2018-2019 OKC Thunder Regular Season Pt 1: A Renewed Hope

[Andre Roberstan]

The fact you seem proud of making him, and for the record it's definitely NOT just him that you annoy, so exasperated with your constant spewing of complete and utter garbage is frankly disturbing and people should have a real problem with that. If you want to see how to have a dissenting opinion that doesn't make everyone around you hate your guts completely then look at Justin, who actually uses arguments based in logic to convey opinions that he very obviously doesn't agree with but thinks the point should be made. You on the other hand literally pop an acid and come on here proclaiming how we're going to use the shroom you just took and turn it into Bradley Beal and wonder why no one takes you seriously. Its not just how wrong and bad your opinions are, it's how constant and nagging as a poster you try to make your points. You literally made 3 separate threads on the trade board trying in vain to muster some support for your, I mean half baked ideas is bloody generous but that's what we'll go with.

In short. It's not fun to constantly be reading, and reading peoples replies to your rambling nonsense when there's a lot about Thunder basketball to actually discuss but instead you inject your inane rubbish into every conversation and steer it, once again, in a meaningless direction.

Congratulations though I guess, on a successful troll mission. I firmly and desperately want to believe you're a Rockets fan with a LOT of spare time come to mess with everyone here. If so, bravo. If not, Y I K E S.

For the record? I think GROD's trade ideas are very bad.

But saying everything he does is popping acid and then accusing him of being a rockets fan trolling is not OK.

If people bother you, ignore them (notice that when bigmean posts on T&T literally no one ever responds to his ideas? that's because if you think they're dumb, you just don't engage).

Let people be wrong sometimes. And sometimes conventional wisdom IS wrong. (For example, Grant turning into a 3pt shooter? I argued for Pat Pat starting).

[Andre Roberstan]

I accept my role in fostering this as well. I’m not innocent. In fact, sometimes I enjoy triggering Bondom because it’s so easy.

This is literally trolling, and it's not OK.

[slick_watts]

It's hard to say what adding him would do. While he is the superior defender, and they both contribute minimally on offense , I think top rated d without him is pretty good. The team would be in a similar position with him as they are now. The token **** guy at sg that is only expected to defend is pretty interchangeable, as long as that guy is serviceable defensively.

you've said this over and over but it's never been true. this is the first time in years that the thunder have demonstrated defensive aptitude without andre roberson-- and the biggest change isn't losing roberson, it's losing anthony.

yes, having the top ranked defense is 'pretty good'. but there's no magical ceiling for defensive performance. would replacing terrance ferguson with andre roberson make the defense even better? of course it would. because andre roberson is an elite defensive player and terrance ferguson is not. if the defense is even better, the team would be better, no?

Melo certainly killed the D last year. But to say they have somehow managed to construct an elite defense by adding a backup center, a guard (Schroeder) who most on here hate for some reason and isn't an elite defender, and starting grant seems like it was a pretty easy solution this whole time.

what are you talking about. they've constructed elite defenses before. they had an elite defense last year before 'dre got hurt! this isn't a new thing. they made up for losing 'dre by also losing melo, that ended up as a wash. considering melo's current status, and the defense's performance without him, wouldn't that say a whole lot about 'dre's impact on the defense last year that it was just as good even though it had someone as bad as melo in the rotation?

yes, getting rid of melo and / or not playing him was a pretty easy solution to making the defense a lot better. who would have thought that, huh?

They never should've needed or played Roberson as much. I also don't know why you always bring up waiters. Like it or not, the 2016 team that underachieved all year was at its peak in the playoffs when waiters miraculously played well, which is what it's all about. Regular season advanced stats don't win titles. You have to hit your ceiling in the playoffs, or just be the warriors.

because waiters is one of many potential roberson replacement your have championed over the years who have failed. the thunder have managed to have an elite defense without roberson so far, mostly due to melo being replaced. you thought melo was the bee's knees last year. you believe somehow this situation the thunder are in right now is fuel for your takes but really it's just another failure. the thunder have the same problems offensively they've had with 'dre (even worse, really), and unless you're willing to accept that terrance ferguson is an elite defensive player in 'dre's wheelhouse (untenable, even for you), the defensive performance is mostly due to replacing your boy carmelo.

