Finding a rooting interest in the Spurs, Rockets series

OKC Thunder fans have a tough decision; root for the team that is ideologically similar or the team that can beat Golden State?

Thunder basketball may be over, but that doesn’t mean us Thunder fans stop watching the NBA completely. If anything Oklahoma City being out of the playoffs makes postseason play even more interesting. Instead of having one team that we live and die with every other night we get to watch top-notch basketball without any sort of rooting interest.

Or so you thought.

Sports are more fun when there’s a rooting interest involved. Whether you pick a team based on a certain player or you just really like the colors of another team, picking a side subjectively makes a game more entertaining. And that’s why we meet here today.

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The San Antonio Spurs and Houston Rockets series presents Thunder fans with an interesting conundrum. We could root for San Antonio to beat Houston simply because Houston beat us. Or we could root for Houston because they probably have a better chance of defeating Golden State in the next round.

I realize both options are incredibly petty. I’m a petty person. Deal with it. But for you non-petty Thunder fans – those who don’t like Kelly Oubre Jr. after what he did last night – here’s a few reasons why you should root for either team.

Reasons to root for the Houston Rockets

• Three-point shooting is your thing. The Rockets are to shooters as Kelly Olynyk is to flopping. Personally I was a shooter back in my playing days and if I would have had a coach like D’Antoni in an offense like this…I can’t even imagine.
• You appreciate 34-year olds who are just now peaking. The Nene renaissance has been absolutely captivating television. Not only is Nene averaging 12 points a game (three more than his season average), but he’s doing it on nearly 80% shooting. Gotta love when a veteran gets a sniff at a championship and goes all out the way Nene has these playoffs.
• You don’t hate James Harden. As Thunder fans we have 0 reasons to hate Mr. Harden. Sure he left money on the table and wanted to be a max player, but he didn’t ask to be traded. Russ loves James, we love James. Simple as that.

Reasons to root for the San Antonio Spurs

• Small market franchises have you feeling some type of way. Whenever a little guy wins in the NBA (see San Antonio) it gives us Oklahoma City fans hope. Everybody looks down upon small markets as lesser beings in the league, so beating up on the Houston’s and dare I say Golden State’s of the NBA is a great feeling.
• Kawhi Leonard reminds you of an unemotional Russell Westbrook. These two superstars have a lot in common. Both had serious flaws coming into the league, both are genetic freaks and both want to win more than anything else in the world. Take away the clothes and the raw emotion and they are eerily similar human beings.
• You want to see Shea Serrano say kind things about Lamarcus Aldridge. San Antonio isn’t winning with Leonard handling all the offensive load; Aldridge is going to have to step up. Shea isn’t sure he can do it, but reading that post where Shea eats his words may be the highlight of the 2017 NBA season.

I’m not telling you who to root for. But I will tell you who I’m rooting for.

More from Thunderous Intentions

• Stealing one player from every Southwest Division team for the OKC Thunder
• Should the OKC Thunder chase after a disgruntled hometown hero?
• 3 OKC Thunder players who can step up in Aleksej Pokusevski’s absence
• Aleksej Pokusevski sidelined approximately 6 weeks with ankle injury
• Damian Lillard does not fit with the OKC Thunder

Remember how I said I’m petty? Nothing is pettier than wanting nothing more than to see your favorite player of ten years fall apart in the playoffs. And that’s why I’m rooting for the Rockets to beat the Spurs in this series.

Kevin Durant tore my heart out on July 4th and he has experienced nothing but happiness (well besides the knee injury) since then. I will never root for him to get injured, but dangit I will parade the streets of Cincinnati, Ohio for 24 hours if he fails to win a championship this year.

A word of advice to Mr. Harden: relax this series just a tad. Eric Gordon, Lou Williams and the rest of your teammates are good enough to beat this San Antonio team. We can tell you aren’t at 100%, but we need you at 100% if there’s any chance of you upsetting the Warriors next round. I can’t believe I’m saying this but….

Go Rockets.