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Peace, Love and Thunderstanding: The Process
When Sam Presti was hired by the Seattle Supersonics on June 7, 2007, by the new Oklahoma-based ownership of the team, his first action made an immediate mark. In a draft night trade with the Boston...
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Peace, Love and Thunderstanding: Trade Market
With the NBA training camp only a month away and most free agents already plucked by GMs, it's time to focus on the NBA's ever-changing and sometimes befuddling trade market. Lauri Markkanen’s saga...
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Peace, Love and Thunderstanding: Ranking the Roster
With two weeks until training camp is set to start, the Thunder roster is likely set. Following a season that was difficult to watch, both literally and figuratively, fans may have hoped to see...
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Peace, Love and Thunderstanding: 7 Predictions for the 2021 -2022 Season
After spending 19,000 words discussing the worst roster a seasoned OKC fanbase has ever known, the time has come for old Clark Matthews to put a bow on my 2021 Peace, Love and Thunderstanding...
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Don’t Kill Julius
In the Summer of 1999, I had just been ghosted by my girlfriend. As soon as we both headed home from OSU, she just stopped returning my calls. With my plans of Summer romance curtailed, I channeled the...
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Peace, Love and Thunderstanding: Mid-Season Report
It is NBA All-Star weekend, which is considered the midway point of the NBA season. However, because the league does not want their celebration of the biggest stars to compete with the NFL playoffs, it...
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Peace, Love and Thunderstanding: Lottery Night
Hey Thunder fans! Wasn’t that a fun season we just endured? For a second straight year, the hometown team spent most of the season actively trying to lose games. Even though the strategy made sense...
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Peace, Love and Thunderstanding: The Case for Chet Holmgren
With that second pick in next week’s NBA draft, Thunder GM Sam Presti will have plenty of good options to sift through before selecting the player he believes will have the biggest long-term impact for...
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Peace, Love and Thunderstanding: The Case for Jabari Smith, Jr.
While there is no consensus “best player” in the 2022 draft, the player most commonly assumed to be the first pick overall is Auburn’s freshman power forward Jabari Smith, Jr. An NBA legacy–his father...
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Peace, Love and Thunderstanding: The Case for Paolo Banchero
Previously, I stated my hope that the Thunder select Chet Holmgren with the second pick of the 2022 NBA draft. That is not necessarily a popular opinion. For instance, check the comment section on any...
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Peace, Love and Thunderstanding: Going Outside the Box
There are two things that have been true about Thunder GM Sam Presti: 1. He knows what he's doing when drafting in the lottery 2. He doesn't listen to the consensus when it comes to the lottery If...
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Peace, Love and Thunderstanding: Don’t Be a Clark Matthews
Going into the draft night in 2009, the NBA sources I trusted most were telling me that the draft class contained two players who could transform a franchise. The first was Blake Griffin, the Oklahoma...
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Peace, Love and Thunderstanding: Post NBA Draft Thoughts
For weeks, the media had been certain that Auburn sharpshooter Jabari Smith, Jr. was going to be the first pick of the NBA draft. Even as the Vegas odds shifted suddenly on the eve of the draft, with...
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A Ligament in Chet Holmgren’s Foot Exploded and That Might Be Good
Sure, it was only Summer League--and Utah Summer League for that matter--but it was one of the most enjoyable basketball games I have ever watched. The young Thunder core, headlined by four lottery...
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Peace, Love and Thunderstanding: Who Are These F***ing Guys?
Major League, the perfect sports movie, was released in 1989. Known mostly for foisting Charlie Sheen and Wesley Snipes into the realm of movie stardome, the film combined a classic underdog tale with...
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