The OKC Thunder Experience

Sports have always held a special place in my heart. Growing up, my dad would have New York Mets and Jets games on around the house and each week we looked forward to watching games together. It really bonded us and I’ve always enjoyed that.

Later in life, when my health took a turn, sports were there for me in a major way. My days were spent in the pediatrics floor of Memorial Sloan Kettering receiving chemo. Just me in a bed, hoping to drown out the noise of screaming children who don’t know what the hell is going on. It was scary, chaotic and stressful. But I could always count on watching the previous night’s games and favorite sports talk shows to distract and entertain me. It also gave me something to talk about with friends besides cancer. Even after treatment, sports have kept me sane amidst all the isolation of being home on medical leave.

What I love most about sports are the stories. All it takes is knowing what to pay attention to. My wife would never tune into a game voluntarily, but once I fill her in on drama like “that guy was just traded from this other team and it’s revenge game!” or watch these players square off against each other - they’re both considered the best in the league and there’s lots of ego at stake” she’ll grab a seat with her popcorn in no time.

Perhaps the most entertaining story from my sports fan experience centers around a team based in a city that’s normally well below the radar. The Oklahoma City Thunder. Here’s how it all went down…

BACKSTORY

First you’ll notice I didn’t mention my dad had Knicks games on. He was always more of a football and baseball guy, and my love for the NBA all started with a birthday gift. An old childhood friend (shoutout to Mike Parish) bought me a poster of Shawn Kemp in the ‘91 slam dunk contest. The image left me awestruck as Kemp defied gravity and while other kids flocked to Jordan, Shawn Kemp aka The Reign Man became my super hero of choice. I was now a Seattle Supersonics fan.

The Sonics were a fun squad to support. I loved their name, colors and former athletes, like Kemp, Gary Payton, Detlef Schrempf, Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis… But since the mid-90s, they hadn’t fared much more success than the Mets or Jets and I was getting used to cheering for teams that seemed destined for perpetual mediocrity.

HITTING THE JACKPOT

Finally, Seattle caught a lucky break. In 2007, the Sonics landed the #2 draft pick, the same year there had been an awful lot of hype about an up and comer out of Texas University named Kevin Durant. NBA guru, Bill Simmons, who literally wrote the book on basketball , seemed EXTRA excited about this guy so I knew KD would be special. The thing was, there were two prospects battling for the first pick which belonged to the Portland Trailblazers: Kevin and Greg Oden, and we had no idea how it would play out. Either way it seemed Sonics fans were in good shape but secretly I wanted to the guy Simmons was buying stock in.

I could barely wait for draft day. The suspense was killing me as I held my breath and awaited my fate. Then, finally, after what seemed like ENDLESS commercial breaks, I heard the magical phrase, “With the #1 pick in the 2007 NBA draft, the Portland Trailblazers select Greg…”

And that’s when I knew it. Portland bet on Oden, which paved the way for Seattle to draft KD. There was such joy in that moment. I almost couldn’t believe it. The Sonics had landed a true franchise game changer and potential hall of famer.

This was going to be new for me and all very exciting. Until literally the next year, major news rocked the basketball world. Business man Clay Bennett had purchased the team from current owner/Starbucks CEO, Howard Schultz, and Bennett was relocating my beloved Supersonics to… Oklahoma City as the Thunder.

Like many others, I felt betrayed and thought to myself, “What the hell? Oklahoma?” Seattle was a gritty west coast team with a loyal fan base and rich sense of history. I wasn’t sure about this OKC business, but had already emotionally committed so much to Durant that I couldn’t abandon ship.

Sticking with them paid off quickly. The Thunder began adding crazy pieces left and right - Russell Westbrook, James Harden and Serge Ibaka… By 2012 they had already beaten Kobe’s Lakers and the machine-like Spurs to make the Finals. Perhaps most impressive, was the incredible team chemistry. Between Westbrook, Durant and Harden, we were witnessing THREE future league MVPs and Olympic gold medalists playing together. This was unprecedented talent- almost like a band having Lennon, McCartney and George Harrison…

What a different feeling for me as a fan. It seemed GM Sam Presti could do no wrong and everyone loved this young squad of assassins. Not only super talented, they were cool, likeable guys… The type you WANT on your team.

