OKC Thunder In the news: Tramel prefers KD for road trip but rather go to war with Westbrook
OKC Thunder in the news features articles on Presti buying a second draft pick, Oklahoma City ranking as fifth best NBA city and Tramel would go to war with Westbrook.
The Thunderous Intentions writing team has repeatedly suggested Sam Presti will need to fill in roster gaps for the 2019-20 OKC Thunder team via economical deals. The obvious answer to accomplishing this feat is through the draft. But, this season’s draft class isn’t exactly teeming with talent.
There are a number of second round prospects who could develop into something special, but they’ll need to be patiently developed. This also means the team will need to work in concert with the existing youngsters to develop and grow their individual game assets this summer.
More importantly, Billy Donovan has to commit to utilizing players like Hamidou Diallo, Deonte Burton, and Abdel Nader. In fact, that trio needs to get consistent time on the court if the team expects them to be playable at season end during the playoffs. ‘
Teams Presti should target to gain another draft pick:
Thunder Wire scribe Cody Taylor is seemingly in agreement as he laid out specifics for who OKC should look to. The team Taylor feels offers the best resolution to help OKC is the Philadelphia 76ers. Here’s his list of teams with multiple picks that Sam Presti should be considering dealing with.
"The following teams currently have multiple second-round picks:The 76ers own the No. 33, No. 34, No. 42 and No. 54 overall picks.The Hawks own the No. 35, No. 41 and No. 44 overall picks.The Kings own the No. 40, No. 47 and No. 60 overall picksThe Hornets own the No. 36 and No. 52 (from OKC) overall picks.The Pelicans own the No. 39 and No. 57 overall picks.The Clippers own the No. 48 and No. 56 picks."
OKC Thunder ranked as having fifth best NBA city to play in:
As per Adam McCann, the Financial Writer for Wallet Hub Oklahoma City is the seventh best city for basketball and ranks as the fifth best NBA squad. Wallet Hub used 21 different metrics to rank teams. Things such as ticket prices, access to the stadium as well as location were considered. Both NBA and NCAA Division 1 basketball team performance were factored and ranked.
"Americans love basketball. How much? Let’s put it this way: It has a fanbase that exceeds the population of Spain. And on the business side of things, it’s growing. Today, the average NBA franchise is worth $1.9 billion (an increase of 13% from 2018) and draws additional revenues from TV partnerships, merchandise sales and, as of 2017, advertising on NBA team uniforms."
Berry Tramel comments on Kevin Durant sensitivity to media:
Considering how fraught the relationship between Berry Tramel and Russell Westbrook has been his comments in a New York Daily News article by Stefan Bondy are interesting.
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For months Westbrook would ignore or say next question any time Tramel asked a question although the situation seemingly thawed toward the end of the season.
The premise of the Bondy article is whether Durant (should he end up signing with the Knicks this summer) be able to handle the extremely intense New York media scrutiny. Bondy spoke to three writers who’ve had experiences with Durant: Connor Letourneau of the San Francisco Chronicle, Monte Poole, the Warriors Insider for NBC Sports and Tramel of the Oklahoman.
Tramel speaks highly of Durant but his most surprising quote married Westbrook into his comments:
"“If you’re going to get in a car and drive five hours on a road trip, you want to be in a car with Kevin Durant, not Russell Westbrook,” Tramel said. “But if you’re in a foxhole, you’d probably rather be in with Russell Westbrook.”"
I can’t speak about driving in a car with K.D. but I can’t say I disagree with Tramel about who I’d want to go to war with. Can’t you just picture Russ reading that quote and smiling? If their relationship thawed at season end, maybe this will be what fully removes the angst between them.
Next. Hamidou Diallo is ready for the spotlight, but is his game?. dark
That wraps up the OKC Thunder in the news for Tuesday, May 28. Hope everyone had a happy and healthy Memorial Day.