Wichita Eagle: Basketball

Lowly Wizards surprise OKC Thunder

Mon, 07 Jan 2013 23:45 CST

Bradley Beal didn't have a plan. What he had was a good move.

Beal made a jumper with 0.3 seconds left Monday night, lifting the short-handed Washington Wizards a 101-99 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder, who missed 16 straight shots at one stretch.

Beal used a pump fake to get open for the 16-footer that gave the Wizards (5-28) their second win this season over last year's NBA finalists.

OKC Thunder extends winning streak to 12

CHARLES ODUM — Wed, 19 Dec 2012 22:58 CST

Oklahoma City’s biggest stars displayed a unique version of balanced scoring against Atlanta: Russell Westbrook led the Thunder in the first half and Kevin Durant dominated the Hawks over the final two quarters.

Durant set a season high with 41 points and Oklahoma City held off Atlanta 100-92 on Wednesday night for its 12th straight win.

Westbrook had 27 points — 21 in the first half — and 11 assists. Durant scored 28 points in the second half, including 18 in the fourth, and also had 13 rebounds.

OKC Thunder beats Raptors

BOBBY ANDERSON — Tue, 06 Nov 2012 22:16 CST

Russell Westbrook shrugged off a sore shoulder to score 19 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder cruised past the Toronto Raptors 108-88 on Tuesday night.

Wearing a black padded sleeve to protect his bruised left shoulder, Westbrook held Toronto's leading scorer, Kyle Lowry, to two points on 1-of-4 shooting. Lowry exited with 1:29 left in the second quarter with a right ankle sprain and did not return.

Serge Ibaka added 17 points and a game-high nine rebounds for Oklahoma City. Kevin Durant and reserve Kevin Martin each scored 15.

Harden expects long-term deal

CHRIS DUNCAN — Mon, 29 Oct 2012 06:46 CDT

James Harden plans to sign a long-term extension with the Houston Rockets before the regular season begins.

The reigning Sixth Man of the Year joined his new team Sunday after he was traded to the Rockets from Oklahoma City late Saturday. The Thunder acquired guards Kevin Martin and Jeremy Lamb, two first-round picks and a second-round pick in the surprising deal. Oklahoma City also sent center Cole Aldrich and forwards Daequan Cook and Lazar Hayward to Houston.

“It happened so fast, it happened very fast,” Harden said. “But this is the position I’m in in now. Just have to make the best out of it. I’m with Houston now. I just have to come in here and play hard and win games.”

OKC Thunder trades Harden to Houston

BRIAN MAHONEY — Sat, 27 Oct 2012 23:47 CDT

Unable to work out an extension with James Harden, the Oklahoma City Thunder traded the Sixth Man of the Year to the Houston Rockets on Saturday night, breaking up the young core of the Western Conference champions.

The Thunder acquired guards Kevin Martin and Jeremy Lamb, two first-round picks and a second-round pick in the surprising deal that was completed Saturday night. Oklahoma City also sent center Cole Aldrich, and forwards Daequan Cook and Lazar Hayward to Houston.

The Oct. 31 deadline to extend Harden or allow him to become a restricted free agent next July had been hanging over the Thunder from the moment they reported to training camp.

NBA comes to Wichita with a chance for Kansans to appreciate it

Paul Suellentrop — Wed, 15 May 2013 13:36 CDT

Royce Young is a lifelong Oklahoman and a Sooners football fan, so when he speaks these words he knows their weight.

“Given a choice between OU winning a national title or the Thunder winning an NBA title, I’d rather the Thunder win the title,” he said. “I almost feel sick to my stomach saying that, but it’s the truth.”

Oklahoma — a state dominated by college athletics since college athletics appeared.

Oklahoma City Thunder start training camp

Paul Suellentrop — Wed, 15 May 2013 13:36 CDT

This is the NBA team non-NBA fans can love.