LOSING THE BEARD

The Thunder were defeated by LeBron and Wade that year but seemed destined to be the team to beat in the coming decade. They had about 3-4 guys that could easily be the best player on another team once they matured.

Then, in what would foreshadow the general theme of OKC fandom - as soon as you got your hopes up, something went wrong.

I remember meeting my wife for sushi. We were having a pleasant, uneventful day… When suddenly, my phone started buzzing and I learned our up and coming star James Harden had been traded to the Houston Rockets for Kevin Martin, Jeremy Lamb and 2 draft picks…It was utterly shocking. What the hell was going on? They had a winning formula. Why mess with success? Because of the salary cap/luxury tax? Come on!

Aside from the loss of talent, I loved Harden. He was “The Beard!”

It was a rough loss and over the years, Thunder fans watched Harden evolve into of the greatest players in the league while Kevin Martin & Jeremy Lamb… Well, didn’t exactly pan out for us. (To be fair, OKC used a draft pick to get fan-favorite Steven Adams who, while he didn’t make up for Harden, was a great addition. )

Following Harden’s departure, the next few years were disappointing as Westbrook and Durant each sat out with injuries and precious years of OKC’s contention window were wasted.

The GAME FROM HELL

Then came 2016. Oh 2016… A year I could’ve done without. The chaos started when I was diagnosed with osteosarcoma and had to come to terms with my entire world being shattered. It hit me out of nowhere and was every bit as terrifying as you can imagine. But at least I had a good thing going with the Thunder’s season to distract me… I thought.

It really felt like this could be the year. Westbrook and Durant had hit their stride; Russ would lead the pack with his high octane intensity and KD was a bonafide superstar- someone you could count on to single handedly win a game and hit clutch shots. But as the playoffs unfolded, 2016 became the postseason that broke OKC nation’s collective hearts. To the average fan, the playoff series against the Warriors might be considered a classic. To an OKC fan, it was pure torture.

The Thunder had been cruising along in the playoffs, beating the Grizzlies and Spurs. Then it was time for Golden State Warriors who had won an NBA record 73 games during the regular season. Regardless, Durant & Co started off strong, finding themselves up 3 games to 1 against the Warriors. And it was at this point, a mere win away from returning to the Finals, where we all watched Klay Thompson have one of the greatest postseason performances of all time. He became a man possessed and refused to accept any notion of defeat. Everything went to slow motion as this stone cold killer made an endless barrage of three pointers, crushing our souls.

The playoffs are ALL about confidence and momentum. When you have your foot on the opponent’s throat you have to finish the job. And the Thunder just couldn’t get it done. Durant and Westbrook tightened up. Nothing was working. Meanwhile, the Warriors found their mojo and stole the series. It was one of those ‘Don’t talk to me about basketball for a while’ moments.

LOYALTY & BETRAYAL

As Thunder fans licked our wounds and tried to hide the overwhelming disappointment from our minds, there was another storyline we couldn’t avoid. KD’s contract was up and he was free to sign with another team. Despite all the rumors, I always expected him to resign with OKC. Just a few years earlier during his MVP acceptance speech, KD addressed his teammates with tears and love. It was one of the most heartfelt, moving speeches I’d ever seen.

But on July 5th, my phone buzzed again and just like the Harden news a few years earlier, the update hit me like a ton of bricks. Kevin Durant had signed with none other than the Golden State Warriors. The very same team he JUST blew the series against.

Cue the following: “Are you shitting me? Durant went where!? What a spineless traitor! He didn’t even play well against them! Wasn’t it kind of on him to close the deal??” My blood boiled as I came to terms with losing the man who brought endless highs and game winning shots my way over the years. This was a crushing blow.

