OKC Topic Thunder

An OKC Thunder Podcast & Blogsite

Pistons vs. Thunder Preview (Preseason Game 1)

Posted on October 3, 2018 by Alex Roig

Pistons_logo_new

When: Wednesday, 03 October 2018 at 7:00 pm CST
Where: Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, OK
TV: None (Streamed at OKCThunder.com and the Thunder app)
Radio: WWLS The Sports Animal (98.1 FM, 640 AM, 930 AM (Spanish))
Line: -4.5 OKC

A journey has to start somewhere. And for the Oklahoma City Thunder, their journey into the 2018-19 season starts tonight. Thankfully, it’s at the Chesapeake Energy Arena in front of what should be a raucous home crowd. The Detroit Pistons come into town looking to kick-start their preseason docket of five games, and bring with them a pair of familiar faces. While Reggie Jackson will likely illicit some boos from the crowd, hometown boy Blake Griffin should receive the opposite. Continue reading →

Thunder At A Glance – 03 October 2018

Posted on October 3, 2018 by Alex Roig

Guess what, Thunder fans???? It’s Game Day!!!!!

Chris Munch (OKC Thunder Wire) on what could have been if Carmelo Anthony would have stayed: “While this might be the politically correct way answer to the question, P.G.’s belief that Melo was a positive on their roster is an interesting thought given all the advanced analytics saying otherwise.”

Grant Afseth (OKC Thunder Wire) on the Thunder’s transition this preseason from Russell Westbrook to Dennis Schroder: “His ability just to read the different screens, and not just read them but set up his man, if that makes sense,” Adams said. “It’s a big difference that I notice in guards that know how to use pick-and-rolls.” Continue reading →

Thunder At A Glance – 01 October 2018

Posted on October 1, 2018 by Alex Roig

Check out the inaugural episode of the Topic: Thunder Podcast, featuring myself, Anthony Montero, Dylan Huntzinger, Stephen Dolan, and Matthew Mullins, where we discuss the first week of training camp and the upcoming preseason games.

Nick Gallo (OKCThunder.com) recaps the Blue and White scrimmage: “Along the perimeter, during the Thunder’s annual Blue & White Scrimmage on Sunday, Schröder had a menu full of options. Paul George, the dynamic All-Star forward, was moving in and out of positions along the wing, curling around screens and finding openings to receiving passes. Trailing in transition or spotting up in the corner was Patrick Patterson. The burly yet deft Steven Adams was barreling down the middle of the lane presenting a wide target. Schröder hit them all, aiding the White squad in a blowout victory over four quarters against the Blue team.” Continue reading →

Thunder At A Glance – 26 September 2018

Posted on September 26, 2018 by Alex Roig

Erik Horne (NewsOK) on the prowess of Dennis Schröder in the pick and roll and an update on Andre Roberson: “When Thunder post-practice opened to the media, Roberson was in a rotation of wing players taking catch-and-shoot 3-pointers off passes from team assistants. It wasn’t a lot of movement, but when the drill was finished, Roberson chased after a ball without running and even gave it a few kicks before corralling it.”

Grant Afseth (OKC Thunder Wire) on how the bench role could help Schröder: “The top area where Schröder will make an impact for Oklahoma City will be with his playmaking and ability to run an offense. The Thunder are used to having a high-usage guard like Westbrook in their starting unit as their focal point, and they haven’t had someone on their bench to lean on in a similar fashion. That’s where Schröder comes into play.” Continue reading →

Thunder At A Glance – 25 September 2018

Posted on September 25, 2018 by Alex Roig

All the player interviews from media day spliced together in podcast format. Enjoy!

Royce Young (ESPN) on the lack of uncertainty surrounding Paul George and the Thunder this season: “Absolutely,” Paul George told ESPN when asked if the Thunder are built to contend. “We’ve got the chemistry. Me being around these guys going on about to be two years now, there’s an expectation and a level we know we need to play at. I think the consistency part you’ll see with us now being able to play well against the sub-.500 teams. But I definitely think this team has a chance. The reason why I signed back here is because I believed in it. And everybody in here believes. It’s on us, we’ve got our work cut out and it’s not going to be easy, but we’re up for it.” Continue reading →

Thunder At A Glance – 17 September 2018

Posted on September 17, 2018 by Alex Roig

Grant Afseth (OKC Thunder Wire) looks at 6 adjustments the Thunder will need to make if Russell Westbrook misses any time in the regular season: “It’s important to note that many backup point guards are not used to shouldering a high usage rate but that isn’t the case with Schröder. He had a 30.5 percent usage rate last season and has had a usage rate above 27 percent for four consecutive seasons.”

A sneak peak at the Jordan Why Not Zer0.1 University Reds (via Sneaker News). Continue reading →

Weekend Programming

Posted on September 15, 2018 by Alex Roig

Happy 25th birthday to the Thunder’s starting point guard….hopefully only just during the preseason. Here’s to a future 6th Man of the Year award for this man.

ThunderChats Podcast – Westbrook Surgery & New Jerseys

Posted on September 13, 2018 by Dylan Huntzinger

thunder chats Dylan Huntzinger returns with another ThunderChats podcast. On this episode, Dylan discusses the following topics:

Westbrook’s surgery
Is it time to panic?
What does this mean for Dennis Schröder?
Talking about the new (proposed) City Edition jerseys
Whether you like it or not, Nike finally got it right this time
Guest guess
And more

Thank you for listening. If you have any Thunder or NBA related questions, make sure you hit Dylan up on Twitter (@ThunderChats).

Catch the ThunderChats podcast on Anchor and ITunes. Make sure you leave them a 5-star review if you can. And as always, Thunder Up!

https://anchor.fm/thunderchats/embed/episodes/Westbrook-SurgeryNew-Jerseys-e2733p/a-a59poj

Thunder At A Glance – 13 September 2018

Posted on September 13, 2018 by Alex Roig

Royce Young (ESPN) on the news of Russell Westbrook having arthroscopic knee surgery on his right knee: “Westbrook experienced some stiffness in the knee over the past week during individual workouts while preparing for training camp. He elected to have a standard scope as a pre-emptive “maintenance” procedure rather than potentially dealing with issues throughout the season.”

Erik Horne (NewsOK) talks to NBATV about the Westbrook surgery.

OKCThunder.com looks at the summer that Alex Abrines had: “Abrines took the leap with his longtime girlfriend Carla this summer, and the Thunder will be looking for him to do the same on the court heading into training camp and the 2018-19 campaign. In a league that relies massively on shooting and playmaking from the perimeter, Abrines holds the qualities that could make him a crucial member of the rotation. The key, however, is for those offensive gifts to be combined with a defensive integrity and versatility that fits into the Thunder’s gameplan.” Continue reading →

Thunder At A Glance – 10 September 2018

Posted on September 10, 2018 by Alex Roig

Friend of the site, Stephen Dolan of Thunderous Intentions was correct about Andre Roberson’s involvement with shooting coach Chris “Lethal Shooter” Matthews: “Now, with this knowledge firmly in hand, we can move on to hopes and dreams. In an ideal world, Dre would shoot 40 percent from three, 85 percent from the line, and heal with the speed of Wolverine. But even in our dreams, let’s try to be reasonable.”

Congrats to Thunder assistant coach Maurice Cheeks on his induction to the NBA Hall Of Fame.

https://youtu.be/BwAdZquXl-0 Continue reading →