A reading from the book of Kings
It is no accident, I submit, that Sacramento started Thunder castoff Desmond Mason at small forward: the Kings need all the perceived attitude they can get. Then again, they didn’t need that much, the Thunder still having no answer for the three-ball — Sacramento put up 26 of them, ten of which dropped — and Oklahoma City couldn’t buy a basket after the first quarter. The final was 104-89, and it really wasn’t that close: at one point the Kings had run up a lead of thirty-one. Oh, and Mason was assessed a technical in the third. Just like old times.
So the Loud Atmospheric Noises finish 2-5 in the preseason. Over an 82-game season, that averages out to 23-59. Last year, the Thunder finished with a record of — wait for it — 23-59.
From this point on, it’s all uphill.
