I’ll be honest. I really, really wanted to avoid having this discussion.
Not because I’m afraid of the discussion it’ll start or because I have some weird love affair with Jeff Green. (Though I really do love the guy.) It’s just something you’d rather not have to talk about. In some ways, it’s good because that means that Serge Ibaka is playing fantastic basketball and could possibly be worthy of starting.
But the other side is, that means that Jeff Green hasn’t played well enough to keep that starting spot. That means Green goes to the bench and the Thunder rotation really gets a complete makeover. Which is something we’re not used to, seeing how the same starting five played in 76 of the 82 games last season.
But the question is just unavoidable now. Oklahoma City is 3-0 with Ibaka starting and after his career-high 22 points to go with 11 rebounds and four blocks against the Jazz Monday night, Ibaka has forced his way into the discussion. I mean, with that jumpshot, those athletic abilities and that size, Ibaka is nearly a perfect, prototypical starting power forward. Which is what we all want, right? Plus, he’s not even begun to scratch what he can be.
So who should start the remaining 72 games? Jeff Green or Serge Ibaka? Read more…
Well all knew it probably wouldn’t happen. But with Sam Presti, you never can tell. However, Jeff Green won’t be getting a contract extension before Nov. 1 meaning that he’ll become a restricted free agent next summer.
The two sides had quality negotiations and good talks, but as the time got closer to actually hammer out something specific, it kind of all fell apart.
“Signing a player to an extension is certainly a positive, but has become more unique,” Presti told The Oklahoman. “We explored the concept and had positive dialogue, but we will have to re-visit the discussions in the future. As we have consistently stated, drafting Jeff in 2007 and watching his development over the last three seasons has furthered our appreciation for his team-driven contributions on and off the floor.”
Green said he’s happy this out in the open so now he can move on and hopefully will stop getting questions on it.
So how’s this sit with you? Do you think Green should’ve been extended? Is this smart? My feeling is that it’s a very Presti-ish move not to extend Green because with the new CBA coming and the potential for players in Green’s salary bracket to get their money dropped significantly, Oklahoma City might be saving some good money here. Plus, now Jeff Green has got to prove his worth, something he really hasn’t done yet. Monetary motivation is always a good thing. Read more…
Last night against Charlotte, Jeff Green went 9-14 from the floor and 5-7 from 3. He finished with 25 points and it was one of those nights where Uncle Jeff can show off how good he can be offensively.
In his notes, Darnell Mayberry talked about how it was a one-or-the-other type performance from Green, with Uncle Jeff either chucking a 3 or driving to the rim. All the in-between, mid-range stuff didn’t work. And Mayberry wondered what Green’s career looked like from mid-range. So I looked it up.
AT RIM
<10 FEET
10-15 FEET
16-23 FEET
THREES
2008
61.0
43.0
26.0
32.0
27.6
2009
61.0
40.0
39.0
32.0
38.9
2010
64.6
48.2
32.4
33.0
33.3
TOTAL
62.2
43.7
32.5
32.3
34.8
It’s pretty obvious that on long 2s, Uncle Jeff isn’t good. A long 2-pointer is the worst shot in basketball, but it doesn’t mean it’s always a bad one. Sometimes you’re open. But for Green, a player like kind of likes to hover around the 3-point line, settling for that long 2 instead of maybe driving or going into the post, isn’t the smartest thing.
Well this is the end of our five part look into the things I’d personally like to see happen next season for the Thunder. Much like the previous four installments, this one has been a hot button issue for the fan base and I suspect it will continue to be until the players involved settle the debate organically by how they play.
But without further ado, here is Part V…
I want to see Serge Ibaka emerge as the Thunder’s starting PF.
I know a lot of people are going to see this as a shot at Jeff Green and it’s not. Not at all. The fact of the matter is that I have always and will always continue to believe that Jeff Green has a very important role for this team and the Thunder franchise (and yes, that role is on the court and not some weird KD BFF or “calming presence in the locker room” nonsense. Jeff Green is better than you probably think he is, trust me).
