Tag Archives: nba

Oklahoma culture

Exposed: Thunder Fan Reveals Internal Dialogue During the Western Conference Finals

Tuesday, 8:35 a.m., she opens her e-mail and reads that, “…tomorrow, June 6, 2012 [is] INTEGRIS Thunder Spirit Day!” She notices her place of employment used not one, but TWO exclamation marks in an official “wear Thunder clothes to work tomorrow” message. She’s now certain that a good portion of her brain will be completely preoccupied by the impending Oklahoma City Thunder-San Antonio Spurs GAME 6 for every remaining second of the day.

11:30 p.m. that evening, she rolls over to stare at the alarm clock and groans. “Uhhhnnnnnhhh!” she thinks to herself, “I was right! C’mon brain, shut it off. You’ve got to rest up and save your energy for TOMORROW, the real and actual bona fide game day. Ugh.” Five minutes later, she starts thinking over again the problem of which “Thunder Wear” she’ll don for work tomorrow. Would it be her official NBA Kevin Durant Jersey? Or should she go casual and wear her “Thunder U” tee? She rolls over to stare at the alarm clock again and it’s 11:48. The last cognition she can recall had all periods between the words: “Must. Stop. Thinking….Cripes.”

Wednesday morning, 9:40 a.m. She has already explained to two people what “Thunder U” means and why her t-shirt IS indeed an appropriate choice for the day. As she whisks into her office to grab her massive “Thunder Power Flowers” she stops dead in her tracks, her gaze focusing on the weather outside her large picture window. Was that….thunder she heard? What!? Rain was pouring down the windows and the question in her head was answered with a second roll of thunder, louder this time and immediately influencing a ridiculously large smile across her face. Yes. It was an omen.

Wednesday afternoon, she strolls the halls to find someone, anyone, who will prognosticate about tonight’s game. She finds at least three people who help relieve her anxiety for a full four minutes.

Wednesday evening, 5:15 p.m. she calls her husband to carefully plan the food they will consume during the game. She pulls into Ted’s Cafe Escondido parking lot thirty minutes later to pick up a “set up” (salsa, cheese dip, chips and tortillas) to accompany the chicken fajitas and guacamole her husband was preparing at home. She was third in line at the “To Go” counter and realized her idea was also replicated by no fewer than the two others in line, one person calling in an order on the phone, and three people sitting in chairs staring menacingly at those who had actually planned to call ahead. Ted’s Set Ups were going like hot cakes…it seemed as if the whole world needed Mexican food to survive the game – now only two hours and fifteen minutes away. As she left the restaurant, she decided not to ruin the good karma for the Thunder by smiling triumphantly and holding up HER set up in front of those still waiting on theirs.

6:30 p.m. She and her husband are still in the kitchen, running around as if they were just learning to cook. They’re beyond distracted with the pre-game shows, the tension building up in their guts, and the fact that they had to have everything completely perfect so that every single brain cell could focus on the game once it started. They COULD NOT leave something undone in the food, pet care, plant watering and general chores department….it would be impossible to perform these tasks during the commercials. If someone had peeked in the window to observe, there might very well have been little blurs of people appearing to be moving in “fast forward” mode. GAME TIME was almost here!

8:00 p.m. Her bottom is sitting squarely in her cordovan, nailhead-detailed armchair. Continue reading Exposed: Thunder Fan Reveals Internal Dialogue During the Western Conference Finals →

Oklahoma culture

OKC Thunder v. Dallas Mavericks = Drop. Dead. Gorgeous. Basketball.

Photo by Nate Billings of the Daily Oklahoman

OKC’s Russell Westbrook was all over the bad decision making tonight.  He also had about four beautiful redeeming moments, but it was hardly enough to erase the small question mark in the back of fans heads about whether he should even be starting.

Dallas’ Jason Kidd never gives up, is always consistent and was a thorn in the side of the Thunder all night long.  He didn’t loose his cool once. Not even a tiny bit.

Dirk Nowitzki, however, lost his cool all night long – his acting job continued as he plead for any foul favor he could get from the officials.  He pushed too far, however, in the third quarter by telling an official that a call against him was F*ing B*Sh*t, and paid for that with a technical.  The reaction from the crown was primal as they booed him and took pleasure in watching the “T-hammer” come down. He’s Dallas’ crown jewel, but I just don’t like his style.

James Hardin came through with tricky, slicky lay-ups that brought the crowd to their feet on four different occasions. OKC fans yelled “Fear the Beard” as he ran down the court with a grin on his face.

The game was give and take, get ahead then fall behind, up and down the court for 48 solid minutes of team-on-team full body play.  But in the end, a beautiful and timeless moment in basketball sealed the win for the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The score was 102-101 in Dallas’ favor and the game was about to end.There was only 1.4 seconds left on the clock and people were putting on their coats to leave.  The Fans who headed for the exits will rue their decision for a long, long time.  When they thought the Oklahoma City Thunder had lost the game – they were wrong.

Kevin Durant “told Thabo [Sefolosha] to give [him] the ball.”  Durant, who now has more 30-point games than any player since the 2008-2009 season,  got the in-bounds pass, turned to his left, and planted a beautiful 3-point jump shot that drained the bucket in perfect fashion.

Yes, the crowd went wild. Yes, everybody danced. And that, my friends, was some drop. Dead. Gorgeous. Basketball.

