OKC Thunder: 3 steps to make 2020-21 season a success
By Brad Smyth
No. 2: Stay competitive
Now before you all run off to grab your pitchforks and torches, let me clarify that I’m not saying that the Thunder should or will win many games this year. In fact, I’m confident this will be the worst win/loss record for the team in the entirety of the time we have been in Oklahoma.
What I am saying is that the final score doesn’t really matter. What does matter is the team stays in games and shows fight until the final siren.
The OKC Thunder has prided itself on being the team that never gives up. It was the calling card of one Russel Westbrook and it’s a big reason so many Thunder fans love him to this day. Thunder Nation knew from the second Westbrook took the court until the moment after the game finished, he was gonna give everything he had and even a little more.
Last year the squad had so many come-from-behind wins and games where opponents wrote them off. But, with grit and determination (not to mention a lot of CP3 brilliance) they never gave up, and more often than not would finish the game victorious.
Here is the point in this piece where readers might disagree with the narrator. I refuse to support a losing mentality. I cannot stand the idea of the Thunder intentionally losing just to get a high draft pick, it makes me sick in the stomach.
That’s because I was taught if you aren’t going to give your all on the court, don’t bother getting on there in the first place. I would echo this statement to the Thunder team.
It’s understandable this young squad will make mistakes and the offense may struggle at times. However, the defense is 80 percent hustle. Given that fact, it shouldn’t be unreasonable to request the team to out-hustle their opponents for 72 straight games.
A losing mentality is a slippery slope and one that can be hard to come back from once started. It creates bad habits and bad memories and is a bell that once struck cannot be unrung.
Therefore, the wish is the OKC Thunder stick to their identity by fighting every night. If this club does that good things will happen.