Now obviously I’m not one of the people who want Green dealt or dream up trades where somehow he gets traded for an All-Star caliber PF despite those very same people saying he stinks and somehow equating “stinky player + picks or expiring contracts” = “trading for an All-Star PF.” Fuzzy math is fun, just not very logical. Read more…
He was always on the bubble, but even with all the big man injury issues, it looks like Jeff Green won’t be making the final 12-man roster for Team USA.
Green didn’t play at all in today’s scrimmage against China and as Chris Sheridan of ESPN reported, didn’t make himself available to the media and also didn’t appear to feature his normally outgoing personality.
When Green was asked by Chris Tomasson of Fanhouse where he stood, he said, “Ask coach. I’m not the guy to answer that question.” Green also said that he’d be willing to travel to Turkey even if he’s not one of the final 12.
One underrated thing behind this is that this could be a nice kick in the pants for Green and extra motivation going into a pretty significant year for him. On a squad that is desperate for a big man and inside help, Green couldn’t make the cut. Now that’s saying something. Read more…
Team USA announced its 15-man roster that will head to training camp in New York August 10-16 and among the 15 were Thunder players Kevin Durant, Jeff Green and Russell Westbrook.
Westbrook and Durant really were never in doubt for this first cut, but Green may have been a bubble guy. Coach K said of Green, “It’s one of the reasons he’s still one of the 15 is because of his versatility.” Team USA has been hit with a ton of misfortune on the inside with Amar’e Stoudemire having to leave because of insurance issues, Robin Lopez because of a bad back, David Lee because of a broken finger and even Brook Lopez is battling mono. So Green’s ability to flex between positions surely helped.
Oklahoma City has more players on the team than anyone else and Coach K was extremely complimentary of the group saying, “They are the kind of guys that work hard, want to win and just have great attitudes.”
Jerry Colangelo indicated that they may take more than 12 after the New York training camp and use some extra time to narrow down the final 12. He also said that as of right now, probably eight or nine guys are locks.
There’s two contrasting thoughts typically around NBA fan circles about what role Team USA can play on that fan’s team. These thoughts usually depend entirely on what happens to the players from that fan’s team while they are representing their country, positively or negatively.
Thought A is that the risk versus reward is too great and that only bad can come from it. These are the fans who claim that any actual basketball development or improvement while playing with the Team USA squad and coaching staff will be so negligible that the risk for injury and/or the non-rest that these players experience during the off-season puts them in an unfavorable position heading into the season. They’re either going to be too tired and a little worn down from the games and practices during a time that they are typically resting and recuperating from a long season, thereby making them more susceptible to picking up nagging injuries or to suffer from fatigue earlier in the 82 game haul than usual, or they will actually enter training camp with an injury/still trying to fully recover from one and that hampers their ability to enter the new season in top form.
Thought B is that risk for injuries or exhaustion is minimal for a Team USA player in the contrasting context of an 82 game season whereas the experience of playing with some of your country’s best players/coaches, especially for younger players, can act as a springboard to an entirely different level of mental development as well as physical/basketball skill growth. In other words, risk of injury is a part of basketball so unless a player is known to be somewhat brittle, what’s the difference between them playing a pickup game on asphalt or at an NBA team’s training facility versus playing with Team USA, especially since a few months of games and practices is nothing compared to the 9 months of night in, night out basketball grind that the players go through during an NBA season?
For me, both sides have their points and ultimately it comes down to just one simple thing in terms of the fans’ perspective (after all, for the players this is really about representing your country and wearing that jersey with pride and honor…but NBA fans usually aren’t nearly as worried about that part).
That one thing is this: Will there actually be development and improvement? Read more…
(Please welcome new DT contributor, Patrick James. Patrick is a Thunder season ticket holder and about as die hard a fan as you’ll come across. Plus, he’s really smart. So that’s good. He’s going to contribute some columns here, which I’m excited about. He starts out the way any Thunder fan should – by expressing slightly awkward man love for KD and Uncle Jeff.)
