Thunderous Intentions
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An Open Letter To OKC Thunder and NBA Media

By Jeremy Lambert

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Dear Local and National Media:

Please do not ruin the upcoming season for the Oklahoma City Thunder and their fans. We know there’s a chance that Kevin Durant could leave in the 2016 offseason. You don’t need to remind us every day. The Thunder is bound to lose a couple of games during the season – that doesn’t mean Durant is guaranteed to leave.

At some point in the season, Durant will show some frustration. Maybe he misses a big shot and the team loses. Maybe Dion Waiters doesn’t pass him the ball when he’s open. Maybe Enes Kanter blows a defensive assignment that leads to an easy basket. Over the course of an 82-game season, every single player in professional sports gets frustrated at some point. When Durant shows frustration, it doesn’t mean that he’s thinking about an exit strategy. It means he’s human.

For years, you’ve tried to create some sort of rift between Durant and Russell Westbrook even though they’ve always seemed to get along on- and off-the-court. With Durant scheduled to hit free agency following the season, I’m sure you’ll try to create an even larger rift. You’ll say that Westbrook is selfish and that Durant needs to go to Washington to play with John Wall, one of the most unselfish point guards in the league. You’ll say that if Durant leaves, it’ll be Westbrook’s fault.

You’ll bring up Sam Presti trading James Harden or firing Scott Brooks, two people that Durant was close to on the team, as reasons why he should leave. These reasons may or may not be valid if Durant chooses to leave, but please try to focus on them after the season is over instead of distracting from what could be a fun season of basketball in Oklahoma City.

Look at the 2014-2015 Chicago Bulls. All season you guys focused on Tom Thibodeau potentially leaving the team after the season. The coverage got worse in the playoffs as every time the Bulls lost, Thibodeau and his contract became the focal point. Headlines like, “Are coaching rumors distracting Thibodeau and Bulls?” were written with no self-awareness. In the end, the Bulls were ousted in six games by the Cleveland Cavaliers despite having a strong and relatively healthy team. Now Thibodeau is most likely gone from Chicago and if one of his reasons for leaving was due to local media covering him and not the team then I wouldn’t blame him.

Durant became increasingly frustrated with all of you throughout last season. It probably doesn’t help when you write dumb headlines like “Mr. Unreliable” and ask him the same questions about his relationship with Westbrook over and over again. Don’t continue to frustrate him this season with questions about his future. You already know he’s going to say, “I haven’t thought about it that much.” That’s going to be his answer from October to whenever the season ends.

Don’t try to pry more information out of him or psychoanalyze him. Respect his answer and then talk about the game. We talkin’ ’bout the game that KD loves to play. We ain’t talkin’ ’bout free agency.

Just enjoy the ride this season. Be thankful that Durant is healthy and that the Thunder have a really good chance at winning the title. Which would you rather spend your time on? Covering the team’s potential title run or covering Durant possibly leaving? There will be plenty of time to talk about the “Real MVP” possibly taking his talents elsewhere. There’s an entire month between the end of the season and the start of free agency. Nothing is actually going to be known until then. Until then, you’ll just be speculating or making up stories in order to get clicks.

Don’t do that. Please.

Sincerely,

Concerned Thunder Fans

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