What might August be on the NBA calendar — other than an invitation for dreaded redrafts and for fanbases to mindlessly clash — if not for the league’s schedule release? The matchups. The storylines. The anticipation. All tangible, even while being two months from regular season NBA action. With plenty to dissect, The Oklahoman’s Thunder beat write…

The Thunder added Gordon Hayward at the trade deadline Thursday. Beat writer Joel Lorenzi and columnist Joe Mussatto break down the deal.By The Oklahoman

Thunder beat writer Joel Lorenzi and columnist Joe Mussatto recap the Thunder's extended road trip and look back on the 2022 NBA Draft. Where would Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams go today?By The Oklahoman

Thunder beat writer Joel Lorenzi and columnist Joe Mussatto grade the Thunder's top-eight rotation players through the halfway mark of the season.By The Oklahoman

Thunder beat writer Joel Lorenzi and columnist Joe Mussatto recap the Thunder's East Coast trip, talk Aaron Wiggins' value and discuss the Ringer's updated player rankings.By The Oklahoman

Thunder beat writer Joel Lorenzi and columnist Joe Mussatto recap the Thunder's loss in Atlanta and make some rest-of-season predictions for OKCBy The Oklahoman

Thunder beat writer Joel Lorenzi and columnist Joe Mussatto talk OKC's tough January schedule and ask the question: Do the Thunder need to make a trade?By The Oklahoman

Thunder beat writer Joel Lorenzi and columnist Joe Mussatto talk Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's game-winner in Denver, Chet Holmgren's place among rookie greats and where SGA ranks in the MVP race.By The Oklahoman

Oklahoma City residents voted yes Tuesday night to fund a new downtown arena. Thunder beat writer Joel Lorenzi and columnist Joe Mussatto break down the vote, what it means and what happens next. They also discuss their favorite arenas in the NBA.By The Oklahoman

Thunder beat writer Joel Lorenzi and columnist Joe Mussatto recap the Thunder's loss in Houston, Josh Giddey's ongoing struggles and what might change with OKC's guard rotation.By The Oklahoman

Meet Joel Lorenzi, The Oklahoman's new Thunder beat writer. Joel and columnist Joe Mussatto talk Joel's background, his early Thunder thoughts, his reporting on Josh Giddey and more.By The Oklahoman

After 95 incredibly fun podcasts, Michael Martin will be hosting his last Thunder Buddies podcast today. Michael explains what is going down, the timeline of events and what is up next for him. The Thunder Buddies: Joe Mussatto and Michael Martin then break down their most interesting storylines ahead of Sam Presti’s media availability and Thunder …

You all had questions and we had answers! The Thunder Buddies: Joe Mussatto and Michael Martin have a special mailbag pod with questions from all of you great listeners. We discuss rotation staples, possible trades, Shai’s writing skills, best-case scenarios for next season and more! For more Thunder Buddies Podcast updates, Thunder news, highlight…

Today the Thunder Buddies are joined by a familiar face under a new title! Joe Mussatto, now a sports columnist, is back on the pod with Michael Martin and ready to talk Thunder basketball. Kicking things off we discussed the new Thunder arena announcements/news that came out on Tuesday night, what it means and more. Then the Thunder Buddies give t…

The Canadians made history this weekend lead by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander as they beat Team USA for the bronze medal in FIBA basketball. This is the first FIBA medal for Canada ever and their first medal in men’s basketball since the 1936 Olympics. Michael Martin is riding solo on this bite-sized pod breaking down Shai’s FIBA performance, Team Canada…

While most Thunder fans were sound asleep, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Lu Dort and Team Canada were in FIBA action against Serbia across the globe. The Canadians came up short, but Michael Martin and guest Rylan Stiles have all the info and breakdown from the game. Then we pivot to the future and preview Canada taking on Team USA for the bronze medal,…

The 2018 NBA Draft battle is going overseas as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Team Canada will take on Luka Doncic and Team Slovenia. We have a short preview of the game and how they have matched up against each other in the NBA since Shai was traded to OKC. Next up is a really fun exercise of “Right team, wrong time” Thunder players. The Thunder Budd…

The NBA is the sport that never sleeps. Earlier this week a rumor/report came out from an anonymous Western Conference executive claiming the Thunder are in the best position to go after Giannis if they want to. The Thunder Buddies: Joe Mussatto and Michael Martin break down the news, what it means, is it real and more. Then to celebrate the 15-yea…

We have real actual basketball to talk about! The FIBA World Cup is in group play. Team Canada was in action earlier this morning led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and even earlier Josh Giddey led the Boomers and Team Australia to a win over Japan. Then the Thunder Buddies: Joe Mussatto and Michael Martin fantasy draft FIBA players to build the best t…

Today on the Thunder Buddies: Michael Martin, Derek Parker, Rylan Stiles and Clemente Almanza have assembled like Voltron to give out some wild and fun, “would you rather” Thunder questions going into the 2023-2024 season. A unique pod for sure where the four get into some fun questions and discuss some expectations for next season. For more Thunde…

