NBA All Star Honorable Mentions – Thunder Edition

The OKC Thunder has a mixed bag of how to view the often loathed NBA All Star Weekend. On the positive side, Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook earned enough votes from the fans to be named automatic starters for the Western Conference, and the only two players from the same team to be named starters.

However, no other player was selected to participate in the other weekend events. In the past, guys like Steven Adams, Serge Ibaka and James Harden were part of the “Rising Stars” event. Ibaka was a Slam Dunk contestant in 2011. Scott Brooks was the Western Conference coach in 2013. Even Durant was in the three-point contest in 2011 and 2012, while Westbrook and Reggie Jackson have combined for four appearances in the Skills Challenge.

There are alternatives to honor the Thunder players who will likely be sitting in the arena in a suit. Here are some honorable mentions that have potential to be incorporated into future NBA All Star weekends.

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Epic Mustache Contest

The Thunder have this one locked down. When your biggest competition is Kurt Rambis, Adam Morrison, and the occasional LeBron James, I’m not worried.

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Best Player to Leave Original Team to become an All Star

James Harden made his first All Star appearance in his first season at Houston after the infamous trade. It was as though he knew when he spent his final year in OKC that stardom was right around the corner, just not with the Thunder.

Although Reggie Jackson didn’t get in this year, I think he will join Harden as an ex-Thunder to hit the big stage. The only player ahead of Reggie to leave his original team and become an All Star this year is Isaiah Thomas Jr. Both were selected in the 2011 draft, Reggie at 24th overall and Thomas dead last at 60th overall. It looks like Thomas has more to prove, including he is more than just the son of his Hall of Fame father.

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Coolest Veteran

Despite having less than one decade of its own history, the Thunder brought in a couple of veterans at the tail end of their careers who have respective impacts on the organization.

Desmond Mason, an Oklahoma State graduate, spent the majority of his final playing days in OKC, and now has his own art studio in Midtown and contributes to 107.7 The Franchise as a Thunder analyst. Mason has recently been rumored to be an option to replace Travis Ford as OSU’s head coach.

Mase should probably take a note from recently-fired New York Knicks head coach Derek Fisher, who had zero head coaching experience before taking the job. Fisher spent the final three years of his career off and on in OKC, and helped the team make the Finals in 2012. Fisher sealed his legacy in the “awesome” category when he recently banged Matt Barnes’ ex-wife.

Speaking of wives.

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Craziest Wife

Yes, Kendrick Perkins is no longer with the Thunder. But, when you consider what she did while living in OKC, she certainly qualifies. Not only did she terrorize a nail salon with her husband, the more bizarre twist was her interview with Governor Mary Fallin. If she still lived in Oklahoma, I wouldn’t feel bad calling her “Hoodster Boo Boo.”

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Best Felon

From a USA Today article posted January 2015:

The Snohomish County sheriff’s spokeswoman, Shari Ireton, tells KIRO the 29-year-old former Sonic was arrested on a warrant from an earlier gun charge and jailed in Seattle. The warrant was issued in November after Swift failed to show up in court on a charge of possessing a sawed-off shotgun that was found in an October raid on a home in Kirkland where he was living. His roommate was charged with drug offenses. The King County prosecutor’s office says he’s scheduled for arraignment on the gun charge Monday in King County Superior Court.

By December 2009, the Thunder had dropped Swift. He probably doesn’t qualify because of limited time with the team, and his crime happening after his departure. But until the Sonics are back in Seattle, we should take advantage of the “shared history” and claim him as our own. It’s not like he’s going to win over guys like Gilbert Arenas, so it’s technically not stealing.

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Best/Worst Haircut

Jeremy Lin so far has the Worst Haircut award locked up, but it’s important to note the Thunder have two solid competitors in this category. Kyle Singler is easily the weirdest looking dude by default, but to throw in the Justin Bieber-esque, slicked-down ginger bangs makes you wonder if part of that $25 million could have gone to a better barber.

Cameron Payne’s dew is more difficult to determine. Is it crappy bad or crappy good? Fros can range from the best where it’s a signature look for a superstar (see young Kobe Bryant), or it can look like a dead animal glued onto a player’s head (see Orlando’s Elfrid Payton). Because Payne is a rookie, I’m going to reserve judgment and check back next year.

Besides, the winner of best haircut this year is Russell Westbrook, last year’s All Star MVP.