NBA : Oklahoma City decide on nickname

http://ocolly.com/2008/07/23/possible-oklahoma-city-nba-nickname-won%E2%80%99t-please-everyone-but-it-could-be-worse/

Quote :

Possible Oklahoma City NBA nickname won’t please everyone, but it could be worse

Oklahoma State fans remember Kevin Durant for the 28 points he averaged in three games against the Cowboys during his year at Texas. Next year, the forward will be playing his home games in Oklahoma City.
By Ryan Stewart
Sports Writer

Get ready to hear a lot of AC/DC and Garth Brooks, Oklahoma.

With the Sonics organization recently relocating to Oklahoma City, but leaving the Sonics name in Seattle, the potentional new nickname for the franchise has dominated the Oklahoma sports landscape in recent weeks.

Fan suggestions have ranged from the “Aviators” to the “Stealers.” Clever.

It appears a name may have been decided pending an official announcement from the NBA, and Oklahoma basketball fans might be scraping up money to buy “Thunder” merchandise sooner rather than later.

There has been no confirmation from the NBA that the Thunder will be the nickname of the team, as Oklahoma City KOCO-TV reporter Mark Rogers reported, but Rogers said the information was attained from a “source close to the NBA ownership group.”

The response to the name has been anything but unanimous with 51 percent of voters on The Oklahoman Web site expressing their distaste for the handle.

“I don’t think it’s a bad name but it could have been better,” computer engineering senior Josh Carroll said. “I have mixed emotions about it. I actually don’t like that the name doesn’t end in an ‘s.’”

The letter “s” has proven to be a make-or-break fixture in the naming of professional sports franchises with only the Miami Heat, Utah Jazz and Orlando Magic neglecting to sport the character. In fact, only six of the 122 major league sports franchises have a singular nickname.

“I don’t like it,” said Kris Stiger, 30, of Oklahoma City. “Don’t like any names that don’t end in an ‘s.’ What are you supposed to say? It’s difficult to associate with, but I can’t come up with anything better, so by default it might be the best option.”

The lack of a letter is not fans’ only issue regarding the name. The weather-related name has raised a few eyebrows, as well.

“I didn’t like it at first but it has grown on me,” said Mike Lindsey, 30, of Oklahoma City. “I didn’t like it when it was just weather-related, but since there has been talk having a Buffalo included, I started to like it a lot better.

“I like it being more weather-related than oil-related, though.”

The added presence of a rumored logo picturing Bison “thundering” down the plains as a storm builds in the background could be an effective strategy that would not encapsulate “Thunder” as specifically weather oriented and also allow for several marketing and merchandising options.

Also, for mascot purposes, it is wise to use a specific figure rather than a vague weather occurrence, which one can only see ending with Gary England as the mascot or a person dressed as storm clouds.

However, judging by the NBA’s current mascot situation, Oklahoma City would intentionally have to set out and try to have the worst mascot if that were the case.

A dual meaning of the Thunder mantle may be the best way to appease the restless side of the fan base but according to The Oklahoman’s statewide poll, 49 percent of the state is in agreement with the the proposed tag.

“I’m down with it,” Yukon native Roy Wyckoff, 23, said. “My dream is to see Garth Brooks perform ‘The Thunder Rolls’ on opening night.”

The Thunder is a marketable name and it allows plenty of room for the NBA to work with, regardless of the possibility of people associating the name more with the WNBA or MLS than the NBA.

It is a name that can have success in this state, but an oil-based epithet may still play a factor in the name game in Oklahoma City before all is said and done, with the Barons and Oilers receiving a mild amount of support from fans.

Whatever the franchise and the NBA decide will undoubtedly be embraced in time because one thing is certain: If the name is indeed the Thunder, it is better than the Raptors, and it makes more sense than the Utah Jazz.

Let the Thunder roll.

Thunder isn't too bad, it's diffferent too. It was better than going for some generic name that everyone uses aswell. And I don't see what the big deal is about not having an 's' on the end, our best football team of the past two years, the Storm, haven't got an s...people still support them, sort of weird that there's such a big deal about a letter really.

Anywho, I can't even remember how I got onto that article just randomly looking up sports articles I think

Point is, Thunder ftw