Wednesday Bolts – 8.26.09
Sports Business Journal looks at the affect of the Thunder on OKC’s minor league franchises: ”Oklahoma City, No. 3 in SportsBusiness Journal’s ranking of minor league markets in 2007, didn’t qualify for this year’s list. The reason? The arrival of the NBA Thunder in town last year put the city into 
the category of major league markets. Economically, there are many statistics in Oklahoma City’s favor. The local unemployment rate is lower than the national average, population has increased at double the rate of the increase seen in the minor league markets in our survey, and the amount of total personal income in the market has risen about 30 percent over five years, nearly double the national average. The past year, however, also brought the departure from Oklahoma City of the CHL Blazers. Despite being among the attendance leaders in all of minor league hockey for years, the team closed its doors this summer after a 17-year run, citing the economic downtown. Attendance for the AF2 Yard Dawgz was down this year, and the Class AAA RedHawks are posting lower numbers at AT&T Bricktown Ballpark this summer, as well.”
An EXCELLENT account from Barry Farms (h/t Martz): ”All summer long, I’ve heard rumors that Kevin Durant’s been playing down at Barry Farms. I’ve spent the previous 5 or 6 years talking about making a trip down there to see the legendary league for myself, but until this summer, I’d never been. Kevin Durant’s presence changed that. We’re talking about one of the 5 or 6 best basketball players on the planet, and the only person in the NBA with enough talent to perhaps lay claim to the throne that “King James” has occupied in such douchetastic fashion to this point. That a player of Durant’s stature would play in a summer league in his hometown says a lot about his character. Or more specifically, why he’s so awesome.”
Kyle Weaver is returning home to do a little work: “Oklahoma City Thunder guard and Beloit native Kyle Weaver is returning home to provide a special day for children and families in Beloit. On Saturday, August 29th Weaver will kick off Weaver of Dreams Day by providing a free basketball camp for 100 boys and girls from the area at Beloit Memorial High School’s Barkin Arena from 9 AM until noon. When camp breaks Weaver will head over to distribute a box of food and personal care items to 400 children and families from the Beloit area.”
PBN’s look at the top 20 power forward and Uncle Jeff checks in at No. 13: “Although teammate Kevin Durant stole 
the show at the U.S. Olympic trials, Green got rave reviews, too. Anyone who watches him appreciates his feel for the game, and turning into a 40 percent 3-point shooter really expands his repertoire. If that wasn’t a fluke — it likely wasn’t — he’s a candidate to break out after averaging 17 points and seven boards in just his second season.”
A nice feature from NBA.com on the Thunder’s long-term plans: ”This summer wasn’t about fireworks in Oklahoma City. There wasn’t a big, splashy trade or head-turning free-agent signing to be made by a franchise with the ability to do both. No big-name coach burst through the door ready to turn the whole thing around. But to assert that all was quiet on the prairie isn’t fair. The Thunder front office is working. A plan is in place to build a Playoff contender. You’ve just got to listen.”
More on KD’s performance from Barry Farms: “Durant finishes w/ a double nickel. Won’t be his last–at the farms, in the league, whatever. He’s no joke. (And lanky as hell in person).”
Chris Mannix of SI has his first power rankings out: “No. 20 Oklahoma City – On paper, OKC looks to be a year or two away from contending for the playoffs. But don’t rule it out: Kevin Durant has two years of experience as a No. 1 option, Russell Westbrook looked phenomenal at the USA Basketball camp and smooth rookie James Harden should contribute immediately at shooting guard, a team weakness last season. Whether the Thunder can hold their own on the interior remains to be seen.”
Russell Westbrook just missed the cut for the top five point guards in the league.
NBA.com has Kevin Durant’s top 10 plays from last year:
Just 63 more days until the Thunder kicks off its second season. But the good news is, just 10 days until college football.
Durant’s dunks are almost anti-climactic because it is just too easy for him to dunk with those long arms.
Wow, that crossover dunk on the Raps was sick. How have I not seen that before?
I think it’s hilarious to see the national media turning on LeBron so quick. Sam Smith did a little piece on MJ’s rookie season the other day and somehow worked in a swipe at King James in the process.
It’s also great to see them all bend over backwards to praise Durant. How lucky are we? Also interesting to see that a lot of the things Smith praised Jordan for (things like always showing up in preseason games and all-star games, knowing that he had to put on a show for the fans that expected to see greatness) can be attributed to Durant in a way, too (blowing up people at Barry Farms, dominating at the USA camps, etc).
@dylan
I don’t think any of us realize how lucky we are yet when it comes to being able to watch Kevin Durant (hopefully) play for our team and be the upstanding young man who represents our franchise and our city for the next decade plus.
We may not even be able to fully appreciate it until we can look back in twenty years and understand that we got to root for and support one of the best to ever play the game.
Did you guys see the report that Rubio just signed with Regal Barcelona…6 yr deal with possibility of getting out in 2011. So if he is the greatest PG of all-time, at least we won’t have to watch him until we are (hopefully) a playoff team in two years.
@Alex
I have never been happier with James Harden.
@Alex
Where’s that report from? If it’s from one of the Spanish newspapers, proceed with caution, they’re notoriously unreliable.
Or Sam Presti! Whooo hooo!
@KingGondo
Still, it’s nice to know where we stand with Harden instead waiting around for this teenager to make up his mind.
From Baseline:
UPDATE: According to Yahoo! Sports’ Adrian Wojnarowski, there isn’t a done deal yet. Via Wojnarowski’s Twitter account: “There is no deal done with Regal Barcelona for Ricky Rubio, a source with dorect knowledge tells Y! Sports”.
That dunk on O’Neal isn’t have as good as the happy look on Joe Smith’s face immediately after. That cracked me up!
I’m thrilled with Harden, but I can’t be too hard on Rubio. Obviously, the buyout would have been expensive if he’d been the first pick in the draft, and with an NBA team only able to pickup $500k of the tab, staying in Europe was the smart financial move.
From a basketball standpoint, who would want to play for Minny? They’ve come out and said they’re writing this year off. We all know this happens – just like when the Thunder dealt Ray and Rashard – but nobody is stupid enough to say it. And while I certainly don’t understand a lot about how long the T-wolves retain his rights, I thought I heard it was two years, which would be 2011 – exactly when he’s supposedly able to get out of this contract with Barcelona.
@MartzMimic
I wonder if it weren’t for the buyout, would Rubio be another Eli Manning or John Elway? It’s highly convenient that his contract will end just as Minn loses his rights.
And just FYI for everyone: Marca is considered an absolute rag in Spain, and is prone to reporting the slightest rumor as fact.
And now that they burned ESPN (Sportscenter on the radio was reporting the Barcelona rumor earlier), I doubt we’ll be getting much of their BS reported anytime soon.
Am I correct in thinking Minny has Rubio’s rights for the next 2 seasons then they lose them without future draft or salary cap compensation?
I still think Minny wasted an opportunity to get two future starters out of the draft. We did it w/ KD & JG and that turned out well, though they were 2&5 and have more talent than what was available at 5&6 this year. Either way, top-10 picks are valuable and shouldn’t be wasted on a long-shot signing.
Glad we took Harden.
Oh and thanks again to Portland for drafting Oden. KD blew up the 2nd half of last season and he impressed Team USA and now Barry Farms. He’s gonna have a killer season. Patiently waiting for the season to start.
@JelloPuddinPup
Joe Smith looked alot like Charlie Murphy in that shot after KD dunked on O’Neal.
@Dooney
LMFAO!!!!!