But life went on and even though the team was much less competitive, we still had Russell Westbrook, one of the most entertaining and athletically gifted players of all time. Russ was a tornado on the court, inspiring everyone around him with endless energy and a fiery competitive spirit. When he ultimately resigned with OKC - especially after Durant left - it warmed our hearts like none other. He easily could have signed with another team that had a better chance at winning a title. This was TRUE LOYALTY and while it couldn’t make up for the loss of KD, Russ resigning was a beautiful moment in OKC history. The Thunder still weren’t a serious threat as contenders, but Westbrook’s presence offered a foundation to which they could attract more talent and rebuild something special.

As the years went on, OKC held strong the best they could. At the very least, Westbrook’s triple double show was always worth the price of admission. But the Thunder weren’t satisfied with their middle of the road status. Presti worked his magic with a high risk trade for Paul George that caught the entire league by surprise.

ONE LAST SHOT

PG was an all-star caliber player and TERRIFIC acquisition. The catch was he had only one year left on his contract and had been quite vocal about his intention of playing in LA, where he grew up. This meant OKC had essentially traded valuable long term assets for a rental.

Presti famously referenced A Tribe Called Quest claiming, “scared money don’t make none”. The plan was for OKC to win George over throughout the season and then convince him to resign long term. Even though it seemed like a long shot, watching Russ team with PG would at least make for a fun season. And riding the momentum, future hall of famer Carmelo Anthony soon followed George’s lead to the Thunder… Just like that, OKC were true contenders again.

Unfortunately, as the season went on Anthony looked awful and threw off the team chemistry. OKC was quickly eliminated in the first round in the playoffs. Now fans would have to wait on Paul George, who was a free agent, to decide our collective fate. Would this be a KD situation all over again? That’s pretty much what I prepared for.

This time, however, the unexpected took place in a positive way. There was an Instagram video showing a house party hosted by Russell Westbrook. It looked fancy. Somehow he had convinced rap legend NaS to come and perform… And there was Paul George! He was standing next to Russ. There were cigars, both looked happy… Something was happening here… And then PG announced the unthinkable had taken place. A small market team like OKC had convinced a top free agent to sign long term. This just hasn’t been done as all too often players would prioritize cities with big business or great weather like Los Angelos, Miami or New York.

OKC Nation was riding high again! We had our dynamic duo of Russ and PG, they seemed like besties, and all was right with the world. The following season, as the Warriors and KD dominated the league, many insiders even pointed to OKC as one of a few teams with the defensive prowess to stop them.

Once all the Thunder’s new faces got more comfortable playing with one another, they began to dominate the league. It was all coming together nicely. Then suddenly, Andre Roberson - the defensive anchor who made everyones’ lives easier on the court, had a freak injury. He was done for the season and the loss instantly sucked the life out of everyone. They could no longer muster up the same intensity and were defeated in the first round of the playoffs yet again.

The Roberson injury didn’t help, but many felt the root of OKC’s problem could be attributed to Westbrook’s decision making. He was clearly a necessary ingredient to the team’s success, but struggled at taking a more passive role late in games. Russ just couldn’t seem to stop himself from taking low percentage shots - one after the next - and after years of the same repeated patterns, the sports media world seemed to have given up on his ability to win it all. It seemed Paul George agreed because just a few weeks ago, he demanded a trade and immediately parted ways. Last year’s summer festivities now a distant memory.

TO BE CONTINUED

With PG gone, Russ understandably didn’t want to waste the rest of his career in a rebuild situation. It was time to move on and Presti worked with Westbrook to trade him to his preferred destination where he’ll rejoin James Harden in Houston. As a fan, I was very pleased to see Presti do right by Westbrook. The NBA is a business and history has shown us GMs don’t always care to make their stars happy on the way out. But Russ had done so much for the franchise and deserved to be taken care of.

Of course it’s disappointing the Thunder didn’t win a championship, but all those years- from drafting KD until the end when Russ was traded- brought so much joy my way… It was exhilarating at times. Definitely frustrating at times. But throughout it all, NEVER boring. For now, I can’t wait to see what Presti does next, and in the meantime I’ll focus on healing as much as possible. Fighting cancer is incredibly overwhelming so I take things one day at a time and hopefully I’ll be better than ever before I know it. Just like OKC’s next generation. Here’s to great rebuilds.