The Oklahoma City Thunder start training camp Tuesday, knowing anything less than an NBA championship is a step back. They went through media day tasks on Monday at their training facility, knowing the competition in the Western Conference increased dramatically with Dwight Howard and Steve Nash joining Kobe Bryant with the Los Angeles Lakers. That sets up a season of clear contrasts — the Thunder’s homegrown roster vs. the Lakers’ collection of stars chasing a title. Waiting in the East is the Heat, which added Ray Allen to the trio of superstars.

The Thunder players talk like college players do — they missed each other desperately over the summer, they’re excited to get back together and the locker room is a big family room. Role players come and go, but the core group remains.

Jones could fit with OKC Thunder

JEFF LATZKE — Sun, 01 Jul 2012 07:54 CDT

First-round draft pick Perry Jones III doesn’t feel any pressure to prove he’s one of the missing links to turn the Oklahoma City Thunder into NBA champions.

His first goal is just to keep up with the standards set by the cornerstones of the franchise that he considered the most fun to watch in the league.

“The hardest part is playing to the level of intensity that Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook set. They set the standard for working hard here and definitely living up to that standard, you’ve got to be able to bring it every day,” Jones said Saturday at his introductory news conference.

James leads Heat past Thunder to NBA title

Brian Mahoney — Thu, 21 Jun 2012 23:48 CDT

MIAMI The decision is final: LeBron James made the right call coming to Miami.

James had 26 points, 11 rebounds and 13 assists, and got the kind of help that was worth leaving home for, leading the Heat in a 121-106 rout of the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday night to win the NBA Finals in five games.

Best player in the game, best team in the league.

Heat needs one last victory for title

TIM REYNOLDS — Wed, 20 Jun 2012 19:06 CDT

LeBron James has never been here before.

He’s been in nearly every imaginable situation everything over his nine seasons marked by three MVP awards, three trips to the NBA Finals with two teams and one decision that changed everything.

And now this: For the first time, he’s one win from a championship.

Chalmers helps Heat take 3-1 lead in NBA Finals

Tue, 19 Jun 2012 23:45 CDT

LeBron James better get well fast. He's about to play for a championship.

Hardly able to move, James returned from a left leg injury to make the tiebreaking three-pointer with 2:54 remaining and the Miami Heat held off Russell Westbrook and the Oklahoma City Thunder for a 104-98 victory on Tuesday night and a 3-1 lead in the NBA Finals.

With James watching the final moments, Mario Chalmers finished off a stellar 25-point effort that matched Dwyane Wade. James had 26 points, 12 assists and nine rebounds, only missing a triple-double because he was on the bench at the end after hurting his leg in a fall near the Thunder basket.

Heat beats Thunder 91-85, takes series lead

Tim Reynolds — Sun, 17 Jun 2012 23:23 CDT

For the next two days, the Oklahoma City Thunder will lament plenty of things.

Missed free throws. More foul trouble. Late-game turnovers. And perhaps above all else, four bad minutes that went a long way to costing them Game 3 of the NBA Finals against the Miami Heat.

A 10-point lead coming down the stretch of the third quarter became a two-point deficit entering the fourth, and the Thunder simply couldn’t keep overcoming mistakes in what became a 91-85 Heat victory on Sunday night. Miami leads the best-of-seven championship series 2-1, with Game 4 back on its floor Tuesday night.

Heat confidently awaits Thunder for Game 3

TIM REYNOLDS — Sat, 16 Jun 2012 22:32 CDT

At this point a year ago, LeBron James and Dwyane Wade were using words like urgency and desperation.

And that’s exactly what the Miami Heat expect the Oklahoma City Thunder to bring into Game 3 of this year’s NBA Finals.

So far, this championship series has followed the same script as a year ago, with the home team winning the opening matchup, then falling in Game 2 to lose the home-court edge. Miami took the sting of that into Dallas last year and used it as fuel to win Game 3 – and the Heat will look to ensure that trend doesn’t repeat itself when the title matchup resumes on their home floor tonight.