Kevin and Jeff,
Let’s go ahead and hit the pause button and keep it pressed down, because this is pretty much a love letter to you guys. Thunder fans want you to stay. We want to grow old with you.
We love you, men.
You ARE the Thunder, along with the core group of your teammates who took us for a joyride last season that ended only minutes from May. More than that, you ARE basketball in Oklahoma City. We had a fling with the Chris Paul and the Hornets during their stay, but it becomes clearer with each passing day that the best gift they gave us was the possibility of you. We showed everyone we could be an NBA city, we voted to pay for the arena and renovate it ourselves to show our commitment capacity, and the basketball gods delivered us the team we want to … marry? Read more…
When the Thunder have only one shot to take, obviously they look for Kevin Durant to take that shot. He’s, at minimum, the second best player in the NBA right now, and according to the rankings the league’s best scorer. Unfortunately, every team the Thunder plays knows he’s option 1 and 1A and therefore do everything in their power to deny him the ball. In the end, he either gets the ball somewhere close to half court where he still has to take the shot with a hand in his face. And if that doesn’t work, Russell Westbrook or Thabo Sefolosha, who aren’t exactly snipers in the easiest of circumstances, wind up taking the games biggest shot.
Not surprisingly, the Thunder are 7-10 in games decided by three points or less.
Maybe Scott Brooks should be drawing up plays to put the game in the hands of option #22…mainly because Jeff Green has actually proved he will come through. Last season, he banked home a win against Golden State. This season, with bigger stakes, he has had even bigger moments. Who can forget Green’s performance against the Hawks on Martin Luther King Day? His clutch dunk and incredible block sealed the victory over one of the Eastern Conference’s best teams on their home floor. Soon after, it was another huge defensive play by Green that saved the Thunder from an embarrassing defeat against Minnesota.
When the pressure is on, Uncle Jeff is the man you can count on. That was never clearer than Tuesday night in Utah. Even after Kevin Durant shot the team back into the game, it was Green who drilled the three pointer that tied it in regulation. Then, with five seconds left in OT, Green banked home a runner to give the team a (brief) one point lead. I was so pumped I re-wrote a classic song in his honor. Check it out after the jump.
“This is a great city to play in. The basketball atmosphere is great, and it’s a great place to raise a family. So I wouldn’t mind.”
Honestly, Green’s contract situation is probably the most underrated, underdiscussed thing about this summer. More than likely Durant’s extension will directly influence Green’s. I would assume, the more Durant gets, the less Green does.
Now obviously Uncle Jeff isn’t going to get paid like KD. The question is, what’s a fair extension for Green? In his third year, his numbers dipped some from last season, but his team is playing much, much better and he’s a large part of that. Especially as of late in February and March, where he’s picked up his game some. Some have asked what a proper extension would be is. I’m thinking in the area of $7-9M a year is acceptable, especially in the new NBA economy. If Green were up for an extension three years ago, he’d probably have gotten a bigger number. But the cap is set to drop and mid-level players are going to start making less.
Obviously you don’t want to lose him, but you also don’t want to get roped into overpaying and saddling yourself with a potentially bad contract (see: Aldridge, LaMarcus). Green is an extremely valuable piece to the Thunder with his glue guyness, his strong leadership and the chemistry he ties the team together with. You absolutely don’t want to lose him. He’s part of the long term plans for this franchise and part of what’s working right now. I think it would be wise to make a strong effort to keep him, and by the way it sounds, he wants to.
Oklahoma City forward Kevin Durant, forward Jeff Green and guard Russell Westbrook all appeared on the 2010 NBA All-Star Ballot that was unveiled today during a special tip-off event in Dallas, the Official Host City of NBA All-Star 2010.
There are several ways Thunder fans can cast their votes for Durant, Green and Westbrook. Voting will take place at all Thunder home contests at the Ford Center beginning this Sunday, November 15 vs. L.A. Clippers all the way through Oklahoma City’s matchup with Indiana on January 9. The Thunder trio can also be voted in via online balloting at thunder.nba.com which begins immediately and will conclude on January 18.
