Via the Official Thunder Website:

We now have our official roster! Among them you can see this years draft picks, James Harden, B.J. Mullens, and Robert Vaden. For a detailed explanation of who they are, see my article entitled, "So, Who Did We Get?"

In any case, here's a break down of what to expect from each guy in the Summer League and going forward.

De'Angelo Alexander-

Ah, the former OU player is back. Still, don't expect much from the undrafted swingman. He played a little bit for CSU Acesoft (a Romanian Euroleague club) in 07-08, averaging a paltry 4.1 points and 3 rebounds in 8 games. And trust me, if you're barely scrounging up 4 points in Romania, you're not cut out for the NBA. I can't find anything on him since then. Expect him to do a lot of bench sitting.

Marcus Dove-

I don't follow college basketball, so I didn't know this guy until I looked him up, and he's a former Cowboy! Apparently, he's a stud defensively, but he wasn't drafted. After some searching, I found out that in 2008-2009, he signed with Verviers-Pepinster, a Belgian Euroleague team! If you're a die hard Thunder fan, you know that's where our old friend Saer Sene played ball before he was drafted by the SuperSonics. And hey, if Saer Sene can get drafted 10th averaging 3.1 Points and 4 Rebounds for that team, then if Marcus Dove averages 10.8 Points, 1.8 Steals, and 6 Rebounds playing for him, then he must be #1 pick material? Am I right? Well, back in reality land, he's probably good enough for the D-League, but certainly not good enough for the NBA. I'd expect him to play sparingly.

Moses Ehambe-

And completing our round of Oklahoma college guys is Moses Ehambe from Oral Roberts! Last year, he appeared regularly as a key reserve for the 66ers, averaging 10.1 Points and not much else. I'd expect some sparing play off the bench, but the management already knows what he's made of, so I wouldn't expect too much burn. Still, he easily has the best name on the roster.

Devon Hardin-

The man who has no relation to James Harden left us last year to go play for ESTIA Egalio, a Greek team. Here's my writeup of him from last year, when our blog was in it's infancy:

Was selected 50th in the second round of the NBA Draft this year. Had rather unimpressive numbers at Cal. Longar Longar is clearly much better than him, and would have brought some great hometown cheers (he played for the University of Oklahoma). But, quite frankly, even if Longar Longar was in his place, he would still be dead last on the roster. Devon Hardin was on the Summer League roster, but he didn't play. Maybe he was injured, maybe the coach hated him, or maybe he just didn't want to play. Fact is, it doesn't matter. With this packed roster, no one will be surprised to see DeVon go. I do like how he pronounces his name "De Von" instead of "Devin", though.

So, what has changed since then? Well, he's averaged 6.3 Points, 6.3 Rebounds, and 1.5 Blocked Shots while playing in Greece. These numbers aren't overwhelming, but nonetheless solid when they regularly play against teams like Panathinaikos. (For those of you who don't know, Greece is a strong basketball country.) Does this translate to success in the NBA? Not necessarily (See: Sarunas Jasikevicus and Arvydas Macijauskas). Still, I'd expect him to get some burn here, because we still haven't seen him play in an NBA environment since college.

Kyle Hines-

A Shooing Guard who was a Local Legend at the University of North Carolina....Greensboro. He has an impressive college resume, being one of only six players in NCAA history to score 2,000 points, grab 1,000 rebounds and block 300 shots in his career. Nevertheless, since he played at such a minor university, he went undrafted and signed with the Italian Club Prima Veroli. And, blow me down, his stats are pretty darned impressive. 16.9 Points, 8.6 Rebounds, 1.8 Blocks, and 3.0 Steals are pretty amazing stats. But, it should be noted that this is playing for a team in the second division....essentially, the D-League of Italy. I'd expect Hines to get some significant playing time, so it can be seen whether he's for real or not.

Serge Ibaka-

Okay, we've all seen the YouTube dunk mixes of this man, but how does he hold up as a player? Well, his stats are only so-so, but remember this guy plays in the big leagues of Euroleague basketball....not minor club teams like most of these other prospects. Playing for Ricoh Manresa, he averages 7.1 Points and 4.5 Rebounds. In essence, he's a 7th or 8th man. But, since we have invested a lot in this guy (22nd Pick), I'd expect him to see significant playing time, and have a good chance at the roster should he choose to cross the pond this year.

Shaun Livingston-

Okay, you know who he is. He'll get his minutes, he'll have fun dishing out assists and going on insane drives.

Keith McLeod-

Easily the oldest player on our team, this guy is a Journeyman Point Guard who couldn't find a team to take him last year, so he fled to Europe. He has nothing to prove, since we already know what he is: a quick point guard who makes a living scoring on inside drives and the occasional assist. The only way I'd expect to see him on the Thunder roster is if Shaun Livingston loses a leg. Still, he should be fun to watch, and will get his playing time in the Summer League.

Richard Roby-

A former Colorado standout who went undrafted, he now plays alongside former NBA journeyman Ira Newble for Bnei HaSharon in Israel. During the season, he averaged 9.8 Points and 2.6 Rebounds, which is pretty good for a regular Euroleague contender. Still, I don't know if this guy is good enough for the NBA. I'd expect him to see time, but I wouldn't expect him to make our roster as it is. I do expect him to have a long career in Europe, though.

Doug Thomas-

Only three letters away from being the founder of Wendy's, Doug Thomas is an undrafted forward out of Iowa. He played for the Iowa Energy in 07-08, averaging 10.4 Points and 6.3 Rebounds. Last year, he played for the Sundsvall Dragons of Sweden, a team that Scottie Pippen also played for recently when he was trying to make his comeback to the NBA. I can't find his stats (I probably could if I could read Swedish), but here's a video of him from last season nonetheless. His athleticism looks exiting, so if we can get him and Ibaka going, it should make the usual drudge of the Summer League more fun to watch. I'd expect him to get some sizable time.

Kyle Weaver-

He'll get his time, and he'll wipe the floor with his excellent defense.

Russell Westbrook-

And he's playing....why? This is about as ridiculous as Ron Artest playing a few years ago.

D.J. White-

I'd expect a lot of playing time for him, since we haven't gotten to see much of him last season. He'll probably make the roster next year, but I think he'll spend some time in the D-League before we promote him to real roster status, unless we're short on big men. What is for sure is that he's going to beat out B.J. Mullens, at least for this season.

The Orlando Summer League starts Monday, July 6th, and the Vegas Summer League starts Sunday, July 12th. Ready to get your basketball fix? I am!

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