Small decision pays off big for OKC Thunder

JEFF LATZKE — Wed, 13 Jun 2012 22:41 CDT

The NBA’s advertising campaign this season was built around one word: BIG. Oversized heads on the league’s star players filled some of the commercials. Other promotional ads had giant words superimposed on highlights of game action.

But this year’s NBA Finals could be decided by who’s better at playing small.

The Oklahoma City Thunder countered the Miami Heat’s undersized lineup by benching their starting frontcourt players, Kendrick Perkins and Serge Ibaka, for the final 14 minutes and were able to rally and win Game 1 105-94.

OKC Thunder wins opening game of NBA Finals

Brian Mahoney — Wed, 13 Jun 2012 19:19 CDT

Kevin Durant showed LeBron James how to play the fourth quarter in the NBA Finals.

Durant scored 17 of his 36 points in another nightmarish final period for James and his team, leading a Thunder storm that overwhelmed the Heat and gave Oklahoma City a 105-94 victory over Miami in Game 1 on Tuesday night.

Teaming with Russell Westbrook to outscore the Heat in the second half by themselves, Durant struck first in his head-to-head matchup with James, who had seven points in the final quarter and was helpless to stop the league’s three-time scoring champion.

Chalmers is Heat’s third threat

Shandel Richardson — Thu, 31 May 2012 20:23 CDT

Mario Chalmers had just completed yet another strong performance this postseason.

As he was about to hop on the cart that taxis players from the locker room to interview podium following Wednesday’s victory, he couldn’t help but crack a joke to the driver.

“You need to put some spinners (rims) on this,” Chalmers said. “Hook it up.”

Spurs beat OKC Thunder again, take 2-0 series lead

Chris Duncan — Tue, 29 May 2012 23:29 CDT

San Antonio is halfway to turning the Western Conference finals into a runaway.

Tony Parker scored 34 points, Manu Ginobili added 20 and the Spurs stayed perfect in the playoffs with a 120-111 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 2 on Tuesday night.

The Spurs set an NBA record with their 20th consecutive victory bridging the regular season and the playoffs. They came in sharing the longest such streak with the 2000-01 Lakers, who won 19 straight before losing to Philadelphia in the first game of the finals.

Best in the NBA West set to battle

PAUL J. WEBER — Sun, 27 May 2012 07:18 CDT

Maybe they’ll finally get a challenge this time.

The San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder have simply rolled through this postseason. There’s the 18-game winning streak that has the Spurs flirting with history. Seventeen combined playoff games and just one loss. The Thunder sending home the last two NBA champions, and no other playoff teams besides these two that can boast a series sweep.

What took the Western Conference finals so long to get here, anyway?

OKC Thunder built in Spurs’ likeness

JEFF LATZKE — Thu, 24 May 2012 21:55 CDT

When Clay Bennett was seeking a leader for his team that would one day become the Oklahoma City Thunder, he picked a rising star from a San Antonio franchise on the verge of winning its fourth NBA championship in a decade.

It was the start of a process that would model Bennett’s franchise after the Spurs, leading up to their meeting in the Western Conference finals starting Sunday night.

The standards that led to San Antonio’s success rubbed off on Sam Presti, who got his start as a video intern for the Spurs before rising through that organization and eventually getting hired by Bennett as general manager of the relocating Seattle SuperSonics.

Spurs will attack OKC Thunder’s Westbrook

PAUL J. WEBER — Wed, 23 May 2012 23:21 CDT

It’s the main event of the Western Conference finals: Tony Parker and Russell Westbrook, All-Star point guards having their best seasons yet. One going for a fourth NBA championship, the other chasing his first.

This is the series where things change.

“We’re definitely going to go at him. It’s not going to be like Dallas or the Lakers,” Parker said Wednesday, referring to the first two teams the Oklahoma City Thunder demolished in the playoffs. “Their point guards are not as aggressive. It’s going to be a little bit different. We’re going to go at him.”