Category: OKC Thunder Blog

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Thunder may upgrade offense this season

Here’s the Oklahoman reporting on the Thunder:

Roll call on the Thunder summer.

Drafted Mitch McGary. Tried to sign Pau Gasol. Did sign Anthony Morrow. Re-signed Grant Jerrett.

Let’s see. A rookie with all kinds of offensive talent but probably not ready for NBA defensive assignments. A former superstar who isn’t the player he used to be but still has a great set of ball skills. The NBA’s second-best shooter, behind only Steph Curry. And a big man whose only discernible ability, albeit it strong, is deep shooting.

The trend is clear. The Thunder’s priority is to upgrade its offense. And the statistical trend says that’s smart.

The Thunder ranked second in NBA offense (points per possession) in both 2011-12 and 2012-13 but slipped to seventh last season. Points per possession is the best way to gauge an offense (or defense), and the Thunder slipped to 1.081 points per possession last season, after averaging 1.102 the year before.

Tulsa 66ers will relocate to Oklahoma City

The Oklahoma City Thunder’s NBA Development League affiliate, the Tulsa 66ers, will be moving to Oklahoma City, the Thunder announced today.

The 66ers have played home games the last two seasons at the SpiritBank Event Center in Bixby, Okla., but team officials were notified recently that the facility will no longer offer arena space for lease. The move will take place prior to the start of the D-League regular season, which begins in mid-November and extends through early April.

“Our two seasons in Bixby were successful and we were pleased to be there, but circumstances beyond our control made it necessary to look for a new home for our Development League team,” said Danny Barth, executive vice president and chief administrative officer of the Thunder.

“We explored several potentially viable options, but were unable to find a facility in the Tulsa area that meets all of our business and basketball needs, so we made the decision to bring the team to Oklahoma City,” Barth said. “We offer our sincere thanks to the communities of Tulsa and Bixby, and to all of the 66ers fans and sponsors in the area for their loyal support over the past few years.”

The Professional Basketball Club, LLC, which owns the Thunder, purchased the 66ers in 2008.

Thunder officials are currently in discussions with the City of Oklahoma City to play the team’s 24 regular-season home games at the Cox Convention Center in downtown Oklahoma City, directly across the street from Chesapeake Energy Arena. Along with the move of the team, the business and basketball operations of the D-League team will also relocate to Oklahoma City. The team will train at the Thunder Community Events Center in Edmond, the original training home of the Thunder from 2008-11. The move of the 66ers is subject to NBA D-League approval.

Thunder sign Anthony Morrow

Thunder sign Anthony Morrow

The Oklahoma City Thunder has signed free agent guard Anthony Morrow to a contract, it was announced today by Executive Vice President and General Manager Sam Presti.

“Anthony Morrow has demonstrated that he is amongst the most consistent and efficient three point shooters in the NBA over his career, and we are pleased to welcome him to Oklahoma City and the Thunder organization,” Presti said. “With his body of work, we feel Anthony is a unique addition to a diverse roster, while also possessing the toughness and selflessness that we are consistently seeking in Thunder players.”

Morrow (6-5, 210), shot 45.1 percent from three-point range last season (4th in the NBA) while averaging 8.4 points, 1.8 rebounds and 18.8 minutes in a career-high 76 games (nine starts) with New Orleans.

An undrafted rookie out of Georgia Tech, Morrow shot an NBA-best 46.7 percent during the 2008-09 season becoming the first rookie in NBA history to lead the league in three-point field goal percentage. The six-year NBA veteran owns career averages of 10.4 points on 42.8 percent shooting from three-point range (3rd highest amongst active NBA players), 2.5 rebounds, 1.0 assist and 23.7 minutes in 373 games (129 starts) with Golden State, New Jersey, Atlanta, Dallas and New Orleans.

Thunder sign-and-trade Thabo Sefolosha to Hawks

Thunder sign-and-trade Thabo Sefolosha to Hawks

The Atlanta Hawks completed a sign-and-trade deal with the Oklahoma City Thunder that will bring guard/forward Thabo Sefolosha to Atlanta, as well as the draft rights to Giorgos Printezis, in exchange for the draft rights to Sofoklis Schortsanitis, it was announced today by President of Basketball Operations/General Manager Danny Ferry.

“Thabo is an unselfish, competitive and playoff-tested player, and does many things well on both sides of the ball,” Ferry said. “He also fills a need, giving us more size and depth at the wing position. He’s been a part of winning programs and will fit our culture well.”

Sefolosha, 30, played and started in 61 games last season with the Oklahoma City Thunder, averaging 6.3 points, 3.6 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.3 steals in 26.0 minutes (.415 FG%, .768 FT%). In his eight-year career, Sefolosha has appeared in 551 games with the Thunder and Bulls (407 starting assignments) and has averaged 5.8 points, 3.7 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.1 steals in 23.4 minutes (.442 FG%, .348 3FG%, .746 FT%). He was selected to the NBA’s All-Defensive second team in 2009-10.

He has also played in 78 playoff games, starting 67, averaging 4.6 points, 2.8 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 1.0 steals in 19.9 minutes.

Sefolosha was originally selected by the Philadelphia 76ers with the 13th overall pick of the 2006 NBA Draft, and was traded to Chicago in exchange for the draft right to Rodney Carney, a second-round pick and cash considerations. He spent two-and-a-half seasons with the Bulls before going to the Thunder on February 19, 2009 in exchange for a first-round pick.