Today on the Thunder Buddies: Michael Martin, Derek Parker, Rylan Stiles and Clemente Almanza have assembled like voltron to give out their best, “would you rather” Thunder questions going into the 2023-2024 season. A fun one for sure where the four get into some fun questions and discuss some expectations for next season. For more Thunder Buddies …

The Thunder roster crunch has been the topic of the summer in OKC. Earlier this week the Thunder cut ties with two former Houston Rocket first-round picks in TyTy Washington and Usman Garuba. The Thunder Buddies: Joe Mussatto and Michael Martin break down the news, when it happened and why we feel like this may have happened. Then it's trivia time!…

Yesterday was a big day on the NBA calendar! It was schedule release day! Now we know the exact time and date of every Oklahoma City Thunder game in 2023-2024. Today on the Thunder Buddies: Michael Martin is joined by Brandon Rahbar of Daily Thunder to discuss and break down the top 5 Thunder games we are looking forward to most this season. For mo…

For this edition of the Thunder Buddies a special guest joined us: James Edwards III of the Athletic who is a senior NBA writer, Detroit Pistons reporter and podcaster. We get a different perspective on Thunder’s core from an outside source with his finger on the pulse of the NBA. A ton of fun in this one breaking down Shai’s status in the NBA, the…

We needed questions and you all came through! So it's only appropriate we answered as many as we could! The Thunder Buddies: Joe Mussatto and Michael Martin answer and discuss your great questions about the Thunder, the NBA and more! For more Thunder Buddies Podcast updates, Thunder news, highlights and more make sure to follow @ThunderBudPod on Tw…

I hope I am not shocking or surprising anyone by asking this, but did you know the Thunder have a roster crunch and need to cut down some numbers? It seems with all the roster crunch talk it is always talking about the cases against these guys to stay on the roster. In this episode, we decided to flip this idea on its head! Michael Martin is joined…

This is NOT a player ranking. Inspired by Bill Simmons' trade value columns, the Thunder Buddies: Joe Mussatto and Michael Martin tier every member of the Thunder roster, explain their reasoning for tiering, how trade value can be measured, contract value and more hypothetical fun! For more Thunder Buddies Podcast updates, Thunder news, highlights …

Don’t forget how the Thunder got here. There is tons of talk about the Thunder’s far away new arena plans and there is already murmuring about the city vote on the plans. The Thunder Buddies: Michael Martin and Berry Tramel breakdown more arena news, the history of NBA teams relocating and their reason for leaving. Then we dive into the comparisons…

First Danillo Galinari, Mike Muscala, Eugene Omoruyi and now Jared Butler? It feels like there's a recent Thunder migration to the Washington Wizards. The Thunder Buddies: Joe Mussatto and Michael Martin have all the Butler news, why this happened and more. Then we get into some Q&A fun with questions coming from the beautiful people who listen to …

Yesterday Mayor David Holt made a big announcement pushing forward momentum on a new downtown arena that would be the home for the Thunder. The Thunder Buddies: Joe Mussatto and Michael Martin breakdown all the new arena news, why this is happening, why now, what does this mean for OKC, the Thunder’s involvement, big picture things and finally we d…

Right before this podcast was recorded news broke that Mark Daigneault has agreed to a contract extension with the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Thunder Buddies: Joe Mussatto and Michael Martin breakdown the news, why this happened, what it says about the Thunder’s confidence in Mark and more. Then a massive deep dive into expectations for Chet Holmgr…

As Summer League is coming to a close, it is only appropriate that we talk about our biggest takeaways from the games. The Thunder Buddies: Joe Mussatto and Michael Martin breakdown their biggest takeaways, lessons learned and more from Salt Lake City and Las Vegas Summer League for the Thunder. The NBA and Vegas had more news this week as the spec…

Summer League is in full swing! Cason Wallace shined in his first game for the Thunder. The Thunder Buddies: Joe Mussatto and Michael Martin breakdown Cason’s debut, Joe’s time in Vegas this week, watching Victor Wembenyama in person, All the Chet chat in SLC/Sin City and finally Joe and Michael discuss how the Thunder currently having 20 rostered …

We are in full Summer League swing with the Salt Lake City games wrapped up and now OKC will make their way to Las Vegas for more games. The Thunder Buddies: Berry Tramel and Michael Martin on today’s podcast deep dive into some recent history of European hoops as a way to gage how good Micic could be in OKC, How Tre has become the Mann in SLC and …

The Thunder did the unexpected this week and signed Vasilje Micic! The Thunder Buddies: Joe Mussatto and Michael Martin breakdown the Micic signing, why now, how he fits with OKC, the Thunder adding assets alongside Victor Oladipo and Patty Mills, the Thunder adding Jack White, who he is, a short scouting report, our top 3 things for Thunder fans t…

