Wednesday Bolts – 9.10.14
Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports with a terrific piece on Serge Ibaka: “Everyone who has played and worked with Ibaka in Oklahoma City will tell you there’s no better teammate, no one as fiercely loyal as Ibaka. In Kendrick Perkins’ experiences, only Kevin Garnett could compare in the locker room, Perkins told Yahoo Sports. When Thunder physicians told Ibaka he would be lost for the Western Conference finals – perhaps two months – with a calf injury, he refused to recognize the prognosis. Rehab the tear, push through the pain and I’ll see everyone in Game 3.”
Ibaka on KD2016: “He’s a grown man,” Ibaka says. “He runs his life. But one thing I know about Kevin. He likes to win. No matter what. That’s the one thing I know: He likes to win. That’s for sure. Of course, I think it’s too early to talk about Kevin staying or going. It’s going to distract people. It’s going to distract the team. He’s got two more years. Let’s [talk] when the time comes, and we are going to see. It’s too early. We have to work to do. We have things to do as a team.”
Zach Lowe of Grantland on OKC’s court: “The Thunder would have ranked last had we done this exercise four years ago. Oklahoma City tried to touch every base in building its color scheme, meshing elements of the state flag, the sun, and referents to the local college teams. It’s ended up with a color-logo combination that is evocative of nothing. The blue and orange just feel generic. The Thunder did well to unclutter the court by using the same blue all the way around, and the white font spelling out the team’s name pops against that blue. It’s a big improvement from 2010-11, when the Thunder featured this tricolored mess of a painted area: The Thunder’s alternate dark blue jerseys also fell flat. This franchise feels ripe for a total design overhaul. Should we mention how awesome the Sonics’ colors and court design were? We probably shouldn’t, right?”
The “Thunder’s D-League team” has released its schedule. Not the 66ers. The “Thunder’s D-League team.”
Jason Whitlock of ESPN.com on Bruce Levenson: “I guarantee you the next owner of the Hawks — regardless of race — won’t care. He’ll overpay for the privilege of owning the team, and he’ll look to maximize profits by any means necessary. If that means moving to the suburbs at the first possible opportunity, he will do just that. I bet the kiss cam, cheerleaders, season-ticket base and everything else will look much whiter in an Atlanta suburb. And then the new owner of the Atlanta Hawks will write an email complaining that the cheerleaders, kiss cam, music and season-ticket base are too white, and the media and racial opportunists will applaud the new owner for being a champion of diversity.”