The native of Vevey, Switzerland has also played for Tege Riviera Basket (Switzerland), Elan Chalon (France) and Angelico Biella (Italy). He also played briefly for Fenerbahce Ulker in Turkey in 2011.

Printezis was originally selected by the San Antonio Spurs in the second round (58th overall) of the 2007 NBA Draft.  He currently plays for Olympiacos Piraeus in Greece.

Atlanta acquired the draft rights to Schortsanitis from the Los Angeles Clippers on July 30, 2012 in a sign-and-trade transaction for Willie Green, after he was originally selected by the Clippers in the second round (34th overall) of the 2003 NBA Draft.  He currently plays for Maccabi Tel Aviv in Israel.

Steven Adams working on low-post game

Here’s the Oklahoman with an update on young Thunder big-man Steven Adams:

Steven Adams working on low-post game

But between trips to the foul line, Adams also will spend ample time down on the low block.

The Thunder throughout this week in Orlando has been working on Adams’ back-to-the-basket game, and if for whatever reason Pau Gasol passes up the Thunder, the team could turn to Adams to solve its longtime search for a low-post scoring threat.

“That’s exactly what we’re working on,” said Thunder assistant/summer league coach Darko Rajakovic. “We want to see Steven be able to get the ball on the low post more and create from there.”

Adams has all the tools to be successful.

At 7-feet, 250 pounds, he has ideal size and mixes that with strength, timing and footwork. He put all that and more on display throughout Wednesday’s game.

Thunder name Darko Rajakovic assistant coach

The Oklahoma City Thunder has named Darko Rajakovic as assistant coach, it was announced today by Executive Vice President and General Manager Sam Presti. Rajakovic has spent the past two seasons as the head coach of the Tulsa 66ers, the Thunder’s NBA D-League affiliate.

“Darko’s diverse basketball background, knowledge of the game and ability to develop players at a high level were clearly apparent during his time in Tulsa, and I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to add him to our staff,” said Thunder Head Coach Scott Brooks. “His understanding of the core tenants of what we do, thanks to his time in Tulsa, will maintain a level of consistency that we value and his various head coaching experiences internationally will provide another layer to our coaches.”

A Serbian native, Rajakovic was the first head coach in NBA D-League history born outside of North America. Rajakovic led Tulsa to a combined 51-49 record over two seasons, including a 27-23 record and NBA D-League Semifinals appearance in 2012-13.

During his time with the 66ers, Tulsa was assigned seven players from Oklahoma City a total of 50 times (the most in the league during that stretch), including current Thunder players Reggie Jackson, Perry Jones, Jeremy Lamb and Andre Roberson. Rajakovic has also seen five of his 66ers players receive call-ups to the NBA, including four to the Thunder (Grant Jerrett, Daniel Orton, Mustafa Shakur and Reggie Williams). He coached 11 Tulsa players over the past two years who were on an NBA roster in the 2013-14 season.

Prior to joining the 66ers, Rajakovic spent the previous three years as the head coach of Espacio Torrelodones of the Spanish EBA League. In his first season (2009), Rajakovic led Torrelodones to the Primera Division de Baloncesto title, promoting the team to the Liga EBA.

Rajakovic began his coaching career at 16 years old with BC Borac Cacak in Cacak, Serbia. Following his three-year stint in Cacak, Rajakovic was named the head coach of the U-20 and U-18 teams of Red Star Belgrade. During his eight years in Belgrade, Rajakovic led Red Star to two Serbian championships. Rajakovic received a basketball coaching degree from the Belgrade Basketball Academy in 2004 and a degree in sports management from BK University in Belgrade in 2006.

Grant Jerrett injured, will not play in Summer League for OKC

Here’s the Oklahoman reporting on the Thunder:

The Oklahoma City Thunder will be without forward Grant Jerrett for the Orlando Summer League.

Jerrett sustained an ankle injury that will keep him out of Orlando, as reported by Darnell Mayberry. The 6-foot-10 Jerrett was a revelation in the Summer League for the Thunder last season, shooting 50 percent from 3-point range while averaging 10.8 points per game.

Sebastian Telfair to join Thunder

Here’s the Oklahoman reporting on the Thunder:

Sebastian Telfair to join Thunder

Looking to add depth and experience at the lead guard position following the departure of Derek Fisher, the Thunder has agreed to terms with veteran point guard Sebastian Telfair.

Telfair, 29, was the 13th overall pick in 2004. He’s played for seven teams in nine seasons but spent last season in China. In 548 career NBA games, Telfair has averaged 7.4 points, 1.6 rebounds and 3.5 assists in 21.6 minutes.

The deal is a one-year contract at the veteran’s minimum, about $1.3 million.

Kendrick Perkins has advice for Kevin Durant

Here’s the Oklahoman reporting on the Thunder:

Kendrick Perkins has suggestion for Kevin Durant

Kendrick Perkins, Durant’s most outspoken teammate, didn’t mind offering up a specific suggestion.

Hit the weight room.

“I feel like he could get stronger, in my opinion,” Perkins said. “I think that would help him a lot. I told him all the good and great players that played the game, from Jordan, Kobe, LeBron, they all put size on them, and it helped them.”

More strength, Perkins said, will only benefit Durant’s body and set the stage for him to succeed in demanding times. For Durant, those include the need to be a better and more consistent defender, a more dependable low-post scoring threat and to persevere through seasons like this past one in which Durant’s minutes piled up to an outlandish league-leading tally.

“Seems like there was possessions he was tired,” Perkins said of Durant. “But, like I said, I think that’s (when) getting in the weight room plays a factor. Cause then you could let your body take over.”