I’m completely worn out – – and I love it!


 

Man Cave

So What If America Isn’t The Best At Everything?

Its Fourth of July weekend and we as Americans have so much to be thankful for in this great country of ours.  Despite our struggles and our differences, we still have our freedom and a way of life that is the envy of the rest of the world.  I for one firmly believe in the concept of American exceptionalism.

But just because we are exceptional as a country, does that mean all of our sports have to be exceptional as well?

Two weeks ago the media was gushing over Rory McIlroy’s performance at the US Open.  The so-called “experts” were heaping praise on McIlroy while simultaneously lamenting the demise of American golf.  “Where is the next great American golfer?” they wondered.  “Is America losing ground to the rest of the world?” was a question of much debate among golf writers and analysts.  Of course those conversations led to “is there an American kid out there who’s going to take over for Tiger?”It was one big pity party.  It couldn’t possibly be that the rest of the world is catching up, could it?  No, no something must be wrong with golf in this country.

If you’ve watched any tennis at Wimbledon over the last couple weeks, the conversation has been exactly the same.  Hosts, reporters, and commentators all emphasizing the downfall of American tennis and wondering if it will ever get back to the level it once was when names like McEnroe, Connors, Evert, Sampras, Agassi, and Williams carried the dialogue.

I’m as patriotic as the next guy, but this doesn’t bother me at all.

Continue reading So What If America Isn’t The Best At Everything? →

Man Cave

Let’s Not Get Greedy Thunder Fans

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Remember the best date you ever went on?  As the night grew late, and the hours slipped away, you knew it had to come to an end.  You held on as long as possible, maybe even talking in the driveway in your truck for another hour.  But eventually, you parted ways and there was that immediate feeling of disappointment that something so fun, and potentially so special, had to come to an end.

Well, Thunder fans, your team just treated you to the best season of your life.  Even a few days later, you’re still thinking about each incredible moment, every amazing victory, and how you just didn’t want it to end.  Naturally, you’ll also let your mind wander to what could have been.  The close calls, the near misses, and the wasted opportunities will replay in your mind again and again.

If only the date could keep going.  If only the Thunder could take the court one more time.

Harden is a consistent performer off the bench and key piece of the Thunder's future (courtesy fantasybasketballbreakdown.blogspot.com)

Trust me Thunder fans, momentary disappointment should soon give way to hopeful anticipation.  You can be upset at losing the series, maybe even a little angry at the inability of the Thunder to close out games in the fourth quarter.  You can question some of the shot selection and the plays drawn up in the final minutes of those nail-biting playoff losses.  It’s all part of the fan’s necessary healing process.

What you can’t do is call this team a bunch of underachievers.  In no way are you allowed to dwell on the negatives, when the positives are so blatantly overwhelming, and it’s definitely not okay for you to be calling for widespread changes to the roster or the coaching staff.

Look, in three short seasons, this franchise has put itself in a position no one thought possible.  From 23 wins in the first year, to the playoffs in the year two, and now a run all the way to the Western Conference Finals.  How could anyone possibly be upset with this progression?  How could anyone possibly think this team isn’t right on schedule?  Championships in professional sports take time.  Successful franchises are built one block at a time, and the process is usually much longer than three seasons.

 

Continue reading Let’s Not Get Greedy Thunder Fans →

Man Cave

Get Over Yourself Tulsa

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A few weeks ago, the Tulsa World published this article about how more Tulsans are embracing the Oklahoma City Thunder.  Overall, the tone of the article is positive.  It cites increasing ticket sales and rising TV ratings from the East side of the state.  However, if you read the article and read some of the comments, you’ll quickly realize just how ignorant, jealous and petty so many folks are about the Thunder bearing the name “Oklahoma City.”

Tulsans don't need to go to this extreme, but you get the idea. (courtesy bleacherreport.com)

I don’t want to admit this is true, but having lived in Tulsa for almost seven years now, there is an inferiority complex for too many people when it comes to competition with OKC.  These are the same imbeciles who need something to be offended by, something to rant about on sports radio, and who cling to the past like it’s keeping them alive.  The ridiculous sentiment of this pathetic crowd is, “They’re not the Oklahoma Thunder, so why should I care? They don’t market themselves to Tulsa or play games up here, so why I am going to support a team that doesn’t acknowledge me?”

Really?  Sometimes you people sound like too much like the kid who gets picked last for dodge ball.  Did you ever think it’s because maybe you’re not good enough?  Instead of whining and complaining just get better.

The BOK Center is a start, bust more downtown renewal must follow.

Let’s face facts here; Oklahoma City had a vision back in the mid-nineties.  The MAPS project was executed flawlessly and now OKC has transformed itself into a big league city that is deserving of a professional franchise.  Tulsa is a fantastic place to live, and offers plenty of things that OKC doesn’t, but it just isn’t on the same level when it comes to being ready for pro sports.  Sure, Tulsa has the BOK Center downtown.  It’s a beautiful facility and it’s a huge step in the right direction.  But Tulsa also has a city council that squabbles incessantly, excruciatingly slow development along the river, and surface streets that make this town the perfect place to open up your own alignment shop.  What takes Oklahoma City ten years seems to take Tulsa 25 years to accomplish.  Believe me, Tulsa is changing and improving, but it’s not there yet.

Continue reading Get Over Yourself Tulsa →