Documentary “Sonicsgate” Released
The documentary “Sonicsgate” has been released online. It examines the Sonics’ move from Seattle to Oklahoma City. You can see the two-hour documentary at www.sonicsgate.org or watch the videos posted below. It’s done in two parts.
Sonicsgate HD Part 1 of 2 from sonicsgate on Vimeo.
Sonicsgate HD Part 2 of 2 from sonicsgate on Vimeo.
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Is Russell Westbrook A Superstar In The Making?
ESPN.com has posted short video analysis of all 30 NBA teams and had good things to say about the Thunder.
NBA analyst Tin Legler called Russell Westbrook a potential breakout player this season, saying he loves the second-year point guard’s upside and added, “He has superstar talent.” Legler also predicted the Thunder to flirt with a .500 record this season and climb as high as 10th in the Western Conference.
You can see the ESPN.com’s entire Thunder preview here.
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Mic’d Up: A Novel Idea With Imperfections
Scott Brooks took the wireless mic at Midwest City High on Monday night, cleared his throat and gave a few sound checks.
The Thunder coach then introduced himself to roughly 2,000 fans at the evening’s open practice and explained to them what they were in store for throughout the two-hour session.
And that welcome was as good as his sound bites got.
Brooks sadly became the latest victim of mic’d up, a brilliant idea gone bad. Some of it was on Brooks. Most of his failures were a natural result of an imperfect innovation.
The idea of having players and coaches mic’d up is to take fans behind the scenes. To show a side of the game few know exist. Rarely does it work out. Ever notice how the mic’d up segments during Sunday and Monday Night Football telecasts have been missing lately? And as fans, are we really missing anything?
The answer is no. The reason is because no one acts the same when they’re mic’d up. Conversations come off as contrived. Movements and mannerisms seem made up. Genuine gestures are too graphic for the general public.
And so all we’re left with is sound bites of Kobe Bryant panting as he trots back after a bucket yelling, “Good pass, Sasha.” Our “inside track” nothing more than replays of watered-down timeouts in which coach George Karl tells his Denver Nuggets what we’ve all known for years, “We’ve got to play better D.”
Some players and coaches are more carefree than others. They are who they are no matter who’s watching, or listening in this case. But the most compelling conversations are the ones we’ll never gain access to because of competitive advantage.
Evidence: Brooks appeared to turn off his mic Monday whenever his team huddled around him for detailed instructions. The fans were left out of what could have been the most fascinating dialogue of the night. It’s completely understandable if Brooks killed his mic for competitive reasons. But there was about 1 1/2 hours where Brooks could have engaged the crowd more and had a little more fun with folks, including his own players for the good of the fans.
Instead, what we witnessed was yet another example of how mic’d up is just messed up.
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Ford Center Renovations: Phase I
I’m ashamed it took me so long to play this clip.
Because when I did, the video gave me goose bumps and sped my heart rate.
It’s unbelievable how much has been done to the Ford Center in such little time — and how much more will be done a year from now. I’ve seen every NBA arena with the exception of Charlotte’s (on tap for March 17) and can say unequivocally that the Thunder’s home digs will indeed be one of the best venues in the league when the drills stop drilling and the hammers finish hammering.
Nationally, it might seem like no big deal. But for Oklahoma natives and folks like me who grew up here, the development taking place throughout the city is really an amazing sight. So much has changed over the past 10 years. The Ford Center project is just one small example.
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Power Lunch Chat Transcript
Training Camp Roster Almost Finalized
Former Tulsa standout Michael Ruffin is one of several free agents who have received an invitation to the Thunder’s training camp, which opens Tuesday.
NBA Fanhouse first reported that the Thunder will sign Ruffin and Ryan Bowen, two nine-year veteran power forwards, to non-guaranteed contracts. The Oklahoman has also learned that Tre Kelley and Mike Harris are among at least two other players who are expected to join Ruffin and Bowen in training camp.
Harris, a 6-foot-6, 240-pound forward, played at Rice and had a brief stint with Houston at the end of last season. Kelley is a 6-foot point guard who was a three-year starter at South Carolina.
Oklahoma City has 14 guaranteed contracts, and the quartet is expected to fight for the final roster spot throughout October’s preseason schedule.
Ruffin, Bowen and Harris are all known as hard workers who could add beef to the Thunder’s frontcourt in emergency situations and provide a high level of competition in practice. The Thunder is set to enter the season with a solid rotation of Jeff Green, Nick Collison, Nenad Krstic and Etan Thomas at the power forward and center positions.
But there is only young, inexperienced talent after that in D.J. White, Serge Ibaka and Byron Mullens. Those three have played a combined seven NBA games — all by White — and each is expected to see significant time in the D-League.
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Desmond Mason, Thunder Part Ways
Desmond Mason’s days in a Thunder uniform have come to an end.
For now.
Oklahoma City has decided to go in a different direction and will not re-sign the former Oklahoma State standout and fan favorite, The Oklahoman has learned.