[Andre Roberstan]

Ok bros (I say bros to include your whole Roberson posse.....pillendreher (the guy who like 15-20 games into the season still was trying to use stats to say patterson was better than grant, saying grant was the worst fit possible in today's NBA at pf (he's the perfect role player), "thunderbolt", bondom, spearsy, etc.), let's "take another look".

Mentioning names here is a fair point as you're addressing specific arguments they've made, but make sure you and Pille don't get personal. Stick to posts not posters.

(Nothing wrong with this atm. Just making a note. We return you to your regularly scheduled programming.)

[getrichordie]

I accept my role in fostering this as well. I’m not innocent. In fact, sometimes I enjoy triggering Bondom because it’s so easy.

This is literally trolling, and it's not OK.

Which is why I clearly made it a point to let you know that I understand my part in this and that I will cease trolling Bondom.

[Andre Roberstan]

It's not a troll comment, TB. Pillendreher is incredibly arrogant, routinely calls me things like 'dolt', yet it took him a year and a half to realize patterson stunk, and that grant was good. You guys are so smug when you team up on people, now there are people who don't take your BS and give it back. You guys all flip, bondom is saying he's leaving the board for the 1000th time. Stop talking like your such experts, otherwise get trolled when you make dumb takes like patterson is better than grant. And btw, pillendreher is still standing by the argument that grant isn't legit.

Personal attacks are banned in rules—if I missed something, it happens, and I apologize. Report and move on—I can't be everywhere.

But if you do troll, expect to get warned.

[Pillendreher]

Ok bros (I say bros to include your whole Roberson posse.....pillendreher (the guy who like 15-20 games into the season still was trying to use stats to say patterson was better than grant, saying grant was the worst fit possible in today's NBA at pf (he's the perfect role player), "thunderbolt", bondom, spearsy, etc.), let's "take another look".

Mentioning names here is a fair point as you're addressing specific arguments they've made, but make sure you and Pille don't get personal. Stick to posts not posters.

(Nothing wrong with this atm. Just making a note. We return you to your regularly scheduled programming.)

Can I at least get credit for knowing the words "dolt" and "daft" as a non-native speaker?

[Andre Roberstan]

Ok bros (I say bros to include your whole Roberson posse.....pillendreher (the guy who like 15-20 games into the season still was trying to use stats to say patterson was better than grant, saying grant was the worst fit possible in today's NBA at pf (he's the perfect role player), "thunderbolt", bondom, spearsy, etc.), let's "take another look".

Mentioning names here is a fair point as you're addressing specific arguments they've made, but make sure you and Pille don't get personal. Stick to posts not posters.

(Nothing wrong with this atm. Just making a note. We return you to your regularly scheduled programming.)

Can I at least get credit for knowing the words "dolt" and "daft" as a non-native speaker?

I give you props for that at least.

[slick_watts]

btw. i don't think anyone has ever implied that replacing andre roberson wasn't possible. there are a lot of better players than him. most are either expensive or difficult to get. roberson's defensive impact is well supported by a lot of different kinds of evidence over the last several seasons. the thunder having an elite defense without him is a fantastic thing-- this feels like golden state potentially adding demarcus cousins to their offense.

hardenASG13-- you do have chest pounding privileges on jerami grant. you were right on the mark with him and he has proven a lot of people wrong with his play. even if his shooting doesn't keep up, he's improved on a lot of other things. if i was you, that would be my victory lap here. roberson is not it.

[Mattv]

You can't gloat how much better he was than brewer (out of the league), but ignore they still have the best defense in the league without him. Youre simply ignoring the fact that you don't like.

I'm not ignoring anything. I've laid them out before you, but you can't acknowledge them because that'd go directly against your whole agenda.

The offense is freed up because all 5 guys are now guarded by the defense, and demand a closeout, a concept that if you don't get you probably never will.

Where is this need for a "closeout" coming from when the Roberson replacement is not even replacement level good from 3? Have you paid attention to our games lately? How teams prefer to stick to Adams and prevent Westbrook from getting to the rim over our "shooters"?

Oh so adams and George with Roberson had a better rating than with Ferguson huh. Wow do I feel like a dolt!

