coaching, so my heart really goes out to him.”
* Asked if he could ever envision himself making as many stops as the 70-year-old Brown, who had 13 professional and college coaching jobs, Brooks smiled and said, “I’m just focusing on this stop here.”
* Durant wore Jeff Green‘s No. 22 warm-up pull-over two hours before tip. The reason? Durant gave his warm-up to a kid in Charlotte at the request of Bobcats point guard and former Texas teammate D.J. Augustin.
Amazing New Kevin Durant Commercial
What. A. Great. Commercial.
Catch it Christmas Day. (Via @DimeMag)
-DM-
