OKC Fans Can Expect Entertainment, Not Wins

I wish I could say "I told you so" about C.J. Miles looking to leave, but dudes, it was one rough joke at the time. (Full story here.) So good luck to Morris Almond, a class act who looks to slide into C.J.'s slot if the Jazz don't match OKC's offer to the streaky second-rounder.

All of which brings me to a column Tim Cowlishaw penned this week: Wise words of advice for the new fans. The choice passage:

As a native son, it is past time for me to welcome our neighbors to the north to the NBA. You are going to love it.

One word of warning: Don't expect a winner anytime soon.

Or ever.

You think just because the Seattle Sonics went 29 years without a title means the Oklahoma Team With No Name or Colors is due?

And here, for once, I'd like to hand it to the Oklahoma team for doing something right. I've long insisted the absence of Chris Paul would make for quite a different NBA experience. We'd all assumed that Sam Presti, he of the impeccable Spurs pedigree, would look to build calmly and rationally around Kevin Durant. Certainly, drafting Jeff Green seemed in line with this thinking. But bringing in Miles and selecting Russell Westbrook this summer does seem to be making fireworks a priority. If a team's going to drop tons of games, and have to wait forever before it has any possibility of joining the elite—as Cowlishaw rightly prophesizes—why not make it fun for fans?

They'll find a point guard at some point, P.J. Carlesimo won't last, and the novelty of the team and its exciting, if futile, play will wear off just as Presti starts to work his serious kind of magic. All of which underscores the fact that, while winning matters, local enthusiasm might be even more important. If they're primed to make a night out of the NBA, at least give them something to talk about. Dark horse in this category: Your (potentially Seattle-bound) Memphis Grizzlies.

This post originally appeared on the Sporting Blog. For more, see The Sporting Blog Archives.