Wait, let me get this straight: Did you just switch your argument from "WE'RE BETTER THAN EVER I TOLD YOU IDOTS" to "Well, we're not better, but I don't care"?

They are still very good with Ferguson. It hasn't (negatively) effected wins and losses.

How can you say that? You don't know that. It stands to reason that the defense would have been at an historically good level with Roberson playing since they replaced Anthony with Grant defensively. And that would have affected wins and losses for sure, simply because the team would have been better overall.

Ferguson also isn't very good, and wouldn't be getting much if any minutes on any other playoff team.

You have to pick a side. It's either "Roberson is useless" or not. You can't point him in a bad light like you've been doing and then hide behind "player xy is not very good" if the whole argument comes crashing down. The guy can't be utterly useless and non-replaceable by anybody at the same time.

And to your adams point.....yes Noel is an adequate backup center. He was available for nothing. Has nothing to do with Roberson.

Oh no, Mister. You're not getting out of that one. You can't go around citing

Best defensive rating in the league.

as a point against Roberson (ie that we don't need him) and then retreat to this silly excuse. The bench is a big part of our overall defensive performance and it's not something Roberson has or would have had anything to do with.

You laid what out? They have the best rated defense in the league, without Andre Roberson. Yes, the bench is playing good D. What's your point? I've been told for years how Roberson was the reason for the teams great defense and was such a valuable piece. Well, how hard was it to fix the bench D? They brought in a backup center on a minimum deal, Schroeder, and drafted diallo, rendering Robersons absence into a complete non issue. What are they missing that Roberson brought?

To your other ridiculous comments, I'm not switching any argument, just hammering home that Roberson hasn't been missed. A worse 3 man rating with Ferguson, who isn't very good, hasn't hurt the team. They are one of the best in the league. Do you think any other playoff team would be playing Ferguson these minutes? What's it say about the great Andre Roberson when he can be replaced by Ferguson, with minimal to no negative impact. Still the top rated defense. You guys simply were duped by the okc media re: Robersons impact over the years.

Well Roberson was a elite defender ever one elese a good defender.Theres one thing that Roberson brought that the other dont and beside Diallo no one else cuts to the basket that's something else that Roberson does.

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[getrichordie]

It's not a troll comment, TB. Pillendreher is incredibly arrogant, routinely calls me things like 'dolt', yet it took him a year and a half to realize patterson stunk, and that grant was good. You guys are so smug when you team up on people, now there are people who don't take your BS and give it back. You guys all flip, bondom is saying he's leaving the board for the 1000th time. Stop talking like your such experts, otherwise get trolled when you make dumb takes like patterson is better than grant. And btw, pillendreher is still standing by the argument that grant isn't legit.

Personal attacks are banned in rules—if I missed something, it happens, and I apologize. Report and move on—I can't be everywhere.

But if you do troll, expect to get warned.

His overall point still stands... his feelings further illustrate the points I made in my previous post about Bondom and this board as a whole.


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[hardenASG13]

It's hard to say what adding him would do. While he is the superior defender, and they both contribute minimally on offense , I think top rated d without him is pretty good. The team would be in a similar position with him as they are now. The token **** guy at sg that is only expected to defend is pretty interchangeable, as long as that guy is serviceable defensively.

you've said this over and over but it's never been true. this is the first time in years that the thunder have demonstrated defensive aptitude without andre roberson-- and the biggest change isn't losing roberson, it's losing anthony.

yes, having the top ranked defense is 'pretty good'. but there's no magical ceiling for defensive performance. would replacing terrance ferguson with andre roberson make the defense even better? of course it would. because andre roberson is an elite defensive player and terrance ferguson is not. if the defense is even better, the team would be better, no?

Melo certainly killed the D last year. But to say they have somehow managed to construct an elite defense by adding a backup center, a guard (Schroeder) who most on here hate for some reason and isn't an elite defender, and starting grant seems like it was a pretty easy solution this whole time.

what are you talking about. they've constructed elite defenses before. they had an elite defense last year before 'dre got hurt! this isn't a new thing. they made up for losing 'dre by also losing melo, that ended up as a wash. considering melo's current status, and the defense's performance without him, wouldn't that say a whole lot about 'dre's impact on the defense last year that it was just as good even though it had someone as bad as melo in the rotation?

yes, getting rid of melo and / or not playing him was a pretty easy solution to making the defense a lot better. who would have thought that, huh?