For the first time in balloting history, fans can vote for All-Stars any time by texting a player’s last name to 6-9-6-2-2 (“MYNBA”), via Web2Go® on T-Mobile phones or wap.nba.com for any wireless carrier. Fans can cast one SMS vote per day, per phone number.
Votevotevotevote. Or you know what happens to you. KD can already probably punch his ticket, but it would be nice to get a second player there. Rise together (see what I did there?) and let’s get our players to Dallas.
(Good morning faithful friends. Thanks for reading Daily Thunder. Have a bagel.)
If you’re at all bummed from last night’s lackluster performance, have no fear. I have your cure. I’ve watched this six times already. I can’t get enough of it. I love seeing players acting like themselves. And their age too. I keep laughing to myself thinking of these three choreographing the routine though. Did they practice? Did they script it out? Was it really just an improvisation? Whatever the case, I freaking love it. Enjoy.
One major wish I had for James Harden was for him to fit in. Jeff Green, Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant are already best buds, so with Harden coming in, he needed to crack the clique. Why I thought he wouldn’t, I’ll never know.
But a good example of how these guys are bonding and/or bonded popped up in the form of some video game smack talk last night on Twitter. It started with Harden talking a little junk. “About to smack @kevindurant35 in madden then @russwest44 in 2k9.” Two different games, two different showdowns. I’m sure the stakes are high when these guys are playing. From what I hear, Westbrook can talk some pretty mean trash.
But evidently it didn’t go so well for Harden. Said Durant: “Jus smacked @jhard13 n madden…35-14…he’s a bum!!! @russwest44 is next.” Ouch. If they were playing the traditional five minute quarters, 35 points is a lot to give up. Who was Harden’s defensive coordinator, Bill Young? (I kid, I kid.)
But Russ didn’t fare too well against the buzzsaw that is Kevin Durant. “Jus beat @russwest44 in madden 21-zilch.” So Durant is 2-0 with wins against both. He’s given up just 14 points in two games and has outscored his opponents 49-14. I’d say he’s doing pretty good. He’s the clear favorite here. But there was a rematch and Westbrook got the best of KD. “Yoooo im soooo heated i lost to @russwest44…he playing @jhard13 now its 7-0, i got next.” Said Westbrook:“I CANT LOSEE IN ANY GAME……..ASK @kevindurant35 and @jhard13 im tooo nice.” Evidently Russ forgot about their first meeting… Read more…
We took a look at a list of goals for the entire Thunder team a couple weeks ago. But let’s get detailed. Let’s get specific. I’m going to dig in and hit on some individual goals for a few players that would define a successful season. So what meters for success should we set for Uncle Jeff Green?
25 double-doubles. This number may be a wee bit high. Last season, he recorded 11. But that’s with 20 games or so at small forward where he had far less opportunity to board. Green isn’t a bad rebounder by any means (6.7 a game last season), but he’s not great either. The Thunder is missing a guy that can put up consistent double-doubles and Green is the best candidate. He’ll see the minutes, he’s in the position and he’s got the ability. It’s just a matter of him getting it done. Read more…
(What’s happening party people? Who is ready to watch some bodies smash together and people get knocked down? I know I am. Thank you for your continued support of Daily Thunder. Shine on you crazy diamonds.)
While I was flipping around on the Internet looking for a good cartoon for this lovely college football Saturday, I stumbled across this one. And while I’ve seen it probably 50 times and it’s awesome every time, I just had to post it. I’m super psyched about college football kicking off today. It’s been the sport we’ve all looked forward to in this state for… well, forever. But this video reminded me how much I love the NBA now and this team and while college football is incredibly awesome in its own right, I’m still freaking fired up about the start of the Thunder’s season. Mainly, because I know we’re going to get a few moments like this.
Larry W. Smith/NBAE/Getty Images