Mason, who is an unrestricted free agent this summer, became a casualty of the Thunder’s commitment to developing its young talent and was the odd man out on a roster that is one player below the NBA maximum of 15 allowed.
The Thunder remained open to the possibility of re-signing the 31-year-old Mason throughout the summer and had ongoing discussions with his agent since the start of free agency on July 1. Mason made $5.3 million in the final year of his contract last season and is believed to have been seeking a deal in the same neighborhood this summer.
Contract negotiations were believed to have been more exploratory in nature, comprised of more casual discussion rather than concrete proposals. Mason’s camp is believed to have been seeking a multi-year contract of at least two seasons while the Thunder was willing to agree to nothing longer than a one-year deal.
But it appeared less likely Mason would return with each transaction the Thunder made since February.
Q&A With Kevin Ollie
It was long overdue but I finally got in touch with Kevin Ollie, the veteran point guard the Thunder signed on Aug. 1 to add stability and leadership to the lead guard position. Throughout our 18-minute conversation, Ollie talked about why he joined the Thunder, why he thinks something special is being built in Oklahoma City, his goals of a coaching future, the impact of assistant coach Maurice Cheeks’ addition and how he plans on mentoring Russell Westbrook while competing with Shaun Livingston for backup minutes.
Ollie, who turns 37 in late December, is regarded as one of the classiest guys in basketball and that characterization was evident in our brief chat. He was thankful for the opportunity to continue his career and eager to meet his new teammates and start training camp. He was insightful, introspective, eloquent, humble and gave the impression of being an extremely hard worker. Thunder fans definitely will take a liking to Ollie’s personality, and if he provides anything of value on the court this season that will just be icing on the cake.
DM: What attracted you to the Thunder?
KO: From Day One they gave me a call and expressed interest and had a strong belief in me and my talents and what I can bring as an asset to the team. So I really appreciate their involvement from Day One. And once I met Sam Presti and coach Brooks I just fell in love with the organization. They do everything in a classy way, and I just believe that they’re building a winning program there that I wanted to be a part of.
Documentary “Sonicsgate” To Premier Online Oct. 12
On the day the Thunder makes its preseason debut at the Ford Center an online documentary chronicling the team’s move from Seattle is scheduled to be released online.
The film, “Sonicsgate,” is an 80-minute documentary scheduled to be released online Oct. 12 and is produced by Seattle-based filmmaker Jason Reid and “a crew of angry Sonics fans,” according to a press release by the organization Save Our Sonics. Reid, the director, hopes to generate momentum for the Sonics issue and eventually help get another NBA team in the city of Seattle.
Judging by the three-minute trailer, the documentary appears to be worthy of a look. It seems the film will be very accusatory in nature, with the blame looking like it will be pointed to everyone from Seattle Mayor Greg Nichols to Thunder chairman Clay Bennett to the Legislature to former owner Howard Schultz. But several key characters were interviewed for the documentary, including Slade Gorton, Paul Lawrence, Brad Keller, Tom Carr, Brian Robinson Chris Van Dyk, Nick Collison, Desmond Mason and Kevin Calabro among others.
Sonicsgate Trailer from sonicsgate on Vimeo.
“We feel it is important to capture the rich history of the SuperSonics in Seattle,” Reid said. “This film exposes the truth behind the SuperSonics’ tragic exodus after 41 years in the Emerald City. There are people who need to be held accountable for how the team was scandalously ripped away from fans.”
For more on the project visit www.sonicsgate.org.
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Thoughts On The 2009-10 Thunder Schedule
The NBA released its league-wide schedule today, and the Thunder will open the season at home against Sacramento on Oct. 28. Oklahoma City will travel to Detroit to take on the Pistons on Oct. 30 before returning to the Ford Center to face Portland on Nov. 1 and the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers on Nov. 3.
Other highlights of the schedule include: Dwight Howard and the Orlando Magic at the Ford Center on Sunday, Nov. 8, No. 1 overall pick Blake Griffin and the Los Angeles Clippers at the Ford Center on Sunday, Nov. 15, the Boston Celtics coming to town Friday, Dec. 4, LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers visiting OKC on Sunday, Dec. 13, Chris Paul and the New Orleans Hornets coming Jan. 6 and March 10 and the Lakers returning Friday, March 26.
Also, the Thunder will have 10 Sunday home games, nine Friday night home games and three Saturday night home games. Oklahoma City will host Utah on New Year’s Eve and Milwaukee the day after Thanksgiving.
But the most interesting bit of news in Oklahoma City’s schedule is that the Thunder will again have just one nationally televised game, a Dec. 16 home game against Dallas. For all the buzz the Thunder has built around the league for how it’s the best up-and-coming team, the television networks sure don’t seem to be impressed. The Dec. 16 game will be televised by ESPN. It’s understandable how ABC wouldn’t pick up a 23-win team for its Sunday slate but for TNT to not pick up a single game is pretty amazing. Even more incredible is the Thunder is scheduled to have only two games aired on NBATV. I guess respect really is earned, not given.
Anyway, let’s break down this here schedule shall we?