They never should've needed or played Roberson as much. I also don't know why you always bring up waiters. Like it or not, the 2016 team that underachieved all year was at its peak in the playoffs when waiters miraculously played well, which is what it's all about. Regular season advanced stats don't win titles. You have to hit your ceiling in the playoffs, or just be the warriors.

because waiters is one of many potential roberson replacement your have championed over the years who have failed. the thunder have managed to have an elite defense without roberson so far, mostly due to melo being replaced. you thought melo was the bee's knees last year. you believe somehow this situation the thunder are in right now is fuel for your takes but really it's just another failure. the thunder have the same problems offensively they've had with 'dre (even worse, really), and unless you're willing to accept that terrance ferguson is an elite defensive player in 'dre's wheelhouse (untenable, even for you), the defensive performance is mostly due to replacing your boy carmelo.

Love how you always shift to melo too. I had high hopes for him. It was really the only chance the team had to be good. Why wouldn't i have supported that. He didn't come through....

[hardenASG13]

btw. i don't think anyone has ever implied that replacing andre roberson wasn't possible. there are a lot of better players than him. most are either expensive or difficult to get. roberson's defensive impact is well supported by a lot of different kinds of evidence over the last several seasons. the thunder having an elite defense without him is a fantastic thing-- this feels like golden state potentially adding demarcus cousins to their offense.

hardenASG13-- you do have chest pounding privileges on jerami grant. you were right on the mark with him and he has proven a lot of people wrong with his play. even if his shooting doesn't keep up, he's improved on a lot of other things. if i was you, that would be my victory lap here. roberson is not it.

I've had many arguments over replacing him. I've been told he's better than Marcus smart, that he was better offensively than tj warren because of his percentages.....it is what It is I guess, just wanted to revisit as you suggested, as they are still the top ranked defense without him and were now about halfway through the season.

[hardenASG13]

Did you actually try reading? What are the difference between last year's Russ and this year's Russ offensively?

You have to be kidding or clueless.....

Let's try this again, what is the difference between Westbrook last year and this year offensively?

Do you watch any games? If you can't see a noticeable drop in his game I'm not sure it's worth continuing with you.....hes been alot worse this year

[hardenASG13]

I'm not ignoring anything. I've laid them out before you, but you can't acknowledge them because that'd go directly against your whole agenda.



Where is this need for a "closeout" coming from when the Roberson replacement is not even replacement level good from 3? Have you paid attention to our games lately? How teams prefer to stick to Adams and prevent Westbrook from getting to the rim over our "shooters"?



Wait, let me get this straight: Did you just switch your argument from "WE'RE BETTER THAN EVER I TOLD YOU IDOTS" to "Well, we're not better, but I don't care"?



How can you say that? You don't know that. It stands to reason that the defense would have been at an historically good level with Roberson playing since they replaced Anthony with Grant defensively. And that would have affected wins and losses for sure, simply because the team would have been better overall.



You have to pick a side. It's either "Roberson is useless" or not. You can't point him in a bad light like you've been doing and then hide behind "player xy is not very good" if the whole argument comes crashing down. The guy can't be utterly useless and non-replaceable by anybody at the same time.



Oh no, Mister. You're not getting out of that one. You can't go around citing



as a point against Roberson (ie that we don't need him) and then retreat to this silly excuse. The bench is a big part of our overall defensive performance and it's not something Roberson has or would have had anything to do with.

You laid what out? They have the best rated defense in the league, without Andre Roberson. Yes, the bench is playing good D. What's your point? I've been told for years how Roberson was the reason for the teams great defense and was such a valuable piece. Well, how hard was it to fix the bench D? They brought in a backup center on a minimum deal, Schroeder, and drafted diallo, rendering Robersons absence into a complete non issue. What are they missing that Roberson brought?

To your other ridiculous comments, I'm not switching any argument, just hammering home that Roberson hasn't been missed. A worse 3 man rating with Ferguson, who isn't very good, hasn't hurt the team. They are one of the best in the league. Do you think any other playoff team would be playing Ferguson these minutes? What's it say about the great Andre Roberson when he can be replaced by Ferguson, with minimal to no negative impact. Still the top rated defense. You guys simply were duped by the okc media re: Robersons impact over the years.

