Ding Dong the Witch is Dead

I swear that last night as I was walking up to the ThunderDome I saw PJ's loafers and khaki's sticking out from underneath the building and then, as I got closer, the loafers disappeared and the khaki's shriveled up. Two and a half hours later 19,000 plus munchkins were still in the stands and on their feet cheering a one point loss (99-98 and Steve Nash proved he is still one of the best in the game).

This was a new chapter in Oklahoma City Thunder basketball.

Look, PJ isn't the wicked witch. I've only met one person associated with this team and it was PJ. He was, dare I say, delightful and it's foolish to say that everything is his fault. But the contrast between the Hornets game last Friday and the game against the Suns last night was staggering and the only difference was no PJ at the end of the bench.

Some "beyond the box score" examples:

On Friday night when Jeff Green was introduced to the crowd he walked out like he was meeting a Jehova's Witness at his front door. Against the Suns it looked like all the players were on trampolines.

People were smiling everywhere. During one timeout, with the crowd on its' feet, the coaches huddled up on the court like they always do and Mark Bryant had to bite his lip to keep from smiling and the coaches all just looked at each other and shook their heads like, "Can you believe how much fun this is?"

The players were clearly having fun also. The bench was on its' feet at the end of the first half and most of the second. Players raced to pick each other up off the court. They were more demonstrative than any game that I can remember. They were being creative and it showed with 28 assists (they average 17 on the season).

The energy was palpable throughout the arena and the entire game. There was that synergy between team and fans that had defined the Hornets era. The fans for their part learned that these guys can be likeable and good and a hell of a lot of fun to watch. The players got to see the infectious energy and enthusiasm this crowd can provide. Until now it was only the stuff of legend.

One moment though will stay with me. At the end of the game, after having lost by one point, Kevin Durant stood under the basket by himself and he was just looking around, soaking everything in. He looked like he was trying to capture the pain of the loss and the feeling of how creative and fun basketball can be. I don't know if that's what he was doing but if so it was a neat thing to see.

At the end of the day the standings will say 1-14 but in my mind the Thunder are a competitive 0-2 and the future is looking brighter. Close losses to the Hornets and Suns are nothing to be ashamed of and with the way the team is playing the wins will come soon enough.

Happy Thanksgiving.