The Thunder Buddies: Joe Mussatto and Michael Martin have talked about Cason on a variety of podcasts and different episodes and segments. We thought it would be fun to do a super cut of all the Cason Wallace conversations we have had on the Thunder Buddies. The clips are all in chronological order going back to May with Derek Parker and Rafael Bar…

The draft is over and we finished up the Thunder rookie introductory press conference on Saturday, but the season never stops! The Thunder Buddies: Joe Mussatto and Michael Martin discuss their biggest takeaways from meeting the rookies for the first time, catching up with Mark Daigneault and Sam Presti. Then we have a fun exercise talking about li…

It finally happened! After months of discussion, research and more the 2023 NBA Draft delivered all the classic moments you would expect. The Thunder had an eventful night themselves trading up to 10 to take Kentucky guard Cason Wallace. The Thunder Buddies: Joe Mussatto and Michael Martin breakdown Cason’s game, his fit in OKC, what all went down …

The draft is two days away! We are inching closer to knowing who the Thunder will add to their roster in the 2023 NBA Draft this Thursday. The Thunder Buddies: Joe Mussatto and Michael Martin kick off the pod by discussing the recent Vasilije Micic news, why he is in OKC, what it means, and more. Next up Joe and Michael break down their top 5 Thund…

As the draft gets closer we get more and more of a consensus of the top 5, top 10 and more for prospects. Although that is nice, sometimes tiers are the better way to distinguish the range players are in! The Thunder Buddies: Joe Mussatto and Michael Martin tier 20 top 2023 draft prospects in some fun tiers and break down the games of the future NB…

Are you all ready for the NBA Draft? Even during the finals Sam Presti is still working and made a trade with the Denver Nuggets. The Thunder Buddies: Joe Mussatto and Michael Martin breakdown the trade, why both teams did it and who on the roster benefits from the deal. After Michael gives us a deep dive on recent lottery draft trades along with i…

We are less than 2 weeks away from the 2023 NBA Draft! Bilal Coulibaly has been the talk of the draft recently and rocketed up draft boards. Michael Martin is joined by Tyler Rucker of No Ceilings to break down Bilal’s game, fit with the Thunder, scouting report and more along with a deep dive into Rayan Rupert! This was a really fun and in-depth c…

The Thunder Buddies: Joe Mussatto and Michael Martin are back and ready to talk more basketball! Today on the Thunder Buddies, Joe and Michael discuss good and bad lessons the Thunder can learn from the 8 teams who made the playoffs out of the East. What mistakes can the Thunder avoid making that hurt these teams? What can the Thunder copy or emula…

The Thunder Buddies: Joe Mussatto and Michael Martin are back and ready to talk more OKC hoops! Today on the Thunder Buddies, Joe and Michael discuss the good and bad lessons the Thunder can learn from the 8 teams who made the playoffs out of the West. What mistakes can the Thunder avoid making that hurt these teams? What can the Thunder copy or em…

The 2023 NBA Draft is only 23 days away! Today on the Thunder Buddies Michael Martin is joined by the Director of scouting for the NBA Big Board, Founder of the NBA Draft Junkies and host of the Locked on NBA Draft podcast: Rafael Barlowe! Michael and Rafael break down 6 different high-level draft prospects in the Thunder’s range at 12 and a couple…

The Thunder have been no strangers to making trades and especially during the NBA draft. Last year Sam Presti pulled the trigger and moved up to get Ousmane Dieng. Who is to say that won’t happen again this year with the Thunder still having a war chest of assets to deal with? The Thunder Buddies: Joe Mussatto and Michael Martin breakdown three of …

It is finally Draft SZN! That means it is time to get some deep dives into the prospects in the draft, evaluate their skill sets and their fit with teams in the draft. Michael Martin is joined on the Thunder Buddies by Derek Parker who is a co-founder of draft digest along with covering the Thunder. Michael and Derek breakdown Jordan Hawkins, Cason…

It is finally Draft SZN! That means it is time to get some deep dives into the prospects in the draft, evaluate their skill sets and their fit with teams in the draft. Michael Martin is joined on the Thunder Buddies by Derek Parker who is a co-founder of draft digest along with covering the Thunder. Michael and Derek breakdown Amen Thompson, Ausar …

It was a ping-pong ball party in Chicago as the NBA Lottery took place on Tuesday night to decide the draft order for the 2023 NBA Draft. The Thunder Buddies: Joe Mussatto and Michael Martin breakdown the Thunder standing pat at 12, draft possibilities, a few draft potential draft prospects, the Spurs winning the rights to Victor Wembanyama, Housto…

As the 2022-2023 Thunder season has ended, that means we need grades to recap each player's year! In this episode, The Thunder Buddies: Berry Tramel and Michael Martin breakdown Mark Daigneault, Jalen Williams and Jaylin Williams along with their preseason/deadline expectations for the guys, their highest and lowest moments of the season, season gr…