Well Roberson was a elite defender ever one elese a good defender.Theres one thing that Roberson brought that the other dont and beside Diallo no one else cuts to the basket that's something else that Roberson does.

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He did cut occasionally, not nearly enough until last season when he finally stopped taking 3s. Of course, it's easier to cut when the defense isn't even watching you. I don't think Ferguson, abrines, or really any perimeter rotation player in the league has quite the same luxury.

[spearsy23]

You have to be kidding or clueless.....

Let's try this again, what is the difference between Westbrook last year and this year offensively?

Do you watch any games? If you can't see a noticeable drop in his game I'm not sure it's worth continuing with you.....hes been alot worse this year

Nothing that I've disputed. What's the difference between last year Russ and this year Russ offensively?

[slick_watts]

Love how you always shift to melo too. I had high hopes for him. It was really the only chance the team had to be good. Why wouldn't i have supported that. He didn't come through....

we're talking about the thunder defense being elite this year. losing melo is why. and there's a difference between supporting a player and supporting your opinions. everyone here wants every thunder player to succeed. that doesn't change reality.

I've had many arguments over replacing him. I've been told he's better than Marcus smart, that he was better offensively than tj warren because of his percentages.....it is what It is I guess, just wanted to revisit as you suggested, as they are still the top ranked defense without him and were now about halfway through the season.

i dunno about better offensively than t.j. warren but andre roberson has definitely been better than marcus smart overall.

yes, we should continue to re-visit this. the thunder being an elite defense is exciting, and the potential for the team with a healthy andre roberson might be 2008 celtics level defense. i don't think we're getting a healthy roberson, though. nothing of what has happened this year changes what roberson was, and how valuable he was to the team. it really casts a shadow on melo more than anything.

[Andre Roberstan]

It's not a troll comment, TB. Pillendreher is incredibly arrogant, routinely calls me things like 'dolt', yet it took him a year and a half to realize patterson stunk, and that grant was good. You guys are so smug when you team up on people, now there are people who don't take your BS and give it back. You guys all flip, bondom is saying he's leaving the board for the 1000th time. Stop talking like your such experts, otherwise get trolled when you make dumb takes like patterson is better than grant. And btw, pillendreher is still standing by the argument that grant isn't legit.

Personal attacks are banned in rules—if I missed something, it happens, and I apologize. Report and move on—I can't be everywhere.

But if you do troll, expect to get warned.

His overall point still stands... his feelings further illustrate the points I made in my previous post about Bondom and this board as a whole.


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You've made your point. Belaboring it further will likely only further inflame tensions.

[Pillendreher]

Marc Stein prediction in his latest newsletter:

Oklahoma City will prove to be Golden State’s foremost threat in the West
The most encouraging thing you can say about Golden State’s raggedy first half is that you’d seriously struggle to identify a team in the Warriors’ conference that you can actually picture beating the two-time reigning champions four times in a playoff series.
Houston has risen from a nightmarish 14th in the West to No. 5 entering 2019, but the Rockets have essentially needed James Harden to score 40 points a night to do so. Can Harden realistically keep that up and still have something left in May and June?
With Utah still falling well short of preseason expectations and Denver difficult to endorse as a credible contender considering that these Nuggets have no playoff experience, Oklahoma City looms as the West resident with the best shot at derailing the Warriors from a fifth consecutive trip to the N.B.A. finals.
Chances are it still won’t be enough to topple the Warriors, but the Thunder do boast the league’s No. 1-ranked defense and two of the game’s top 15 (or so) players with Russell Westbrook and a better-than-ever Paul George.

[getrichordie]

Personal attacks are banned in rules—if I missed something, it happens, and I apologize. Report and move on—I can't be everywhere.

But if you do troll, expect to get warned.

His overall point still stands... his feelings further illustrate the points I made in my previous post about Bondom and this board as a whole.


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You've made your point. Belaboring it further will likely only further inflame tensions.

Agreed. My apologies. I just wanted to make sure you noticed the root of these issues and it wasn’t going to be swept under the rug. Forgive me for being skeptical of your abilities/character. I’ve seen too many instances where people in positions of power and influence only serve themselves and their friends/clique.


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